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Spain: Saw Some Cool Things
IES Abroad: Barcelona - IES Abroad Barcelona Center
Program Information
Study abroad in Barcelona—capital of the autonomous province of Catalonia. The IES Abroad Barcelona program provides students with opportunities to learn or perfect Spanish while studying business and liberal arts.
| Provider: | IES Abroad |
| Location(s): | Barcelona, Spain |
| Year Founded: | |
| Website | Take me there! |
Review By:
Alex L. (Pre-med, Harvard University) on September 09, 2011
Overall Rating
Personal Information
| * Start Date: | 2011-05-26 |
| * End Date: | 2011-07-09 |
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 2 weeks - 1 month |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
It was really good. There was a little more work than I expected but the quality of the classes were overall very good. The professors were very capable and had a good plan and excellent teaching abilities and I really learned a lot. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
It was overall very good. |
| * Housing: |
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| * Food: |
It was fine. The only problem was the expenses of it. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
The field trip to the Costa Brava was amazing. It was beautiful and fun. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
It was very safe. |
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* Home Institution Advising:
How well did Harvard University prepare and support you for your time abroad? |
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Finances
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* Money: How easily were you able to live on a student's budget?
(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost) |
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| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | Way too much. 400-500 dollars |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Buy food at grocery stores do not go to restaurants each meal because they are expensive. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | Beginner |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | Spanish 30 |
| Language acquisition improvement? |
Yes. I needed to speak Spanish every day. The program seriously improved my Spanish. |
| If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition? |
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Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
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* Who did you live with?
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* Who did you take classes with?
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A Look Back
| * If you could do it all over again, would you choose the same program? | Yes |
| * What did you gain/learn from your experience abroad? Was it worthwhile? | Yes. I saw amazing things and things I'd never seen before. It was beautiful and very fun. |