Barcelona, a Place You Can Call Your Own Past Review
By Elizabeth W (Psychology, The Catholic University of America) for
IES Abroad: Barcelona - Study Abroad with IES Abroad
My experience was worth more than I expected it to be. I learned the world is bigger, better, and more mysterious than you could ever learn from a book.
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Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
I learned so much more outside of the classroom than inside it, for a few reasons. The program was not run as well as other programs I heard of, and some professors were difficult to work with. The things I was exposed to on field studies during class, and my own exploring and travelling was much more influential and educational. My abroad experiences with stay with me forever. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Good knowledge of country, efficient mail service. However, little organization among administration |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
close to metro, but a little far from center city. Great host mother |
| * Food: |
host mother catered to likes and dislikes, for the most part. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
The only program wide trip planned was packed with a little too much for the time they designated for the trip. The beginning and end of year parties were nice. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
The center was pretty health conscious. We were also adequately warned about the pick pocketing problem in Barcelona, and how to avoid being a taret |
| 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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| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | A metro pass was about (I think) 70 euro unlimited for a month, which my friends and I took full advantage of. One could find inexpensive meals (10 euro or less) which were better than the more expensive meals. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Cabs at night coming home from the clubs and bars could get expensive, especially to take alone or with only 1 other person (between 10-20 euro). Travelling was sometimes more pricey that expected |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | Intermediate |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | Spanish 203 |
| If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition? |
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| Language acquisition improvement? |
I was able to speak Spanish with my house mother everyday at home, during day to day activities and especially over dinner at night. When going about Barcelona, I used the language as much as possible. |
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 do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | Despite some cons of IES, the city of Barcelona is an amazing place to study for the semester. |
