Sevilla September 01, 2022
By A student (Brandeis University) - abroad from 01/19/2022 to 05/11/2022 with
CIEE: Seville - Liberal Arts
I improved my spanish, gained some confidence in myself, and met a lot of interesting people. It was a worthwhile experience and I recommend studying abroad
Personal Information
| 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. |
Interesting class topics, but I felt that the Cursos Concertados were misrepresented as being for international students, when they were only for Americans |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
They were nice, but disorganized (originally telling me the wrong roommate, wrong classrooms on the first day, etc.) |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
I really liked my host family and she was very respectful of my dietary restrictions |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
This mainly comes from my own efforts and not CIEE |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
They did not communicate how COVID would be handled (with the homestay, classes, etc.), or even how to get a COVID test |
| * Safety: |
I felt very safe in Seville |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
Yes, but I would have taken classes at the local university to be more immersed locally |
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) |
Food/Drink was cheap, but make sure to budget for adventures |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
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How much did the program encourage you to use the language?
0 = No encouragement, 5 = frequent encouragement to use the language |
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| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | Advanced |
| How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program? | Advanced |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | Hisp 111 (7th semester Spanish) |
| How many hours per day did you use the language? | |
| Do you have any tips/advice on the best ways to practice the language for future study abroad participants? | Go to language exchanges (intercambios)! |
Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
Select all that apply |
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* Who did you live with?
Select all that apply |
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* Who did you take classes with?
Select all that apply |
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| About how many local friends did you make that you will likely keep in touch with? | 0 |
A Look Back
| * What did you like most about the program? |
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| * What could be improved? |
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| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | That my classes would be with all americans |
Reasons For Studying Abroad
| To help future students find programs attended by like-minded individuals, please choose the profile that most closely represents you. |
The Nearly Native or Trail BlazerCraving the most authentic experience possible, perhaps you lived with a host family or really got in good with the locals. You may have felt confined by your program requirements and group excursions. Instead, you'd have preferred to plan your own trips, even skipping class to conduct your own 'field work.' |
Individual Course Reviews
| Course Name/Rating: |
Jewish History of Spain |
| Course Department: | Geography and History (Universidad de Sevilla) |
| Instructor: | |
| Instruction Language: | Spanish |
| Comments: | The professor (whose first name was Jesus no less) spent 1/3 of the class explaining what Judaism is to a bunch of Jewish students, and the other 2/3 was spent teaching oversimplified, occasionally-inaccurate history |
| Credit Transfer Issues: |
| Course Name/Rating: |
Historical and Artistic Heritage of Seville |
| Course Department: | Geography and History (University of Seville) |
| Instructor: | |
| Instruction Language: | Spanish |
| Comments: | I learned a lot and the field trips were great. |
| Credit Transfer Issues: |
