Program Reviews

This summer I was in Madrid for my one-month internship, working at an English summer day camp for children aged 4-16. My experience in Madrid was a very positive one!

In terms of accommodation, the apartment was nice and considering there were 6 people living there it was actually surprisingly spacious! I didn't get to meet a lot of my flatmates because we all had internships during the day, and other things to do so we didn't see each other that often (and I was also only there for one month), but the people I met were great and I'm planning to see them in the future! The apartment was also right in the centre, in Sol, so getting both to the Eureka Spanish Academy and work (and even the airport!) was very straightforward and the metro in Madrid works amazingly. Overall, the apartment gave me the freedom of my own room with the possibility of still socialising with others which is the perfect mix!

The classes offered at Eureka were one of the highlights of my trip! The teachers were absolutely phenomenal and in such a short space of time, my Spanish improved significantly! The people attending the classes changed more or less every week, with new people arriving and others leaving from all across the globe. It was wonderful meeting all of those people and it was sad when we had to say our goodbyes.

As for my internship, being there for one month, I only had the option to teach English, which isn't related to my future career plans per se but was none the less a magnificent experience! It was my first time ever interning, and I was also in a foreign country, but the company I worked with was fantastic! The staff were very welcoming and friendly, and by the end of the first week I had already gotten the hang of how the day camp was run. The children were adorable and they definitely put a smile on my face that I carried with me for the rest of the day! Though I was nervous at first, the final experience was 100% worth it!

As for the city, well Madrid is just beautiful! It can't be expressed it words really, you simply have to try it out for yourself!

My time in Ecuador was a trip that I will never forget. Adelante does a great job in setting up a network in order to get you the best experience in terms of living and job placement. During my internship, I got the chance to have a hands on experience learning how to take blood, administer IV’s, attend wounds, and have an up close experience observing simple surgeries. I also got the chance to be fully submerged in a culture completely different then what I am used to. I was able to improve my soonish skills as well as learning about a beautiful and new culture. My time spent with my host family was one that I will never forget as well as the amount of friends I made while I was there. Adelante did a great job in making sure we had a program director we could count on for anything. I highly recommend this program to anyone seeking out an experience that can make you outstanding to employers as well as making you a better person all around.

This program was so great! I learned so much and had such amazing opportunities. I was able to enter the operating room and converse with the actual surgeons about different techniques and procedures. The contacts I made in Spain not only with the surgical staff, but also the friends in the program, will help me through out my life. It was such a unique experience and I am so glad I went! I have already been able to use this experience to help with my further studies at my university as well as on resumes for jobs.

Spending part of my summer in Quito was an amazing opportunity. While there were rough moments/challenges, I gained so much. I knew minimal Spanish when I arrived, and was able to learn the language very quickly with my classes. I also gained a huge amount of academic/professional experience. If you're looking to travel, gain a lot of hands on career practice, and overall life experience, this is a great program.

The Adelante Abroad program was a great experience for me. I enjoyed the independence that was allotted to me, while I also felt that I had all the resources I needed to be comfortable and safe. Ecuador is a great place to meet many people from all over the world and travel on a budget. I lived with a warm and welcoming family that took great care of me. I was able to work in a small marketing/communications firm and learn a lot about the field. I would highly recommend this program to anyone who is looking to have real work experience abroad, with the comforts and resources of a traditional study abroad program.

One of the unique aspects of this program is its location in Vina/Valpo, most programs tend to be in Santiago and I liked being outside of a big city because it allowed me really try and immerse myself into the culture and gave me the opportunity to speak and practice my Spanish. There are a lot of college students in this area and it’s close enough and inexpensive to get to Santiago.

It’s a flexible program and you really have to be very independent because there’s not a lot of administrative support. We basically had to figure everything out on our own. However as a girl traveling alone I really liked that Vina feels safe.

I really enjoyed my internship a lot although they never really gave me real work to do. In terms of getting actual experience I really didn’t feel like I did as much as I wanted to. My internship was in Valparaiso, which was nice because I was able to get to know both cities and everyone I worked with was great. They were also really flexible which is convenient if you’re coming to Chile to travel.

I personally didn’t like being forced to take Spanish lessons for three weeks; it was annoying to have to spend three hours doing grammar everyday especially because I’m a fluent native speaker. Learning a bit about the culture and slang was really useful especially once I got to my internship (but I probably could have learned on my own).

The housing placement was good, I had my own room, it was super central, and a five-minute walk to the beach but it’s poorly run. It’s not very well taken care of (filthy and falling apart) and the last month of my stay was considerably better but it took two months of insisting that things on my part to get to that point. The staff at the international center is nice but honestly I felt like I had to constantly bug them to get info that I wanted or needed, they don’t particularly go out of their way to help you. They’ll do it but only because you insist, which was really frustrating at times.

However despite any of these problems, the program does live up to what it promises.

This program has so much to offer - I had such a great experience over in Barcelona! I was there for 2 months and did not want to leave. Barcelona was fun, young, and lively. Everyone I met there was very nice. Not once did I feel in danger - it was a safe and clean city.

My marketing internship was done at the language school you attend the first two weeks of the program. I could not have asked for a better internship. I made so many new friends and loved the place.

This was the first time I had ever lived on my own - let alone in a foreign country. I could tell how much more mature I felt leaving as to when I first arrived. It is a great experience to have, and luckily this program helps you along the way.

This program was a great experience for me. I enjoyed the independence that was allotted to me, while I also felt that I had all the resources I needed to be comfortable and safe. Ecuador is a great place to meet many people from all over the world and travel on a budget. I lived with a warm and welcoming family that took great care of me. I would highly recommend this program to anyone who is looking to have real work experience abroad, with the comforts and resources of a traditional study abroad program.

I chose to enroll in this program because I knew the value of having international experience in a field (law) I that I plan to enter all while improving my Spanish skills. Personally speaking, Madrid was the ideal place to pursue an internship because I had already traveled there before with my family and I was confident enough in my Spanish speaking abilities to work in a zero English environment. I hit the jackpot with my job placement and boss as he was one of the most friendly and hospitable people I've ever met. We never seemed to have issues communicating with one another and I can say that I learned a good deal from my internship that will certainly help me down the road.

My time in Sevilla was incredible, I know Adelante has the option for Barcelona, Madrid, and Sevilla, but Sevilla is by far the best. I visited Madrid and in 2 seconds was so grateful I picked Sevilla. My friend went to Barcelona and she said, though it was beautiful, the people were not as nice. Andalucia overall has a stronger since of culture and the locals are so friendly and proud the be from there. My internship was really great in the since that I had a lot of important work to do and I was able to network with a lot of successful people. The only negative was that I had to work in English because I was at an online newspaper and there couldn't be any mistakes. The language courses made a huge difference in my experience and were the best part of it all. After the classes I kept improving my Spanish, but it is all up to you. You have to be willing to stick you neck out and just talk to people. The Adelante staff were really helpful and checked in on me all the time, the only person that was a problem was my landlord. He was unresponsive or would say he would do something but never follow through. I still have things that need to get fixed since my first day and I am leaving day after tomorrow... At least when I complained to my Adelante contact about not having an iron she was able to get him to give me one after he said that he wouldn't. Overall though my trip was incredible and I would do it again in a heart beat. The social scene is really fun, it is a lot of outdoor seating areas in plazas. There are places to go dancing too, but it is a really relaxed vibe. I loved going out I always felt safe and the people were friendly. I definitely recommend coming here. Just a heads up it is insanely hot, but usually it is dry so its not unbearable.