IES Abroad Reviews

Never have I experienced or paid thousands of dollars on something (besides college of course) that has tripled, no, quadrupled it's worth everyday. I am a changed human being because of this grand experience. I think of or reference an experience from my study abroad trip EVERY SINGLE DAY OF MY LIFE and I have come back to the States over a year ago.

IES Abroad Granada is a pretty incredible program! A daily routine consists of walking to school (there is very little public transportation in Granada, but the city is very walkable. In addition, it's beautiful and full of history, so every walk is a new adventure!) You will attend class almost every day with the IES professors, who are all amazing, and many are professors at the Universidad de Granada. You'll go home for lunch with your host family who will have cooked a fairly large meal (lunch in Spain is like dinner in the US). You will likely take a nap and then maybe head back to the IES center. Afterwards, you might run errands or do schoolwork. At night, you will go out to dinner with your friends (8 at the earliest, but usually around 9 or 10) for tapas! You'll order drinks (sangria!) and they'll bring you small plates of food with your drinks!

This program and the location were perfect. The city is huge--it took about a month to even feel like I could step off the beaten track. Countless neighborhoods and ancient sites made each day an adventure. The Italian student companion program at IES was invaluable. My Italian roommate showed me around, helped me communicate at an Italian hair salon in the midst of a home hair dye disaster, and was a great friend (still is even after the program ended). The people on the program were open and friendly and up for any adventures I dragged them on. The weekend trip through the program was amazing and one that I would not have had without the school. We spent a weekend driving through the Tuscan countryside, learned to make pasta, and drank tons of wine at a local vineyard. The friends I made in Italy, the experiences I had each day exploring the Ghetto, Trastevere, Castel Sant'Angelo, Piazza Navona, Testaccio, etc., and the confidence I gained getting to know the city are all things I'll never forget. Going abroad was invaluable, but it was the little day-to-day triumphs and mishaps (correctly giving directions in Italian or taking the wrong bus) that made the experience unforgettable.

I participated in the Intensive language program during the Spring 2011 semester. It was 4 hours of class a day in a small classroom, with all your friends from the program, and your teacher. They were all super sweet, dedicated, and diligent. We had homework everyday and dictations as well. We never had more than 5 students in a class, and pretty much everyone got on smashingly.

The program also gets you a personal tutor who you meet with everyday for an hour. If you don't make any progress with this program you are doing it wrong.

Weekends were a blast, students ate dinner together and often planned trips on weekends to other cities or to cultural sights within the city. For nights we often hit Wudaokou, Sanlitun, and varies quiet bars around the city. The Jing is a cool city, and I often think of it fondly.

My homestay was great, they spoke zero English and it was fantastic for my ability, they also cooked sick food that was great to chow down on while conversing with them.

We took a trip to Kunming in the bowls of February. It was two weeks long and was an absolute blast. We went hiking, ate great food, went biking, saw beautiful sights, and got to spend great times as a group together checking out the city, province and local people.

I could not have imagined a better abroad experience. Mr. Eyler, and Mr. Jenne were great mentors and teachers as well. I made great friends that I still keep in contact with today, learned a ton of Chinese, and ended up finding a new passion for modern Chinese history.

If you want to meet cool students that like China, spend time in a cool city, and learn a bunch about China then do this program. I truly do not have enough good things to say about this program.

I had always wanted to travel to Barcelona, Spain since I was young and IES Abroad offered the perfect opportunity for me get the most out my abroad experience in Barcelona. I wasn't sure about being abroad for an entire semester, so the 2 month option through IES Internships was a perfect amount of time to truly experience the Barcelona culture.

I took the 1 credit internship as well as a Spanish class. I would work for most of the day and then go to Spanish (Spanish was only for half of the two months). I am a marketing major at Clemson University, and through IES Internships, I was matched up with a company to do their social media. Doing an internship abroad was a once in a lifetime experience. It taught me skills such as communication across cultures, independence, a strong work ethic, and the ability to work with people from all over the world.

Barcelona is a beautiful, lively city never with a shortage of something to do. It really has everything you could ever want while traveling abroad. There was some of the best food I have ever had and there was so much history and beautiful architecture to take in. I can't forget to mention the exciting social scene. Barcelona was some of the most fun times I have had going out. I highly recommend doing an internship in Barcelona through IES Abroad because you get to experience a new, exciting culture as well as gain real world work experience that will differentiate you from others.

Going abroad with IES Abroad is one of the best decisions that I have ever made. I always wanted to study and get work experience in another country and this program was the perfect opportunity to do so. They supplied me with an internship, a place to stay, and a valuable cultural experience that I will never forget.

The internship placement are catered to your skills, knowledge, and interests. This allows you to get experience in your field(s), as well as develop useful connections that can be helpful in the future. My placement was incredible. I loved what I did and the people who I worked with.

The seminar was helpful as well. It gave me the chance to learn more about my professional self and helped me learn how to adapt to different cultural differences in the workplace. Also, my teacher was helpful in every way possible. She never let us down when it came to lending a helping hand.

The life in London is amazing. I stayed in a student living building, but it was very accommodating to my needs. IES even paired me with a roommate that was similar to me (My roommate and I still talk ever chance we can). It was fairly easy to travel around the city and there was always something to explore. There was never a dull moment.

Overall, I enjoyed my time in London and I most definitely recommend this trip to anyone thinking of interning and studying in the UK.

If I had the power, I would force every student in America to study abroad in Spain. That is the kind of experience it has given me time and time again. If you want to enjoy your day, from the moment you wake up til the moment you lay in your bed to go to sleep, without a doubt, Spain is the place to study. From the food to the people, Spain is priceless!

Through taking all my classes in German I began to understand the language but through my cultural immersion with my host family I fell in love with the language. The host families in this program are awesome, IES does its best to cater to requests and will help you move easily if there is an issue. The location of the office makes it easy to access the whole city and navigation is so simple and almost completely free for students. Although the university doesn't have clubs like a normal USA one, it is really easy to meet people throughout the city and the program really encourages that. I had an amazing experience and a lot of it was due to the help from IES!

This program has everything you would need, expect, and want.... plus more! The location is close enough to the city to be able to go anywhere without much trouble. The people are helpful and kind. They really are there for you for anything. The school is a good environment and the people are fun.

I went abroad with the hope of making new friends, Irish and American, and IES direct enrollment at Trinity provided the perfect environment for that. The housing IES placed us in was really impressive and comfortable with extremely sweet Resident Assistants. There were different excursions to go on around Ireland that helped build a close-knit community among us visiting students, and the staff that led the excursions were awesome and knowledgeable. I loved the informal and supportive interactions I always had with the IES Dublin staff. As for the academics, Trinity was the perfect school for me. My professors were enthusiastic and brilliant, and the direct enrollment allowed us to easily meet Irish students and make some friends along the way. The rain took some getting used to, but I think most of us embraced it after a few weeks. Dublin a beautiful city but not in the way that places like Paris or Florence are, most of the richness is within the people and the culture--seek it out!