IES Abroad Reviews

People will tell you that when you go abroad something changes in you. I never really felt this until I went on to Spain. Coming from a small southern town to a bustling city environment was a huge change for me. Especially when my host mother spoke not one word of English. To be honest, the first night I was not so sure that I would do well. But as the days passed, I soon met new people through my program, started to learn more spanish, and began seeing this big city as my second home. It was a big change from the southern hospitality I was used to but I also discovered that most people in Madrid are just as friendly as my neighbors at home. This study abroad experience pushed me academically, as I learned more Spanish in one summer than in the 19 years prior. I made friends I will not forgot. But most importantly, I learned more in one summer about growing up than I have in my whole life. I would highly recommend IES because the staff was excellent, my host mom was so sweet, and the people that were accepted in this program were awesome. IES did an amazing job of helping us get our bearings and giving us opportunities to go on trips and see Spain, but also the freedom to ultimately decide what we wanted to do. I hope that you will find your other home in Spain like I did!

This past summer, I studied abroad in Beijing, China through IES Abroad. Studying abroad was one of the most challenging experiences I have faced, but it was also extremely rewarding. I had a really great time immersing myself in Chinese culture (everything from food to shopping to museums). I also really enjoyed taking Chinese language classes, an elective course (Business in China) and a calligraphy class. I think the classes I took complemented what I was learning by simply exploring the city with my friends.
Study abroad has definitely changed my life in many ways. It has made me more self-aware and more confident in my abilities to problem solve and adapt to any situation. It has also helped me create lifelong friendships with people throughout the US. It has given me a greater awareness of my own lifestyle and what life is like on the other side of the world. It has also taught me how to persevere when times are tough. I won’t lie. There were definitely bumps and challenges during my time in Beijing, but I was able to push through them and I think I am a better, wiser person because of my experiences. I would recommend studying abroad to everyone because I think it is a great way to learn more about yourself and the world. You grow so much in such a short period of time and you can take those skills and experiences and apply them anywhere in the future!

As someone studying music, there is no place more prominent in the history of music than Vienna, Austria. As a student, I had the opportunity to listen to the music of Mozart, Beethoven, and Strauss in the city where it was composed. I also reached out and studied with members of the Vienna Philharmonic and performed in local orchestras. The opportunities are endless and there are tons of things that would spark anyone's interest in this magnificent city- hiking, art museums, fine cuisine, architecture, and of course, fine music which makes for the most wonderful culture that I have ever experienced. It is an extremely safe city and the IES center is located in the heart of the historic first district. Learning German and finding out how to get around are not only a part of the program, but these are skills that you will pick up regardless. The faculty is wonderful and you literally get to study in a palace. If anyone asked, I would tell them without a doubt to DO IT! Get on the plane and have the greatest adventure of your life. You will grow more than you could ever dream to!

Barcelona is an incredibly unique city, and has an amazing combination of culture, history, food, and nightlife. For those of you arriving this fall, there are so many things that you will have to do immediately! Between Gaudi's many works across the city, the delicious paella and tapas options, and F.C.Barcelona's upcoming season, you will undoubtably be busy. At night, make sure to experience the legendary nightlife, made easier by who I think is without a doubt the city's best promoter, Aashi. With Aashi's List, you get a VIP experience with free entry to the city's top clubs, birthday celebrations, and the ability to meet so many other study abroad students. Getting to know Aashi and going out with so many other students who wanted to have the same semester abroad experience I did made my time in Barcelona even more amazing. If you are going to Spain this year, get ready for the time of your life!

One day trip I went with my program was to Assisi, which is known for St. Francis of Assisi as well as St. Clare. We had an all-day private tour with a former IES Rome professor about the story of the town and the two saints. The tour was not preachy, but informative and beautifully told. We got to walk through history and time. It was in the off-season and the town was very tranquil. The best part was walking through a skinny and very long corridor to a tower in the fortress that topped the town. When I saw the view of Umbria below I actually gasped! It was a perfect day full of peace in churches that history built, wonder with the Italian countryside, and very delicious pizza.

If you're looking to dramatically improve your language skills, this is the program for you. The staff at IES were helpful and friendly throughout my semester there, and the support network that IES provides is great for acclimating to Beijing.

Paris has always been my dream destination. When I arrived in the City of Love my expectations and reality were not quite on the same level. But within a month I quickly adapted and fell in love with the beautiful city! It was interacting with the local people, eating the food, going out to the bars with new friends, walking around by myself and experiencing the city that made my expectations reality. Even more the IES Staff were super helpful and caring during the time of adaptation. Paris lives up to her hype.

I studied abroad with IES: Santiago in the spring of 2015. It was, by far, one of the best decisions I have made. Class sizes at the program center were small and the opportunity to take classes at one of the local universities, Universidad Pontifica Catolica de Chile, helped me to feel integrated into the city. My internship afforded me the greatest opportunity to practice Spanish, and I feel it contributed the most to the advancement of my ability to speak Spanish. Santiago as a city is safe and welcoming and a great jumping-off point if you are looking to travel both within and outside of Chile. The program size was small which allowed me to get to know everyone in the program and living in a home provided a fantastic cultural experience. I highly recommend this program!

The IES Nantes program is perfect for someone wanting to become immersed in the French language and culture! I loved living in the city of Nantes. It was the perfect size with plenty of things to do and quickly felt like home. It is also a very walkable city, which I came to love. The home stay was one of my favorite aspects of the program and was definitely where I made the greatest strides in my language skills. I felt that the classes were very manageable and enjoyed the opportunity to take a class at the local university. I would highly recommend this program to anyone interested in improving their French!

Studying abroad in Paris was easily the best decision of my life. It allowed me to finally experience a culture that I had been learning about in textbooks for 6 years. I learned more about the French culture in the 4 months abroad than I had throughout the years in French class. I believe anyone studying a language or culture must travel and see that culture first-hand.

At IES, I took 5 courses all in French: French Literature, French Language in Context, Paris Museums, an internship seminar and I also took a phonetics course at Université Catholique de Paris. The course load I will admit was more than expected, but it was also key to helping me improve my French and boost my confidence in the language. My grammar course in particular focused on current events and hot topics in France and for that reason I enjoyed this class the most.

I also stayed with a great host family on the southwest side of Paris right in between the Arc de Triomphe and the Eiffel Tower. Needless to say, my commute was always a pleasant one. My host family was very informative on where to go and what to see in Paris, dinner was always phenomenal, and the girls were around the same age as me so we would often talk about pop culture and current events at the dinner table. I'm lucky I got to stay with a family with such a great sense of humor. And my host mom was an amazing artist! She's going to be having an art expo of her own very soon!

The IES Center itself was a great place to be. There is a beautiful garden just outside of the classrooms and student lounge. The lounge has a piano and there is also a computer lab located in the basement of the student center along with a small library. I would often spend time here getting homework done or just hanging out with friends between and after classes.

IES also helped me get an internship while abroad. I interned with a market research firm and learned a lot about the work culture in France first-hand, which was supplemented by class reading in my internship seminar.

I will always remember and cherish the 4 months I spent abroad. In a beautiful city like Paris, any where you turn is a history lesson, a beautiful monument, a work of art.

Everyday I learned something new, faced and overcome hurdles, and everyday I grew. I grew to realize that different parts of the world do things differently, and with different motivations. Studying abroad has only deeper encouraged me to keep traveling and keep exploring the world and the cultures that call it home.