One of the best experiences of my life Past Review
By A student (Oberlin College) - abroad from 08/24/2018 to 12/17/2018 with
PRESHCO: Study Abroad in Córdoba, Spain
I drastically improved my Spanish, made relationships with locals I will never forget, gained confidence, and learned a lot of amazing history!
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 0-2 weeks |
Review Your Program
|
* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
Overall, classes were much less work-intensive than my home university. I was surprised that there was barely any reading/daily homework for classes, both UCO and PRESHCO. That being said, the classes were interesting and definitely helped me to gain a more complex image of Córdoba and Spain as a whole. |
|
* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Administration is great. The equipo is always available for questions/concerns and happy to speak with you. I always felt very supported, especially in terms of adjusting to life in Spain. The only thing that was a little frustrating was the bureaucracy regarding academic classes. We spent the first month or so without access to moodle (blackboard equivalent), and it was very unclear why and how to resolve it. |
|
* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
Host family was incredibly kind and welcoming. Our daily schedules sometimes clashed, so don't feel weird if you don't eat every meal together every day. That being said, I felt very at home in the apartment and my host mom always made an effort to make me feel comfortable. Her extended family was also incredibly kind. |
| * Food: |
Host mom's cooking was great. We had salad every day, which was much appreciated as there aren't tons of veggies in Spanish cuisine. The meals PRESHCO covered when we were traveling as a group were also delicious and we got to try typical foods from Spain. Salmorejo is a must! |
|
* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
PRESHCO works very hard to integrate you into Córdoba/Andalucía, BUT, and this is a big but, it requires work on the part of the student. PRESHCO offers many opportunities to integrate you into the culture: gastronomy courses, conversation partners with Spanish students learning English, Spanish dance, various excursions, events, and tours. The director and administrators themselves are very helpful in letting us know about local events, concerts, theatre, offers, etc. PRESHCO definitely does all the can. That being said, many people on the program did not take these opportunities, and just hung out with one another, passing the time as they would in the US. Take advantage of the privilege of attending an immersive study abroad program, explore the city, hang out with your conversation partners, and it will pay off! |
|
* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
|
| * Safety: |
Cordoba is very safe, especially compared to big cities in the US. Be careful and wary walking home at night, and you will be fine. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
PRESHCO is amazing because you really get to explore Spain in an intimate, intellectual setting. It is really amazing that we could have private tours of Spain's best monuments/museums, and see such a wide breadth of cities. I geeked out pretty much the whole semester when seeing all the architecture. |
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) |
Córdoba is very affordable, especially with regards to food and drink. |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | 50-75 Euros |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Don't eat in the touristy places! They are overpriced and not as good. |
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 |
Just like with cultural integration, PRESHCO does all they can to encourage us to speak Spanish. And just like with the cultural integration, it requires work on the part of the student. Yes, speaking Spanish requires more work and you won't be able to say everything you want all the time, but it will eventually pay off. I can now speak and understand Spanish without it costing me a lot of work. |
| 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 |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | 300 level (literature) |
| How many hours per day did you use the language? | 10+ |
| Do you have any tips/advice on the best ways to practice the language for future study abroad participants? | Hang out with Spanish students. Make the effort with the conversation partners-you will both be shy but you are only here for a semester/year so take the risk! Also, try and take smaller classes without any other PRESHCO students at UCO, as it will be easier to get closer with your peers. I was the only foreigner in a class with 10 people and although at first it was scary, by the end it felt like a small class at Oberlin. |
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? | I should have brought more shorts |
