Universitat Pompeu Fabra with ISA Past Review
By Lauren C (Spanish and Psychology, University of Arkansas - Fayetteville) for
ISA Study Abroad in Barcelona, Spain
Absolutely! I feel like I would have enjoyed a more traditionally "Spanish" experience in the south of Spain rather than in the north, but I definitely wouldn't trade this experience for the world, it was truly amazing and eyeopening and I learned a ton about myself throughout the experience
Personal Information
| If you took classes at multiple universities, list those universities here: | Universitat Pompeu Fabra |
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 2 weeks - 1 month |
| The term and year this program took place: | Winter 2010 |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
The Spanish grading system was a bit hard to get used to and there were a great deal of group projects, which is particularly difficult when we all live in different places in the city and can't really meet at each others houses, but the work itself was pretty good |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
The people in the ISA office were amazing, they were so accessible and easy to talk to, I always loved going in there any time I needed anything, sometimes, however, they didn't do a very good job of getting things done when they needed to be done |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
Apartment near the Encants metro stop <br /><br /> My host family was pretty good, but we definitely had very different personalities, so it was a bit difficult to get along with them at times, the apartment itself was very nice and homey, the neighborhood was ok, but there was a bit of a safety issue as I got mugged nearby while I was walking to school |
| * Food: |
It was certainly different from American food, but quite good, nonetheless, though I think we all got a bit tired of all the ham |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
Barcelona is very big on pickpockets... I was robbed about halfway through the program and lost my laptop, digital camera, etc. it was very hard on me and I was definitely happy to come back to the US where I wouldn't have to worry so much about people stealing all my stuff |
| 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? | Not nearly as much as I had expected, almost all my meals were provided by my host family, so I didn't have to spend that money, so most weeks, I spent less than $100 a week |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Just always be aware of your money, it definitely helped me to make weekly budgets and regularly check how much money I had left |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | None |
| If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition? |
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| Language acquisition improvement? |
It was a bit difficult to make Spanish friends to practice the language with, so I definitely ended up spending more time with the toher Americans than I had anticipated, but I have definitely noticed (especially after being back in the states for a while) that my Spanish had improved a lot while I was in Spain |
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? | BEWARE OF PICKPOCKETS!! Treat EVERYONE on the street as a potential robber and don't trust a single one of them, this may make you feel bad for the legitimately nice people in the city, but they will totally understand if you blow them off, because they know their city is full of thieves, I would recommend it though for people who enjoy contemporary art and culture, it is a very artsy city, I'm told it also has a fantastic nightlife... but I'm not the type of person that enjoys that sort of thing so I wouldn't really know |
