IES Barcelona was the time of my life Past Review

By (Finance and Financial Management Services., The University of Texas at Austin) for

IES Abroad: Barcelona - Study Abroad with IES Abroad

What did you gain/learn from your experience abroad? Was it worthwhile?
It was an amazing time that went by too quickly. I learned a lot of Spanish and about the political science of Spain all the while having the time of my life meeting new people and going new places.

Review Your Program

* Overall educational experience

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

I had two great professors in Barcelona. They knew how to get everyone to work yet understood we had a lot to do. It was not easy by any means, however, everything was simply taught proficiently.

* Host Country Program Administration

On-site administration of your program

* Housing:

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

We thought the apartment was great. I would, however, never recommend a friend who is going on the same trip to go through IES abroad in selecting housing. Putting a residence assistant in your apartment is ridiculous and they need to make that explicitly clear before people sign up.

* Food:

* Social & Cultural Integration:

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

Trip to Mallorca, and Costa Brava were so much fun. IES also took us to the Dali Museum which was absolutely amazing.

* Health Care:

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

* Safety:

Barcelona is just a mess when in comes to safety. By the end of the trip out of my 9 friends 7 of them had their phones stolen at some point. We saw countless numbers of people get robbed on the Metro or beach. It really teaches you to look after yourself and be responsible though. We had no health issues.

If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? Yes

Finances

* 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)

Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? Really wish I got some advice on not spending a lot right when you get there. We figured out how to save a lot of money by the end. Supermarkets are so much cheaper than anything else that they are a must.

Language

* Did your program have a foreign language component? Yes
How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? None
Language acquisition improvement?

Other Program Information

* Where did you live?

Select all that apply

  • Apartment
* Who did you live with?

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  • Americans
* Who did you take classes with?

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  • Americans