Get used to the abrupt teaching style in Spain Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

I learned many new things as well as relearned things that I, and most of my classmates, had been taught incorrectly or poorly, especailly in regards to Grammer.

On-site administration of your program

The program definitely gave us tools to help make the time easier and gave us good information about things to do and places to see. They tried to help when you had direct questions but were definitely setting you up to be independent. The size of the program was perfect and the group meetings were good times to reconnect with everyone. They were a little slow at getting things done, but this is just the Spanish way and you get used to it. I defintely learned to relax my expectations when it came to the things that they were planning and/or in charge of.

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

30 minutes walk from school and the center or town in a very residential neighborhood with a roommate and 2 other girls from our program in the same building. It was also 30 minutes from where most of the other students lived. There was no internet and only a couple of places 30 min away where you could take your own laptop and pay for access. My roommate and I shared a room and had our own bathroom. We had a señora who cooked, cleaned and did our laundry whether we wanted it or not. <br /><br /> I enjoyed the house but was frustrated by the lack of internet access and how far it was from the center of town and all the other students. It made walking home late a scary experience even though it is a mostly safe neighborhood.

They give you a lot of food whether you want it or not and you are expected to eat it all. Most host moms will take into account likes and dislikes but will probably continue to cook something you don´t like if they like it. My food was always good, but bland, something that surprised me about Spain and that I found to be similar throughout the country.

Since all of the classes where with English speaking student it was easy to not make any Spanish speaking friends and therefore hang out with English speakers all the time. However, the classes and homestay required speaking Spanish so my skills definitely improved.

Select all that apply

• Host Family

Select all that apply

• Americans