Granada: Best experience of my life! Past Review
By Michael B (Spanish Secondary Education, Illinois State University) for
CEA CAPA Education Abroad: Granada, Spain
I now understand how different the American culture is from other cultures all over the world. I know have a better understanding of how the world works, and why people do the things that they do. Studying abroad just confirmed my desires to teach high school Spanish when I graduate from college.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 0-2 weeks |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
I feel like the teaching methods are very comparable to that of ISU. I also believe that my Spanish professors truly want their students to succeed. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Our program was great in organizing programs, and helping us with whatever we needed help with. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
I was treated like a son by my house mom. I encourage future students to stay with my house mother, as she is a great woman and helped me so much with my Spanish. |
| * Food: |
Everybody is very accommodating in terms of food in Spain. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
Travel! Travel! Travel! |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
I always feel very safe, and very well taken care of here. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
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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? | I spend about 20 euro a week. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Be prepared to spend a lot of money when you are traveling. |
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? |
Make sure to speak Spanish everyday, as this is the best way to improve your language skills. |
| 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
| * 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? | Anybody who is looking to learn Spanish should choose Granada for their study abroad program. I believe this because it is one of the cities in Spain where English is spoken the least, which makes it easier to speak Spanish. Also, they University of Granada has 80,000 students, so it is a great place to meet new friends. |
