SAI Study Abroad: Universitat Pompeu Fabra (Barcelona)

I studied in Barcelona the summer of 2022 and it was incredible. Prior to this, I only traveled out of country to Canada and the Bahamas with my family so it was a brand new experience going to Europe by myself. I wanted to take the jump so I did, chose random roommates and decided to go to Barcelona. Right off the bat, I was greeted by some of the SAI on site team and driven back to my apartment. They helped me up and introduced me to my roommates. We got to know each other immediately. I had that weekend free and then started class that Monday. One of my roommates was in my class which was amazing so we commuted about a half hour on the metro together. My apartment was directly next to The Sagrada Familia (most beautiful location ever) and the campus was near the beach. My class was from 6-9pm Monday - Thursday. We would take the bus right after class to the beach every day. My class had students from the US, local students, and other international students. It was a film class and the premise of the class was to create a film on your own. We decided to film a local festival. This was an incredible way to immerse myself directly into the culture. On the weekends, I traveled from to Madrid to visit family one week, Ibiza one weekend, and the other weekends I just explored the city and local beach towns. By far the best summer of my life!

I think my experience was unique because of the class I took. I took a film and documentary class. The first half was just learning the basics of documentary however we got to choose a topic to film ourselves. My group picked a local festival in Barcelona, Festiva Major del Poble- Sec. This festival had everything from Opra performances to Fire Dancers. It was a great way to get immersed in the local culture and meet so many people. I think this made my experience so different from others and gave me the oppurtuity to really explore local areas of Barcelona!

My experience studying at UPF with SAI in Barcelona was incredible. I would choose it over and over again.

UPF - UPF is the top ranked school in Spain, so the classes were definitely challenging, but in a good way. I didn't feel like I was wasting my time with school, I really was learning important information. It is also a very historic and culturally Catalan school, so it was perfect for getting the local experience I wanted!! Beautiful and peaceful campus just a 10 minute walk away from Barceloneta (the beach). Be prepared to do school work, but also have really cool professors and learn a lot. Totally worth it.

BARCELONA - I'm probably biased but I think this is the best city to study abroad in. Absolutely beautiful, so much to do, awesome night and day life, and super easy to travel out of / access the airport for weekend trips.

SAI - SAI was the best decision I could have made. They were SO accommodating, quick to respond, and settled any worries I had going into it. The apartments we were assigned were really nice and fantastic location. SAI gave the perfect amount of independence but also security and excursion opportunities. The staff were all so welcoming, easy to talk to, and made you feel right at home. They also planned great events and were fun to hang out with!! We went to Monterserrat, had a flamenco dancing workshop, ceramics workshop, Catalan cooking night, weekend trip to Seville, and more ... the staff made all of the excursions so great!! I really felt like I got a local experience in Barcelona and that was my main goal for studying abroad. So much of the local experience I was given was from SAI excursions and their Global Leadership Certification, where I had the opportunity to earn an additional certification through making a presentation on a subject related to Spain, write a thesis statement, meet with the advisors, attend academic seminars, and volunteer weekly at a local school to help teach the kids English. Overall incredible experience!

My experience in Barcelona with SAI was one I would not trade for the world. SAI acted as a second family to me and helped make the somewhat scary transition from the US to Europe feel natural. They were there every step of the way when I was sick, confused, lost; they were always there to hold my hand and help me no matter the time of day. I recommend this program to anyone studying abroad because I never thought I would have such a positive experience, and I wouldn't change it for the world! SAI also helped me meet tons of students from around the globe with their opportunities to travel in groups and nightly activities such as my favorite- cooking class!

I had the most amazing semester studying in Barcelona, Spain. The SAI program I did organized many activities and trips for the students in my program. We did a cooking class, many dinners, trips to Monseratt, Girona, Sevilla, and many more. When I wasn't doing things with the SAI program I was traveling on the weekends with other students in my program. I loved living in walking distance from so many amazing restaurants and ancient cathedrals. Getting to use the metro for transportation was very convenient and saved me a lot of money from taxis. The metro made exploring the city a breeze whether it was exploring the mountains or the beach; the city of Barcelona has so much to offer. Overall, I would not change anything about my semester abroad and recommend everyone study abroad.