Program Reviews

Hands down the best experience in my 21 years of life. A full month abroad in the most beautiful city. The ladies of API Florence planned the best weekend excursions. We saw some of Italy's most famous spots and were on the most informational tours. We really got the full experience just in a short 5 weeks. The program also provided some really fun activities like gelato making, tours of Florence, cooking classes and more. As for the classes, so informational and helpful. I would do it all over again in a heart beat.

Studying abroad has opened doors for me I didn't even knew existed. It has provided me with helpful skills that I use in my everyday life. I learned so much about the world and about myself abroad, all I want to do is tell people about it! Living in a different country can give you a fresh perspective and challenge your biases. You learn the importance of mindfulness, authenticity, gratitude, bravery, openness, resilience, and leadership. Since my study abroad trip, I have involved myself in three different internships informing others on the benefits of study abroad!

I lived in Viña del Mar, Chile, a lovely city on the coast of the Pacific Ocean, from July-December 2019 as part of a study abroad program through API that was focused on Business and Spanish. I lived in a comfortable, centrally-located apartment with a retired Chilean grandmother as my host mom for the duration, and it was fantastic. I'm Celiac, and was worried about the availability of gluten-free food options while abroad, but my host mom cooked all of my meals without a problem - and they were delicious! So is traditional Chilean food, by the way - empanadas, completos, lomo a lo pobre, sopaipillas, pebre, pastel de choclo, alfajores...try them all. My coursework was engaging and interesting, too - I took 5 classes at the local Universidad Adolfo Ibañez (UAI), 3 in Spanish and 2 in English. Although sometimes the periods were long, the professors were clearly passionate about their subjects and were on top of teaching international students with varying levels of Spanish and knowledge about Chile. Studying at UAI also gave me a fantastic opportunity to get to know other students outside of the API program itself. Within the program, we were all pretty close-knit, and often traveled together on excursions planned and executed by API - my favorites were a long weekend trip to the Atacama Desert in the north, a tour and lunch at a local vineyard, and a walking tour of incredible graffiti art in Valparaiso, an vibrant, artsy neighboring city. Overall, it was simply a fantastic study abroad experience, incredibly well-supported by API and our resident onsite coordinator even through some instances of political unrest. I gained self confidence, cross-cultural understanding, lasting friendships, and serious Spanish competence and business knowledge, and I can't recommend the program with API enough.

Travel has always been a passion of mine. In my 21 years I've traveled to 17 different countries, having experienced a multitude of different cultures, food, and people, but my experiences in Ireland stand of as my favorites. While abroad I saw 13 countries, and 30 different cities. My program with API was perfect from start to end. They helped me with planning, finding my flight, and picked me up at the airport. My site has a site director, Sophie, who helped us settle in then gave us a 2 day orientation of Maynooth and Dublin. Which was followed by another 2 day orientation presented my Maynooth faculty. After that my adventure truly began.

Maynooth University sits about 40 min away from Dublin via train/bus, and encompasses around 12,000 students in a town of 12,000 citizens. It is a small town by a historical one with a large Church and small Castle on it's grounds. It has a beautiful garden behind it's historical buildings on the old campus, and modern architecture on the new. You can walk anywhere you need to go in town, the downtown shops will have whatever you are looking for.

I was able to complete my minor in Psychology at Maynooth while also completing a certificate in Irish Cultural Heritage. Classes in Ireland were very different than classes in the US. Most of my classes had no homework, and no essays. They either had a Midterm and Final or just a midterm which determined your whole grade. This is something I loved because it allowed for more freedom on the weekends, but it did make the end of the semester a bit more stressful as I am used to creating a final project instead of test. I still really enjoyed this way of learning and felt it allowed me to truly make the most of my experience.

Maynooth offers a variety of clubs and organisations. I was apart of the Volleyball Club (which place 2nd in the country), Disney Club (which took a trip to Disney Paris), and the Surf Club (which took a trip to Lahinch on Irelands West Coast near the Cliffs of Moher). These were incredible opportunities to be apart of. Very few people can say they went surfing in Ireland, or place 2nd in the country for collegiate club volleyball. This also allowed me to meet so many people from a variety of cultures and backgrounds. Now I have friends from Romania, France, England, Belgium, Spain, Canada, and Ireland. Not to mention friends I made from the US all across the country in NC, WI, MO, CO, MD...

My program itself was one of a kind. I was apart of API Dublin although my school was in Maynooth. API Dublin included groups from University College Dublin, Trinity College, and Maynooth University. This was a great experience because it allowed me to meet other students at other schools and broaden my horizons even further. Through API we went on cultural excursions through our host country as well as internationally. I went on a trip to the Ring of Kerry, went sighting at Queen Maeve's grave, Galway, the Wild Atlantic Way, and Surfing in Bundoran. We also did smaller excursions closer to home like the Leprechaun museum, Paddle Boarding, and Community Service. And we went on an international excursion to Edinburgh, Scotland. There we saw Edinburgh Castle, part of the catacombs of the original city, and Greyfriars Kirkyard (Statue of Greyfriars Bobby).

I could talk about my Abroad experiences for hours on end and really haven't stopped talking about it since I returned to my home institution. Ireland was home to some of the nicest people I have ever met. Helpful locals happy to show you around to be honest about the best spots in town and hidden gems many tourist miss out on. If you are looking for a school where you can be involved, if you are looking for a friendly helpful community, if you are looking for the best abroad experience around, look no further. API Maynooth is the trip for you.

Studying abroad is something I thought I would never do; however, it became an experience that I often look back on and smile. Before this experience, I never traveled outside of the country before so I was a bit terrified; however, API and their resident directors did an amazing job of preparing me for this wonderful experience. Dubrovnik is a great location to study abroad without becoming too overwhelmed.

There were only 13 people in my program, and the class sizes ranged from 4 to 20 students. So, it very easy to get to know everyone in your program and the locals. In addition, almost everyone speaks English! I was a bit hesitant about traveling while I was in Croatia; however, I noticed that English is a universal language, and a lot of people know it. I do recommend learning a few words in Croatian, it's a great way to earn brownie points with the locals. While abroad, it seemed that everyday was a constant adventure, and I am beyond thankful that I had the opportunity to experience this.

I studied abroad in Granada Spain of my spring semester of 2018. The API Granada staff is absolutely dedicated to their students. When I arrived in Madrid Spain for the start of the program & first excursion I was greeted warmly and at the moment I already knew I was home for the next six months. I would soon find out over the next six months Granada Spain, API staff, my host mother, and abroad friends would be my forever home. Granada is located between the beaches of Spain and the mountains of Sierra Nevada. Granada is a walking city and has a local bus station you can easily purchase a bus ticket to any area of Spain. A small airport is also located in the city as well; if you’re looking to travel outside of Spain while abroad you can take a short bus ride from Granada bus station directly to Malaga Airport. Tapas are famous in Granada, and the sunset over the Alhambra is breath taking. I took 12 credits at the at the Universidad Granada ; the professors engaged you in the community & if you needed any assistance with classes API Granada staff could help navigate any concerns. You are able to take your electives in Spanish or English, as well as two additional classes solely in Spanish which you are placed according to your level of Spanish. The API Granada program was the least expensive out of all other programs I was researching, and the city life is very cheap compared to other popular known study abroad destinations of Spain. API staff had an open door policy, and was thrilled every time you stopped in the office between classes, you are never alone! If you are looking to stray away from the normal study abroad destinations, you will not regret living in Granada Spain with API!

Arianna Wolanski

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TAY Case Manager

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Wow, how do I start!? I spend the spring of 2018 in Rome, Italy at John Cabot University through API and I have no regrets to this day! If you’re looking for independent living but with a family atmosphere, choose API. The roommates I was placed with are my best friends today, therefore, there’s no need to worry about ‘bad’ roommates when API is choosing! Financially, API was cheapest for me as well which made everything better! Even with this program being cheaper than the rest, they still offered about three weekend vacations and some local tours with the program that was all paid for. I can’t imagine studying with anyone and I have nothing bad to say about this program. From the advisors, to our program mates and apartments everything exceeded my expectations.

I really liked this program because it was a smaller group of people. This allowed me to truly get to know all the people on my program and have positive relationships with the professors. For some of the classes, the professors took our group on field trips to see what we were learning in class, in real life. I really appreciated learning sustainability from a different country perspective and learning about issues Costa Rica faces. The city of San Jose was very manageable. It was not too big so you could easily navigate it but also find cool little neighborhoods with cute cafés and shops. San José was great for traveling out of because it is the capital and also located in the middle of the country. I was able to buy cheap bus tickets to anywhere in the country very easily. Additionally, I felt very safe when traveling in Costa Rica because the locals are very nice and helpful. They are also very patient when you are trying to practice your Spanish. I think the most helpful thing was having program directors on sight in San José. They were API employees but from the area. My program directors helped us with anything we needed, plus they were so knowledgable about the country and its history. I would have lunch with them every other week and they would just check and give us recommendations if we wanted to travel somewhere. They made all of us feel so at home. Overall, a wonderful program.

This program was amazing! Granada is a perfect town to live in because of its beauty and atmosphere. Everyone is really welcoming and it's a safe city that still offers lots of site seeing and night-life opportunities. It also is great for learning Spanish since English is not as wide-spread as in Madrid or other huge cities (although if you don't speak much Spanish you can definitely get around. All touristy destinations and most restaurants will have an English-speaking worker). The on-site coordinators really care about your well being and are great, funny people. If you have any school or travel question they are more than willing to help, and they are there for emotional support if you need it too.

I'm a Spanish major and went in with 300 level Spanish skills and had a great time! I tested into level 7 (and then moved into level 8 after the intensive month was over) so all of my courses were completely in Spanish which was surprisingly comfortable and enjoyable. My roommate had very little Spanish skills (level 3) and she still enjoyed her classes too. The professors did a great job of teaching the info in an engaging way and had lots of experience with American students. Classes were more challenging than I expected, but they tend to not have much homework and they're only 4 days a week.

Our excursions were fantastic and when I spoke to other students in Granada with different programs we were significantly cheaper, but went on the same, or more excursions. We were one of the only programs that had excursion that went to other countries, and we also had lots of freedom when visiting places. I would recommend going to Barcelona on your own, since it is not one of the excursions.

I did the early start option and would highly recommend it since it let me warm up my Spanish before having to be put into semester classes. As mentioned in an earlier review, the placement test is a little intimidating, but really wasn't as bad as I thought. But, I would still recommend brushing up on your Spanish before coming. The early-start option also gives you more time to be immersed in the culture and travel, but don't worry people who do the semester program still get a great experience. There were 2-3 students on my program who enjoyed it so much that they decided to stay the entire year rather than just a semester!

Only downside is that it can be more expensive to buy plane tickets from Granada in comparison to Madrid/Barcelona because the airport is smaller and the flights are much longer from Granada. Day to day cost of living is low though.

I lived with a host family and really enjoyed it. Forces you to speak Spanish and you learn more about the local events and cultural differences (plus they were really nice). I wouldn't recommend living in an apartment if you wan to improve your Spanish. The residencias are good, but can sometimes feel more controlling from what I heard and occasionally you're placed with other api students which doesn't help your language skills.
I can't recommend this enough!

My study abroad experience with API in Barcelona, Spain is one I will never forget. API made my experience even more incredible with all the helped provided with the emotional cycle, culture immersion, academics, housing, and so much more. I'm very grateful to have studied abroad with such an amazing programs. The on-site staff helped us all get adjusted with out first few days being in a foreign country. Also, through the semester, the staff organized trips to other cities in Spain, workshops, 'futbol' league, as well as volunteer opportunities outside of school. API did an amazing job with helping dive into the culture to learn even more about the the beautiful country. The classes at Universitat Pompeu Fabra were exactly what they lived up to, as well as great professor the helped adapt into the new learning style. The living accommodations provided by the program gives the student options on their preference with a host family, apartments, or dorms. I choose to stay with a host family to really immerse myself into the culture. If I could go my trip over again, I would still choose staying with a host family. Again, my decision to pick this program exceeded all my standards and I with I could have stayed longer!