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Location
  • Spain
    • Madrid
    • Barcelona
Industry
Advertising Business Communications Design Engineering Finance Marketing Public Relations

Program Details

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N/A
Housing
Apartment Hotel Hostel
Language
English
Weekly Hours
0

Pricing

Starting Price
2000
Price Details
This program is a professional experience geared towards independent participants, which includes an internship placement in the field of your choice, pre-departure support, insurance, and emergency on-program support. In addition, we can provide supplementary items such as housing, orientations, insurance, excursions, group activities, and on-site support.

Scholarships available! Check out our website for more details - Apply Now!
Oct 30, 2019
Oct 12, 2012
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About Program

We offer internships in two of Spain’s most popular cities: Madrid, the country’s capital and Barcelona. From the Prado Museum in Madrid to shopping on La Rambla in Barcelona, Spain offers you a variety of activities based on your interests.

Madrid serves as the economic center with a growing technology sector and Barcelona’s creative character comes from famous artists that once called this seaside city home. Past interns have worked for foreign language schools, financial companies, marketing agencies, and fashion companies in these two major cities.

From our intern:
"The best part about traveling abroad is that when you have a bad experience, you will still learn from it. I had a wonderful experience, and I'd participate again in a heartbeat. I'm already planning on going back, I just can't stay away from Spain!" - Nicholas, Business Internship

This program is no longer offered. View more programs from Intrax Global Internships.

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Intrax Global Internships in Madrid, Spain
Intrax Global Internships in Barcelona, Spain
Intrax Global Internships in Madrid, Spain
Intrax Global Internships in Madrid, Spain

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Program Highlights

  • Customize your internship in Spain depending on your needs
  • Gain professional experience in Spain and establish international business connections and friendships
  • Improve your Spanish language skills
  • Experience Spanish culture and vibrant nightlife
  • Absorb masterpieces of Goya and Velazquez at the Prado Museum, enjoy delicious tapas, and take in a captivating Flamenco dance performance!

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Program Reviews

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Alexa
32
Female
4/5
Yes, I recommend this program

It's what you make of it!

Oct 12, 2012

The International Internship Program can be the best experience you'll ever have if you take advantage of all that's available to you. Know what your personal goals are beforehand. I wanted to improve my Spanish and learn more about international sales and marketing. By choosing an international company with a Spanish-speaking office, I was able to do those things. It can be easy for some to think of this as a study abroad program, but it's not. I went to work every day from 9am to 6pm and sometimes had class afterwards. It's a lot of work, and you have to be dedicated. Madrid is a huge city full of fun things to do and see! Make sure to schedule your free time well to be able to experience all of those things. Use common sense to stay safe, work hard, plan ahead, and you'll gain more than you can imagine from this program.

What would you improve about this program?
Because I paid for a structured program, and not just some direct enroll classes at a foreign university, I expected the staff to be more available. The staff members in Madrid were scattered and not focused only on their work with Intrax, so I didn't learn about certain resources or opportunities until late in the program or after they were available.
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Questions & Answers

Alumni Interviews

These are in-depth Q&A sessions with verified alumni.

Alexa Verink

Program
Intrax Global Internships in Barcelona & Madrid, Spain
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Why did you decide to intern with Intrax in Spain?

My previous travel experience included a 2-week program in Chile that focused on international business practices, then I studied abroad in Argentina for 6 months.

Interning abroad seemed like the logical next step. Because all of my time abroad was in South America, I thought it would be doubly beneficial to live in Europe to be able to compare and contrast the Spanish-speaking cultures of both continents. Intrax had good connections with firms who needed marketing interns and made the process simple for me to accomplish what I set out to do.

Describe your day to day activities as an intern.

Because I was one of only two interns in the Madrid office of my company, I was working on my own project all summer, which gave me a lot of responsibility right away. Daily activities involved keeping in touch with our headquarters in France about the advancement of my benchmarking study, corresponding with the company's offices in other countries, and conducting interviews to gather the information I needed.

Of course, I wasn't working every minute the day! I went out for long lunches with my coworkers every day and got to talk with people in all departments of the company to get a feel for what they did.

How has this experience impacted your future?

On a personal level, this opportunity gave me a sense of what living and working in a foreign country would actually be like. It was the first time that I was in the same situation as all of the locals and could understand what life as an expat entails. Thankfully, I proved to myself that I could handle it! I think that alone will be a big leverage point when looking for jobs at international companies, especially if I'm pushing to get assignments abroad. Working in Spain also gave me a new set of Spanish vocabulary that allows me to function in a business setting, which is extremely marketable. Now that I'm back at school, I can see how the program opened my mind and broadened my perspective. The work I do in my Global Management classes makes more sense because I have my own context in which to process the information, and having acquired other hard business skills during my internship, I am better able to connect all of the things I have learned over the years to see the "big picture".

Highlights: The highlight of my working time in Madrid was seeing how my communication skills improved over the course of the internship. I worked all summer on a project that involved talking with people in my company’s offices worldwide, so a lot of translation, interpretation, and reinterpretation were necessary. I was never bored even while discussing everyday things with my coworkers because we came from such different cultures with contrasting opinions and perspectives to go along with them.

For the trip as a whole, the highlight was being able to travel to other parts of Spain and Europe so quickly. I visited a friend in Paris, went to Lisbon for a weekend, and got to see several other areas of Spain. My work schedule took up a lot of time that most study abroad students spend traveling, but the close proximity of the European countries allows you to experience extremely different cultures without wasting too much time traveling a far distance. Madrid itself is so full of life and things to do that you could spend your entire summer there without doing the same thing twice or even seeing the whole city.

Morning: I usually got up around 7am. (Yes, interning abroad involves waking up with the rest of the working people.) After a quick breakfast at home, always involving the Spanish favorite – instant coffee – I walked a couple of blocks to the nearest metro station. My morning commute involved a labyrinth of escalators and two different trains but only took about half an hour. In the morning, the metro was always full of well-dressed business-people going to work. The majority got off at the same stop as me, Campo de las Naciones, where many office buildings are located. After strolling past Parque de Juan Carlos I and the more intimidating, large companies would walk up the path to my office (about 20 minutes late, which is normal for Spain), and then the greeting process began. Everyone warmly greets everyone, no matter what. Saying “buenos días” and grabbing coffee took up time, but was a good way to connect with my coworkers and ease into the actual work that lay ahead of me each day.

Afternoon: In my office, people took a lunch break during two different shifts – one group ate from 1:15-2:30 pm and the other at 2:30-3:45 pm. I ate with the people who sat nearest to me, who went at the later time. Waiting for “Spanish lunchtime” at 2:30 pm definitely took some getting used to. It was always a leisurely meal involving several courses, lots of conversation, and a slow walk back in order to enjoy the constant sunshine. For the last couple hours of the day, I was usually organizing data into spreadsheets, on the phone interviewing sales managers from the offices in other countries, or double-checking the interviews that I had scheduled for later in the week. Our workday ended promptly at 6:00 pm. Not many people hung back to do extra work like Americans sometimes tend to do, so I followed everyone out the door to head home!

Evening: Within an hour of arriving home, the rest of my roommates would show up from work, and we would all catch up and talk about what happened during the day while making dinner and relaxing. Two nights a week, we had Spanish class in a different part of the city. If it weren't a class night, a friend and I would go to an organized language exchange, usually at a bar, to fit in some more Spanish conversation practice or meet up with other people we had met around Madrid. Sometimes it was a challenge to get back out of the house after getting home from being at work all day, but I had to remind myself that I was only going to be in Spain for a few months and had to take advantage of every moment!

Staff Interviews

These are in-depth Q&A sessions with program leaders.

Gonzalo Cuadra

Program
Intrax Global Internships in Barcelona & Madrid, Spain
Gonzalo Cuadra is the Intrax Coordinator in Spain, based in Madrid. He studied Marketing and Business Management and worked for 2 companies as an intern for a year and a half, so he relates very well with how interns feel during the first day in the office. One of Gonzalo’s missions is to help interns adapt in the beginning. He likes to travel and spent time abroad in Malta for 1 year, where he got his first international experience working in a Maltese company. He met a lot of people from other countries during this time, and learned their cultures and lifestyles. This experience was so positive for him, that he decided to get involved with Intrax. He loves working with participants and offering them the best experience possible.

What makes interning abroad in Spain a unique experience for participants?

Gonzalo from Intrax Spain!

Gonzalo: Working in Spain is an unforgettable experience for interns who decide to expand their international knowledge. Spain is full of culture and opportunities. Spain is also one of the most-developed countries in the world, with a large number of offices of large companies. Thanks to the language, Spain opens the South American market to European countries, making Spain the perfect place to start a business and invest. Spain offers internships in Madrid and Barcelona.

Madrid is one of the most important financial cities in Europe, and headquarters to important advertising agencies. We have a range of fields with positions in successful start-up companies and large corporations.

Barcelona is a multicultural city that hosts people from all over the world who want to live in a very modern and organized city. Barcelona has a very nice climate and you may even find that you have an ocean view from your office.

What can you tell you tell us about the workplace culture in Spain?

Gonzalo: Spanish work culture is very similar to other European countries, but does have some differences that make it unique. People take their work seriously in Spain but you can also feel how people place an importance on relationship building between the company and workers that may be stronger than in other countries. Group work on projects and regular meetings are a common practice in Spain.

Large companies tend to be a bit more formal but you can also see a trend of companies becoming more casual. Punctuality, responsibility, and organization are 3 things highly valued by host companies. One of the most important things you can do is to simply be observant and adaptable. Practical rules of respect and etiquette certainly apply and knowing the basics will help you in your internship. Intrax hosts orientations and Global Skills Trainings to help prepare participants with these cultural differences.

What level of Spanish proficiency should students have when considering this internship? Are there any requirements?

Gonzalo: Intrax offers internship placements for participants of all language levels. Depending on the company, we have positions that required some Spanish knowledge and others that not required any level of Spanish because English is the primary language. A basic knowledge of the language helps to interns to have a best and fast adaptation to the company. But in all the companies people speaks English very well, so in case the interns Spanish level is not high, they can communicate easily with their workmates, and I am sure that workmates teach some Spanish words to the interns to understand the local culture

Is prior work experience required?

Gonzalo: To apply for our program in Spain, prior internship experience is not required. Although some experience is always helpful, companies are open to participants without any experience to help them and give them their first impression of how a company works. Many Spanish workers were interns themselves, so they can relate and are very happy to help interns adapt and take their first steps.

What are some extra-curricular activities students enjoy while interning in Spain? (Does Intrax provide any guided tours?)

Gonzalo: Intrax hosts a group cultural excursion as a part of our premium program, which has included locations like Valencia and Sevilla. Last year, Interns visited Aranda del Duero, which is located 2 hours from Madrid and 3 from Barcelona. They enjoyed a guided tour of an old winery, where they tested some of the best red wine in Spain, and they also had a delicious dinner of “Cochinillo”, a typical meat of the region. During the visit, they were also able to visit the Cathedral and some buildings of the medieval era.

Intrax will host a group on-site orientation and Global Skills Training upon arrival for our premium participants. During this session interns will learn about how they can make the most of their experience and how to maximize their time in Spain.

What is one piece of advice you would offer someone interning in Madrid and Barcelona?

Gonzalo: Madrid and Barcelona are great opportunities to have an experience abroad and to have an unforgettable time. Globalization is a big target for Spanish companies and an intern can help them in reaching this target. Interns will gain an experience for their careers and gain knowledge that will complement their university studies.

Madrid and Barcelona are cities to discover, with a lot of historic highlights, monuments and events, and don’t forget that Spanish people love hosting foreign people to make them feel comfortable. Interning in Spain will be an added value for your life and resume.

We would be happy to speak with you in detail regarding the benefits of an internship abroad. Contact us at info@globalinternships.com or 877-429-6753.

About Intrax Global Internships

Explore Your Global Opportunities with Intrax Global Internships Whether you're in finance or public health, our goal is to help you gain professional hands-on experience, improve your communication skills, foster cultural exchange, and establish global connections. Our summer and year-round international internships offer you: • 11 countries to...

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