Program Reviews

The teachers I had in the first 2 weeks were great and shared useful tips on local hot spots. I found this to be an invaluable introduction to my time in Oaxaca and a great way to meet new people.

Equally my internship at a printing studio was fabulous and I feel it greatly contributed towards my competence in Spanish.
The housing with Irma, Octavio and Leti the cleaner was one of my favourite things about my experience as they made me feel so welcome and really helped me settle in with ease.

Oaxaca is a beautiful place, just the right size to explore and close to many other must see locations. I would love to go back!

This was a great experience for me. Adelante made things fairly straightforward when it came to applying to the program and getting set up with an internship in Madrid. The staff at Eureka Academia de Español was also wonderful and helped a lot in my time abroad. I thought the language classes there were extremely helpful. There was a learning curve with the internship, both for me and my employer, because they had never had an intern before. So, it took a few weeks to really figure out my role in the company. But, in about a month, I really felt like I was fitting in at Amapola Biocosmetics and was contributing to the company. My Spanish improved a ton in the 5 months I was there. I loved that there was always something to do in Madrid. There was always a new museum, bar, restaurant, cafe, club, or street to see. I met good friends in and out of the program. I loved my little apartment, which was right in the center of the city, so it made it easy to get everywhere. And I was able to travel around Spain as well on the weekends. I even made it to Morocco one weekend! A wonderful opportunity, and one that I will not forget anytime soon. I was lucky that I was able to complete my program before Coronavirus shut everything down!

The months leading up to my high school graduation were very difficult because I felt like I couldn't really decide where I wanted to go to school. I had always thought about taking a gap year and traveling. But the question was, how I could find a company that could fit my needs. I felt as though Adelante was a very fitting program for me. I was able to do an internship at a hospital. This gave me time to learn more about the medical field, learn Spanish, and get real world experience. Being interactive with patients and being able to enjoy being at work. I was able to learn more about nursing and be apart of the practice before diving straight into college after high school. Not only is there amazing internship opportunity but all aspects of the program. They set you up with housing. I was housed with a host mom and I highly recommend this to other people who are thinking about housing options. It gives you an insight on Spanish culture, you have to constantly speak Spanish(which only makes you better), someone who is there for you and can help you when you are lost about something. They are experts of Spain and are there to help you. It gave me a sense of security. Another amazing aspect is the first 2 weeks you are there, you go into a language school which helps you get a refresher of Spanish and will help you to be more confident in the Country you are in. The school also is an amazing opportunity to meet friends from all over the place. It was easy for me to make friends and spend time and study with some of these individuals. The culture and beauty of Sevilla is spectacular and definitely something that is worth experiencing. Meeting friends for tapas/dining around, walking throughout the beautiful city and the tiny streets, warm weather pretty much all year, and the welcoming environment. If someone asked me about studying/interning abroad in Sevilla, Spain... I would absolutely recommend it. I have recently just left Sevilla and I cant wait to go back and plan on visiting many times in my life. Sorry this post is long, but hopefully it helps you make a decision.

Adelante provided me with the resources to grow both personally and learn more about my field in a different country. Adelante staff prior to departure were quite helpful and answered all my questions as best as possible. Unfortunately, they only gave me information about my internship about two weeks prior to leaving and I would have preferred if they had more information earlier on to ease my mind. However, throughout my time in Spain, the staff in the US regularly checked in with me via email and sent me resources to better my transition. The two week course at Eureka was great and very laid-back; the teachers are fun and helpful and all of them actually want to teach, so it is a great way to review your Spanish before working. As a pharmacy student, I was given a position at one of the many farmacias in Spain and helped patients find the best medication for their illness, rang out patients, processed orders, and completed paperwork for the pharmacy. While the work got repetitive, I still learned a lot (especially about the Spanish healthcare system) because my coworkers were kind, interested in helping me improve and learn as a student, and explained anything I did not understand. I would suggest this program for those who are at least at a low intermediate level of Spanish because I was spoken to only in Spanish at my position and I know many positions at Adelante that are very similar. While there were no issues to report at my job, I would have felt comfortable reaching out to any of the Adelante staff if I did have any problems because they made it clear that they were there to help me. Adelante does a great job with housing because of its location in the center of Madrid and because they find a solution to problems or maintenance issues relatively quickly, especially if you physically speak to Angel who is the director of the Eureka language school.

I did the medical internship in Viña del Mar, Chile. First of all, it is a beautiful city to live in, with lots to do and with Valparaiso just a 20 minute metro/bus ride away. The location of the house is perfect and in a safe place, just a few blocks from the beach and about a 30 second walk from a supermarket. I lived with other Adelante candidates and got along with all of them exceptionally well. The staff at the language school are welcoming, and my classes really helped me get accustomed to living in my new city. I learned about the unique spanish spoken in Chile, and my professor also took me out of the classroom to explore Viña as well as Valparaíso and learn about their history and culture. In order to meet new people, I recommend going to language exchanges in Viña or Valparaíso - these can be found through MeetUp online, and it's a great way to meet natives and practice spanish! Living in a new city with no familiar faces and a language barrier can be daunting, so these really helped me at first! When I started my internship at a local physical therapy (kinesiology) office, it was challenging of course due to the new environment and the language. Within a few weeks, however, I was effectively communicating with patients, leading several patient sessions, and carrying out physiotherapy. My spanish improved dramatically and I also learned technical vocabulary that will help me in my future career. The employees were great teachers and always made sure I understood what was happening, the patient's affliction, and what techniques they were using and why.
The last month of my stay, there was political unrest in Chile but Adelante staff made sure we stayed safe, and maintained communication with us. I would not change anything about my experience in Chile, as it helped me grow as a person and greatly increased my skills and confidence in Spanish. The people in Chile are very welcoming and kind, even though Chilean spanish can be hard to understand at first! I've come to love Chile so much and I will definitely be coming back! I could't recommend this Adelante program more.

I had a wonderful experience interning in Sevilla with Adelante! Since my university study abroad office didn't have much flexibility, I was attracted to Adelante because they were able to offer a customized experience, both with my preferred internship field and the the amount of time I wanted to spend there. Being a computer science student, I wasn't sure if I would be able to find an internship that was applicable to my career path as an international short-term intern, but the job they found for me was great! I was treated almost as a full-fledged member of the software engineering team, which was great resume-building experience and I learned a ton. Even from my first over-the-phone interview with Adelante staff I was impressed with their experience and personal attention to each student.

An amazing social experience over anything! Every connection I made was a branch to new things to do in the city ! I’ve made amazing friends from all over the world, not just my country of stay, and it has given me new insights on culture, life, and so many other aspects! The activities provided by the program’s connections were also insanely fun! The program also taught me so much about my own self-sufficiency, and how truly competent I am. I now know that if I am able to survive and fend for myself in a foreign environment, I definitely can do it back in my own home country and city. I’ve frequently described this experience and one of if not the best experience of my life so far, and it definitely has molded me into a new, better, more responsible and ambitious person.

I spent 2 months in Madrid working in a LGBT public health office. My experience living in this beautiful city was phenomenal being that I was immersed in Spanish culture. The nightlife is amazing, as you'd imagine, and I made great friends both inside and outside the program. We loved visiting other Spanish cities as well as Portugal whenever we got the chance. I really enjoyed my time at the Spanish school as everyone was extremely supportive and I learned a lot in a short period of time. All my coworkers were also lovely and helped me improve my Spanish skills throughout my time there. I do feel that it is important to mention though that you should take the Spanish language skill required by adelante seriously. Some internships do require a higher level of speaking and if you are dishonest with adelante about your ability there isn't much they can do to help if your boss becomes dissatisfied. Additionally, I will say that my expectations were not fully met on the adelante side. My original desire was to work in a hospital or clinic and although the backup plan of public health was established over the phone and I agreed to it, I got the sense that the Plan B discussed became the default for myself and the other interns I spoke to. I believe I only met 2 interns that were fully satisfied with their work placement and received their Plan A. However, in this situation I believe you get what you pay for being that adelante is securing an internship for you even if its not ideal. To me and many of the others this didn't end up being a big issue as we grew to like our placements, but if youre passionate about working in one specific area to really build your resume, adelante may not be the right fit.
Conclusion: Adelante provided me with the opportunity to live and work in Madrid which was most definitely one of the best experiences of my life. I feel as if the internship placement could have been better, but being the most affordable program I found, I'm far from dissatisfied.

I spent two months in Oaxaca de Juarez with the Adelante volunteering program for working with kids. My time there was amazing, being able to experience local life and history of the state. The housing location was in a great spot, and my landlord was unbelievably kind. My time at the language school was also great as I met and made wonderful friends from around the world and also received a one-on-one tutor which helped me immensely. I also met great people at my internship. The program truly opens you up to many differing walks of life and exposes you to so many new things - not just originating from Oaxaca. The trip being my first solo travel forced me to become independent and actually rely on myself instead of using others as a travel-buddy crutch. When Adelante says that the program is for independent travelers, they're not kidding. This is where I point out the major lack of communication. I won't go into detail, but the program really is like moving to a foreign place by yourself and figuring everything out by yourself. There were a few rough patches but I didn't let them bother me during my time there. You'll run into problems, like no water or power, but you adapt and overcome. I really enjoyed my experience both the good and the bad, but if lack in communication and cultural confusion bothers you I wouldn't recommend this type of program.

From the classroom, to the stable, to nights out at the pubs, this program is the ultimate description of work hard play hard; a perfect blend of classwork with weekday and weekend excursions. Oatridge College is a small, tight knit community where you’ll definitely feel at home. The small class size allows for one on one time with instructors and class discussion. The courseload is easily manageable outside of class. The location of campus is perfect, in a quiet area, but a short train ridge from Edinburgh and other small towns to explore. Overall, I would highly recommend this program to anyone looking for the perfect study abroad experience while building your resume — between classroom lectures and practical session, be ready to get hands on and comfortable around the most beautiful horses!