Incredible Experience!!! Past Review
By Allee (South Dakota State University) - abroad from 05/25/2016 to 06/28/2016 with
EUROACE: Valencia - Spanish Language, Internship, Academic Programs
I learned so many things during this trip. I learned about the Spanish culture, cuisine, and language to name a few. Additionally, I learned a lot about myself and it has given me a new perspective on the world after traveling abroad.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | None |
Review Your Program
|
* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
The Spanish class I took in Valencia was great! I felt that I was placed at the correct level for the amount of Spanish background I had, plus I learned a lot about the language and feel much more comfortable in conversation and writing now! |
|
* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
I loved the directors at Euroace! They were all very helpful and organized. We did several activities and trips with them and I felt they were all well planned! |
|
* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
I had a great experience with my host mom. She was very kind to me and wanted to make sure I had an enjoyable time without being too overbearing! |
| * Food: |
As long as you're willing to try new foods, I thought it was great. Our host mom was a good cook and it was fun to try new things! |
|
* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
We spent lots of time doing things as a group, so that probably hindered some social and cultural integration. However, during the intercambio language exchanges I had the opportunity to meet native Spaniards as well as people from other countries. |
|
* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
As far as I know, no one in our group needed to visit any healthcare facility. But if I had needed to, I would have felt comfortable with the advice from our instructors and the directors at Euroace. |
| * Safety: |
Valencia felt very safe to me as long as you keep your things with you at all times. On our last day, a group of 3 of us had our purses stolen because we walked about 5 feet away from them on the beach. So as long as you're careful, you will be just fine. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
I absolutely loved this program and the school. The only problem with it is that it was too short. |
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) |
Almost all of the necessities are covered in the program fee. We had to have spending money for about 3-4 meals during the excursions, but other than that everything was covered in the abroad fee. Any other money spent was on personal things such as coffee, ice cream, souvenirs, etc. |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | $50-$75 |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
|
How much did the program encourage you to use the language?
0 = No encouragement, 5 = frequent encouragement to use the language |
We signed an oath at the beginning of the program to only speak in Spanish unless there was an emergency! We constantly spoke Spanish with our instructors, the directors at Euroace, our teacher at Euroace, and anywhere else we went. |
| 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? | Spanish 492 |
| 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? | Don't be afraid to SPEAK. Even if you make mistakes, just speak as much as possible. Experiment with new sentence structures and vocabulary while you have people there to correct you if you do make a mistake. Take advantage of the native speakers to help you! |
Other Program Information
|
* Where did you live?
Select all that apply |
|
|
* Who did you live with?
Select all that apply |
|
|
* Who did you take classes with?
Select all that apply |
|
| About how many local friends did you make that you will likely keep in touch with? |
A Look Back
| * What did you like most about the program? |
|
| * What could be improved? |
|
| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | Take advantage of the free days to travel and plan ahead. We had a free weekend at the end of our program that I wish I would have used to travel to another city in Spain. That being said, we did have fun in Valencia regardless, and we took an optional excursion to La Albufera with Euroace that was a good experience! |
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 Academic or LinguistYou went abroad with specific academic goals in mind; the program credentials and rigor of your coursework abroad were very important to you. You had a great time abroad, but never lost sight of your studies and (if applicable) were diligent with your foreign language study. Good for you! |
