Full Immersion and Extreme Independence! Past Review
By A student (Pomona College) - abroad from 02/01/2018 to 06/15/2018 with
Middlebury Schools Abroad: Middlebury in Cordoba, Spain
My main goal in studying abroad was to improve my Spanish language skills. Although it was hard to notice my progress at times, if I look back at my level of skill at the beginning of the program, I am proud of the steps I took towards fluency. This program is extremely conducive to that.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 6 months+ |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
Although there were things I did not enjoy about my courses (such as unexpected changing of professors), I found them interesting as a whole and the full immersion experience improved my Spanish immensely. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
The Middlebury School in Spain is based in Madrid and therefore there are no on-side administrators in Córdoba. I found the Madrid administrators to be relatively accessible and helpful, but other students found it more difficult to pull on them when needed. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
I enjoyed living in a shared apartment with other young people (2 from Spain and 1 from France). I found housing before I arrived in Córdoba, which is would DEFINITELY recommend. |
| * Food: |
Cheap and delicious! |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
Very! I spoke Spanish 100% of the time with everyone around me. Córdoba is a great size in that it was relatively easy for me to feel as though I had truly gotten to know the city and my way around. I wish I had been more bold in making friends with the Spanish students in my classes, but there was plenty of chance to interact and get to know each other. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
The only experience I had with healthcare was buying allergy medicine. We had a presentation on health, a 24 hour phone line with Middlebury if needed, and our orientation leaders walked us by the clinics we could use our program-given health insurance at. |
| * Safety: |
I felt very safe in Córdoba. I decided to live in the center, which is a lot busier at night, which helped a lot with this and made me feel a lot safer walking home at night, for example. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
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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) |
Very easily. Córdoba is very affordable and Pomona provided an adequate stipend. |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | Maybe around $35-40 |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
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How much did the program encourage you to use the language?
0 = No encouragement, 5 = frequent encouragement to use the language |
This program was full immersion. I took classes 100% in Spanish and spoke Spanish with the other students on the program, my classmates, my teachers, and my flatmates. |
| 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? | Fluent |
| 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? | It is VERY easy to immerse yourself in Spanish on this program. Just jump in! |
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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| About how many local friends did you make that you will likely keep in touch with? | 0 |
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? | I wish I had been braver about approaching local students and making friends! I found myself spending most of my time with the other students on the program, which was fine in terms of language because we spoke Spanish amongst ourselves, but I wish I had immersed myself more in the university social scene. It would have been great to have more activties to facilitate this or tips on how to integrate. Overall, I wish I had known that it would not be very easy to make friends with the local students: it takes work, and guts! |
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 Nearly Native or Trail BlazerCraving the most authentic experience possible, perhaps you lived with a host family or really got in good with the locals. You may have felt confined by your program requirements and group excursions. Instead, you'd have preferred to plan your own trips, even skipping class to conduct your own 'field work.' |
