CIEE Study Abroad Was Awesome, But Barcelona Was The Wrong City Past Review
By John M (HISTORY., Providence College) for
CIEE: Barcelona - Business & Culture
I know how to travel, got to see the greatest things I've ever seen, but none of the best things for me were in BCN. I only learned the language through taking class in spanish and traveling to places within spain.
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. |
Workload easier, The CIEE profs were fine but the one from UPF was abominable. Lectures barely corresponded to the final, final was 60% of grade (no midterm), and he taught the entire course by reading aloud material from the europa.eu website. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
People were awesome. The woman who ran the whole thing was the best, very nice and helpful. I'll miss her. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
It was great living conditions but I was surrounded by only americans. Safe neighborhood, but close to the ghetto (though the ghetto is safe, it looks trashy). Didn't need to buy cookware or sheets, and there was room service weekly that changed the towel for showering, the hand towel, and the bath-mat towel. If all you want to do every night is party from midnight to 6am, this is the place for you. |
| * Food: |
Desserts were good, try not to get too fat while you're there. Not a lot of healthy choices like in america, unless you like eating chicken every meal. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
All were awesome, especially the Madrid trip. Great tour guides. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
Your life will never be in danger. Your wallet is always in extreme danger. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
No
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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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| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Ryanair is much more expensive if you book last-minute. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
| If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition? |
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| Language acquisition improvement? |
Do a homestay, avoid the residencia completely- it's just a bunch of americans from crummy midwestern state colleges, yet they advertised it as being made up of international students. Everyone in BCN speaks english but I always spoke to them in Spanish. Travel to smaller cities on the weekends to speak spanish, like Sagunto, Malaga, etc and avoid the most touristy areas. |
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? | A business major. If you're not business, don't do it. |
