IES Abroad Reviews

Overall, I loved my experience with this program. The program staff are incredibly sweet, friendly, and helpful, and the classes were interesting, but not so difficult that they took up so much time that there wasn't time to travel or have adventures around London. The classes were very focused on public health and topics related to that, so if that is something you are even at all interested in, this program is for you. I had so many great adventures around London, the UK, Europe, and Jamaica, and I wouldn't trade the four months I spent on this program for the world.

Nagoya is a city that offers amazing shopping, restaurants, and a modern Japanese experience. The highlights of my experiences were the people, program, and area. The IES staff on-site were warm and available people who eased the transition into Japan. While we engaged with the campus staff as well, the IES and Nanzan work well with each other to streamline both programs. The additional field trips coordinated by IES provided many spaces to form close bonds with the other students in IES. Most of my closest friends were part of IES with me and it was a fantastic time. The language classes at Nanzan were challenging and the focus of the curriculum. The elective courses left something to be desired, but as a study abroad course, it was not worse than expected. Overall was very pleased with the program and the area of my experience. Nagoya is a beautiful area that allows for immersion into the typical life of the Japanese.

My experience with IES Barcelona was a great opportunity for personal growth and the chance to travel around Europe. I truly appreciate the attentiveness of the IES staff to the needs of each individual student. When there was an issue with my linens they immediately gave me replacements, when there were missing items in the apartment they provided new appliances and even installed curtains in my room. The professors were fun, high energy and very well qualified in their fields. Overall I really enjoyed the IES Barcelona experience and I would do it again in a heartbeat!

I had the privilege of studying abroad in the cozy town of Freiburg, Germany, situated right on the outskirts of the Schwarzwald (Black Forest). Living in Freiburg is reason enough for you to take part of this program; this is a very green, active city. They have activities ranging from hiking through the Black Forest, taking a stroll around the beautiful Seepark, getting lost while weaving through the cobblestone streets of downtown Freiburg, or stuffing your face with yummy sausages, and other regional delicacies. Freiburg is also a university town so there is plenty to do throughout the weeks you are there.

As far as academics go while on this program, I think IES provides a decent range of diverse topics you can take classes on. If you are a political science major, this program has your name written all over it. While there, you can your fellow classmates partake in three different field study trips, traveling to places like Prague, Paris, Brussels, Berlin, Athens and many others. What is nice about these field study trips is that they try to tailor them to your interests in your major. For example, I am an International Business major so while traveling, we met with officials and went to offices that related to potential fields I would be interested in working in and that related back to the course work I was taking while abroad.

Overall, the perfect combination of German culture, diverse field study travel, engaging professors and classwork, and the city of Freiburg itself, made for the best semester of my college career. You only have the opportunity to study abroad once in your lifetime, and choosing IES Abroad European Union is definitely worthwhile. This trip positively influenced my global perspective and I will forever be grateful for the friends, memories, and experiences I had during my time abroad in Freiburg.

I wasn't sure where I wanted go abroad, all I knew was that I wanted to go. I had wanted to travel since I was a freshman and it took me until my first semester of my senior year to make the leap of faith and just go for it. Up until that point the only place I had been outside of the US was Canada. In the months before my departure I was deciding between going to Spain, China, and England. I ultimately chose London and couldn't have been happier with my decision. China was just too far for me and I happened to make a visit from London to Spain during my time abroad because of how centralized England was and how modestly priced the flights were throughout Europe.

Some of the pro's of my visit included:
Travel - as stated above. Considerably cheap & very convenient

The transportation - bus/tubes take you anywhere for reasonable prices.
TUBE IS GOING 24/7 SOON

No real Language Barrier - Not an entirely new language but certain expressions may have you scratching your head. All the more fun tho

Fashion Capital - plenty of good looking people in London thats for sure

Classes - Most, if not all, of my classes took walking tours during class time and I got to see some of London's most renowned features along with local favorites that I may have never even heard about had it not been for the classes.

The People - Theres not enough that can be said about the people you'll encounter. For me it was the people who made each place I visited while abroad what it was. They were the lifeblood of the trip and regardless of where I was or the wonders I saw it was the people who made the biggest impact on my journey.

I could go on and on with pro's but I'll stop there and give a few cons to the experience to make things fair:

Currency - The exchange from Dollar to Sterling Pound was rough when I went abroad. I've heard stories of it being even worse and then other stories of it being cheap. It varies from day to day and either way I don't regret the money I spent. If anything I'd regret not spending more. It's just a friendly reminder to budget for your time cause theres always gonna be something you wanna go out and do.

Dorm Living - As a senior it was a little odd for me to go back to dorm living with a roommate. The place looked a lot bigger in pictures too. Turned out my roommate and I were both in the same fraternity so we hit it off pretty quickly and the small space wasn't as awkward. The elevators though broke pretty much every other week and would sometimes go up when you pressed down which was extremely frustrating. You also had to pay for laundry services. But there was a weekly cleaning lady and a common room area with pool and foosball tables too so if you wanted to get out of the room you could.

Overall It was an experience that I would recommend to anyway and hope to be able to go back abroad one day.

Everyday as the Viennese autumn sunlight filled my apartment, I would get excited for the new adventure I was in for. Every student in the program was as hungry for new experiences, for challenges. Whether it was committing to only speak German at one of Vienna's classic Coffee Houses or exploring the entirety of the Schoenbrunn Zoo in only one afternoon. Or maybe it was just seeing your favorite opera or symphony at one of Vienna's amazing performance halls. Vienna was eye-opening, thrilling, inspiring, and just plain old beautiful. Having the opportunity to study music there was and will be one of the best times of my life. The program encourages students to push themselves as musicians, as students as well as brand-new, if only temporary, Viennese citizens. Everyday was an adventure in Vienna.

The IES Abroad Milan - Music program is great. The director of the program is very helpful in finding different music opportunities for students in the city, and I ended up taking voice and organ lessons, singing in the La Verdi choir's performance of Verdi's Requiem, and soloing in Rossini's Petite Messe Solennelle. The courses were great, both those I took at the IES center as well as the course I took at La Scuola Civica, a conservatory in the city. I'm so glad I went.

The IES French Studies program provided me a Fall semester full of self-enhancing opportunity. In a smaller program size of 47, I was able to connect with most, if not all, of the other IES students. The program evaluated us well based on our knowledge and proficiency of the French language. They provided us with a great list of courses, from which I selected History of Photography, History of Architecture and Contemporary France. IES also works with universities throughout Paris, at which a student can branch out and take exterior courses. I had the pleasure of following both a sculpture and a design course at L'Académie de la Croix Nivert. Honestly, my course load was not as intensive as that of my home university, but I don't believe that being abroad is about having such a heavy academic workload.

The staff and professors were willing to help in whatever way they could, but they weren't the most organized nor were they there to baby you. Having them be a little disorganized, a student did have to sort some things out on their own, which permits the student to grow and learn in their own experience. I see IES French Studies - Paris as a program that gives a student just as much as the student gives it. It was a program that introduced us to many doors, but wasn't there to open all of them or push us through. I saw the IES Center as a home base, but not somewhere that I needed to spend all of my time, and it definitely wasn't where the most crucial parts of my education in France came from.

The IES French Studies Program of Paris is a great program for any type of student, but not every student will profit from it in the same ways. It is a program that can be amazing for a social aspect and an educational aspect, but I believe it to be a program that is a guide, and it is up to the students to really utilize the guide.

My semester studying at Gaiety School of Acting was absolutely amazing! Gaiety School of Acting has a wide variety of courses from stage combat to Irish theatre text and everything in between.The tutors are phenomenal. I learned so much during my time abroad. I miss it there so much! It was a great experience.

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Hi there, prospective travelers! This IES Abroad review for "Dublin Direct Enrollment - National Theatre School of Ireland-Gaiety School of Acting" was submitted well before we increased our character limit for reviews. Just wanted to let you all know that we're looking forward to offering you even more reviewer content to help you make the most informed decisions about your next adventure.

I had an amazing time in Vienna! The city is amazing and such a fun place to study. As a psychology major, I really enjoyed getting to learn about Freud and Jung in the places where they taught and studied as well. I absolutely loved IES. It was an amazing program that catered to the needs of every student and made sure everyone had an amazing time. All of the staff and students in the program were so fun and I met so many great people. IES is helpful in all regards and the center is beautiful. It is located in the heart of Vienna, making it easy to see everything that Vienna has to offer. I highly recommend this program to anyone who loves to travel and have a great time.