IES Abroad Reviews

(I have written about my experience in the box below). Yet some more day to day life activities of mine while I was in Australia included going to school, going to the beach, taking the bus from Bondi beach to the heart of Sydney. I do recommend living off campus if you are attending UNSW. Cooge beach is awesome and so is Bondi. Living off campus allowed me to experience more of what Sydney had to offer and meet many locals.

Granada was the perfect place to study abroad. The city is just big enough that there is always something to do, and yet I was never overwhelmed by its size. There are not very many people in the city who speak English, and so along with my Spanish classes of course, I felt that simply living in the city significantly increased my level of Spanish. The IES program staff and professors were all truly wonderful, and they placed me with a family that I know I will stay in touch with for many years to come. Some of my favorite moments from the semester were the afternoon teas that I shared with my "mama española". Every afternoon during the daily siesta time we would chat or simply spend quiet time together doing our own thing. When I wasn't drinking tea, or spending time in our beautiful IES building, I was exploring the city. There are a million tiny cafeterias and coffe shops to be found, some good and some not so good, but all worth trying. I wholeheartedly recommend this program to any and everyone!

I was someone who always wanted to travel abroad. The first time I went to Europe, I knew I needed to go back not just for a week vacation, but that I wanted to live there for at least a semester. I knew it was going to be a tough transition, but I also knew the experience would help make me a more interesting, worldly, and confident person.

Once I made the final decision to spend my fall semester abroad, I next had to figure out where to go. London was someplace that I had visited before and instantly fell in love. At first I thought I wanted to go to a new place for this experience, but as I thought about it, I realized that going to London would allow me the chance to experience the city not as a tourist, but as a resident—as a Brit, even if it was just for a little while.

Settling in to my new life in London was a bit harder than I thought it would be. Me and the other IES students lived in a student residential complex called Nido Kings Cross. Because space is so tight in London, the rooms provided to us were small with little space to store clothes and baggage. The bathroom was even smaller. I would joke with my roommate that you could shower, brush your teeth, and go to the bathroom all at the same time without getting the floor wet. Despite the space issue, I grew to love Nido. The building was super safe and the kitchen area was nice in order to cook instead of spending money on eating out. The location was the best advantage of Nido. We lived just a few blocks from Kings Cross/ St. Pancras station, the travel hub of London.

Other adjustments were a little more difficult, such as being homesick and having to stay up late in order to call my parents as they came home from work in the States. Getting over my homesickness was probably my biggest challenge about going abroad, however London is so exciting that it is easy to forget about issues like that, making them less important.

One of the most memorable experiences in from the program was travelling with the group for our Midterm trip and getting to see so much of Scotland. We spent four days travelling the country seeing Inverness, where we fed reindeer, Oban, and Edinburg, which was one of the most beautiful cities I had ever been to. That whole trip is something I will never forget.

I would definitely recommend this program to anyone thinking about studying abroad. The professors and staff are incredible, the classes all revolved around learning about London and the U.K., and best of all you get to spend three and a half months in this incredible, cultural, and fun city. If I could go back, I would in a heartbeat.

I had an amazing time with the IES BIA Paris program. All the staff were welcoming and friendly, the classes were fantastic, and the housing was safe. I would recommend this program to other students

I had the most incredible semester studying through IES Abroad in the Liberal Arts and Business program. I really liked the emphasis on field studies. To name a few, I visited a bomb shelter built during the Spanish Civil War, the organization SOS Racisme, the Islamic Council of Barcelona, a restaurant specializing in the deconstructed potato omelette, several local markets, and may more. The DiscoverIES trips were also a great opportunity to meet the other students in the program. Overall I had a great time and would recommend the program to everyone!

The IES abroad program gives each student complete flexibility to make the experience exactly what they are looking for. Students have the option to take relatively small amounts of class and explore Madrid on their own, or they could take on a full Spaniards course load taking classes at the Complutense. While 9am grammar class is rough when returning from the clubs, professors can be very understanding on Friday mornings. For housing students are given the option for dorm style life if students are comfortable making friends in Spanish, this proved to be a great option, another big plus about the dorm is that it is a 3 minute walk from your room to class. The homestays as always are very hit or miss especially with distance to class. Some homestays are on the outskirts of Madrid and can make cab rides expensive and long commutes to class in the morning. The program is truly what you make of it and provides opportunities for everyone.

Through this program I was able to live an incredible experience in India. I learned how to get by on the daily, which made me feel like a local. New Delhi became my home, the one I yearn to go back to everyday. I met some incredible people from just walking around "my neighborhood". Through this program I was also able to learn so much about India that I would have not gotten the opportunity to have learned otherwise. Just being in India was like talking 2 course because of everything I learned. And I was able to experience all of this because of IES Abroad New Delhi, India.

Typical Day:
8:15 am: wake up, eat breakfast (cereal)
8:45: Walk to class (10-15 minutes)
9-11: Class at the Universidad de Salamanca
12:45-1:45pm: Required grammar class with IES
2-3: Lunch @ home, prepared by host mom.
4-6: Spanish Cinema class with IES
7-8: Art History class at Universidad de Salamanca
9-9:30- Dinner, cooked by host mom
10 onward- relax/homework

Though my schedule changed from day to day, this is pretty typical during Monday through Thursday. Highlights for my time included the most wonderful host mom, a great roommate, fun classes with IES, fieldtrips with IES, and the ability to travel during the 3 day weekends most students had (if they didn't schedule Friday classes at the University).

Difficulties included: being very, VERY frustrated with the lack of work with my university classes and the fact that Spanish students rarely participated in class and instead spent the times on their phones or talking with each other. It was difficult to have about 70-80% of my final grade based on the final because we never had any homework (reading/writing) during the semester and no midterm to see how you were comprehending the material. I often had to look to outside sources to understand my classes better. Some students chose to take more classes with IES, whereas I only took the grammar class and one other. You have to decide whether you want a more challenging semester with credits that will transfer to your major/minor at your home university or whether you want to try direct and roll and understand the culture better.

My social life in Salamanca was great--the city is beautiful and there is TONS to do during the day (museums, shops, parks, cafes, etc) as well as at night (bars, clubs etc.) Be prepared to be forced to be social. It was difficult for me at first but I eventually got used to it. Spanish students are sometimes uninterested in foreigners because there are so many, but I was good friends with the two Spanish student assistants who worked for IES and I made some other European friends in my university classes.

All in all, loved my experience in Salamanca even though I was supremely disappointed by the level of local academics.

I attended IES's Environmental Studies program in Freiburg, Germany. I absolutely enjoyed my time abroad. All of my classes were concentrated in the environmental field. My favorite was a renewable technologies class taught by four engineering professors. Another class that I gained a lot of knowledge from was ecosystems and forestry in Southwest Germany and the Swiss alps. During one field trip, we took a three day hike in the Swiss Alps looking at the make up of the forests and discussing how the Ice Age and the forestry culture of the region has shaped the area. The program is located in Freiburg, which is not only an ecofriendly city, but also has a major university to get the most out of your study abroad experience.

I studied abroad in Santiago, Chile last semester and I can honestly say that it was one of the best semesters of my life. From day one IES made me feel at home and welcome which gave me the confidence I needed to travel and explore this beautiful city and country. This program gives you the opportunity to not only take great classes at the IES center in Santiago but also allows you to take courses at two of the best universities in Chile; Pontifica Universidad Católica de Chile and Universidad de Chile. I took three classes with IES, including the internship seminar, and then a class at Pontifica Universidad Católica and I enjoyed them all because I was learning something new everyday. My host family was very accommodating and made me feel right at home which made it even harder for me to leave at the end of my program. I would definitely recommend this program to anyone that is looking to have a culturally rich and exciting semester abroad!