Alicante Summer Abroad: Best Decision of My Life Thus Far! Past Review
By Anna D (English, St. Joseph's College New York) for
Spain Study Abroad Reflections: Comprehensive Reviews of Past Programs
My experience abroad helped me to better understand the Spanish culture and lifestyles. The month abroad, immersed in a foreign country, helped me to gain some perspective on my life back home. Definitely a worthwhile experience!
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. |
The workload and grading system was fairly similar to our own howeverthe teaching methods were a bit less structured. I liked this aspect because classes were run more as discussion groups rather than lectures. |
|
* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
One of the administrators was fantastic while the other was not-so helpful and seemed almost reluctant to aid in any difficulties we encountered during the course of the trip. |
|
* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
My host family treated me as a family member. However, as I mentioned in a prior question, it was difficult to communicate with them due to the lack of consideration for my knowledge of the Spanish language. |
| * Food: |
Eat as much paella as possible! |
|
* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
The trip to Granada and the flamenco show was fantastic. The trip to Barcelona was also enjoyable though while the living arrangements were lovely, they were extremely out of the way and resulted in some confusion as to how to return to our accommodations late at night. |
|
* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
|
| * Safety: |
The city of Alicante was extremely safe. I had no issues of safety while in Alicante or Granada. Barcelona, however, is a bit more intense and young girls should be careful of their surroundings, specifically of the men of Barcelona. They are very aggressive. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
|
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) |
|
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
| If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition? |
|
| Language acquisition improvement? |
The courses were great but the weekend trips were full of English-speaking tour guides. This was great for comprehending the cultural significance of all of the places we visited but made it difficult to transition back into speaking Spanish once we returned to Alicante. |
Other Program Information
|
* Where did you live?
Select all that apply |
|
|
* Who did you live with?
Select all that apply |
|
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? | All students would benefit from this program. The University of Alicante is a wonderful place to attend classes and the city of Alicante is so vibrant and full of life! The city is filled to the brim with warm and welcoming citizens, all of whom are more than willing to help a lost college student find their way back to their apartment. The people are wonderful and the atmosphere is beautiful.I definitely recommend getting a map of the city and its bus stations at the start of the program and becoming familiarized with the main avenues closest to your accommodations. |
