IES Abroad Reviews

I LOVED my time in Rome. The IES staff was very helpful in assisting students with getting their footing initially in a foreign environment. I lived with an ISC, an Italian student companion, and 5 other American girls and we had an absolutely fabulous time. Not only did living with an ISC improve our language skills, but mine went above and beyond, introducing us to all of her friends and planning activities for us--she became a very dear friend. The program made it easy to fall in love with Rome from field studies to visits to the most luxurious and amazingly beautiful landmarks and museums. The countless gelato runs, unreal pasta dinners and wonderful traveling added to the incredible experience. IES planned a trip to 5 cities on the Amalfi Coast in a weekend trip for us, hosted cooking lessons and wine tastings and even orchestrated a visit to an olive grove and olive oil manufacturing plant. It was an incredible experience...I absolutely recommend IES and Rome to any and all college students interested in going abroad!

This was an amazing program. There are multiple sets of programs, and I was on the Marine Ecology track. The opportunities to assist in research on mangrove restoration, invertebrate diversity, sea lion population trends and more was truly life-changing.

Once we were on the island, I woke up at 5:20 to assist in the sea lion census I did with two other students. This data was then compiled and given to the National Park and scientists working on understanding population dynamics. I'd then eat a huge breakfast, consisting of fresh fruit, yogurt, granola, eggs, toast, and fresh juice. After breakfast, we had three hours of class which would be broken up by breaks on the beach. Our afternoons were full of snorkeling with sea turtles and sea lions.

It was a great introduction to marine science, and a completely life-changing experience. Although the classes were in english, I was able to practice my spanish a lot with my host family.

I did the Language intensive program and lived in a home stay arranged by IES. The workload was not as light as other programs I've heard of but my Chinese improved A LOT. Any student serious about pursuing Chinese should sign on for this program. Each class has multiple teachers and I received a lot of individual attention. Also the area of Beijing that the center is located in, HaiDian district, is vibrant and fun but not as commercial as other districts, such as Chaoyang. I liked the smaller feel of the surrounding area but everything was still convenient because buses and subways were still really close. There is Chinese class and "Area Studies" classes every day except Wednesday. Students can chose to do an internship on Wednesdays but I did not. I took Chinese Government and Politics and Calligraphy. Calligraphy was the most fun class I have taken and the teacher, Fang Laoshi, is so kind and patient with students.
I went on a two week trip with IES and it was so awesome. I got to see the Chinese-North Korean border and I actually crossed it for like 30 seconds! I got really close with a lot of other students on that trip.
The absolute highlight of my time at IES was becoming very close with the Chinese tutor that IES set me up with. Every student gets a Chinese tutor and me and my tutor became best friends. We still skype at least once or twice a week (in Chinese). Without IES's help I would not have met someone who is now such a close friend of mine.
This program is absolutely great. The only thing that I think students should consider before choosing it is how much work they want to do while abroad. All of the work in IES is very worthwhile but if a student is looking to just have fun and party while overseas, I don't think this is the program for you.

Going into this program I had no travel experience AT ALL. Hadn't been on a plane in years and definitely had never been outside of the US before. I didn't even know anyone else going on the trip. I was really nervous about traveling, but the IES people make it impossible to get confused! They meet you right in the airport as soon as you arrive and help you with settling in. That was a big thing for me.

Other than that, all of the people at IES were incredibly helpful and friendly. They really know how to make you feel at home. Every abroad student lives with an Italian student, which is really great because you always feel safe and they totally give you the pointers on where to go.

If I ever go abroad again (which is very likely) I will look into IES abroad programs before anything else. Definitely take advantage of this trip it changed my life!!! :)

IES Milan was really good and made us feel at home. The orientation program was really informative and made me feel much more comfortable. I had an amazing time in Milan and IES was there to help us at any hour of the day or night. My apartment was so cute and was right by school so I got to walk to school every morning. They gave us amazing recommendations for restaurants and places to go at night. We also took trips with our program all over northern Italy. I would definitely recommend this program to anyone!

I had an amazing experience in Freiburg. It's such a great university city and there is always something to do. IES staff were very helpful and I couldn't have asked for a better study abroad experience.

This was a great program and I am so glad that I was able to experience all that I did. Everyone at the IES center works very hard to make sure that you are getting the most out of your time there. Teachers are top notch from all over the city and are well known and such a privilege to learn from! I recommend this program for anyone and everyone:)

IES Abroad affords students a wonderful opportunity to independently explore Buenos Aires while supporting and guiding them in their endeavors. With the options of either staying with a host family (which I would highly recommend, particularly for the language immersion), or renting an apartment on your own, students have a lot of freedom in developing their schedule. There is also a great range of classes offered in both the Standard and Advanced levels. The Standard program includes classes taught by Argentine professors in the IES Abroad office to the group of students from American Universities that are enrolled with the program. Most of the classes are focused on Argentine history and society and embody the complete experience of being in Buenos Aires. The Advanced program offers classes in Spanish and also the ability to enroll in one of four partner universities. Spanish class is an integral part of both programs and the professors are engaging and teach practical language skills that encourage students to converse not only with their host families and friends but also with cab drivers, store clerks, and bus drivers. IES provides a comprehensive orientation that discusses the social life in Buenos Aires, an extremely vibrant city, and encourages students to safely explore the city. The program also offers many field trips to local areas and weekend trips that highlight key components of the city and the country. IES employs an extremely supportive staff and provides students with a great opportunity to live and study in Buenos Aires!

Quito is an excellent city for study abroad. It's big but easy to navigate and become familiar, with easy and inexpensive public transportation. My host family was absolutely wonderful - accommodating, caring, friendly and patient, and went out of their way to welcome me. I found nearly all the Ecuadorians I came into contact with, whether my classmates, professors, or random strangers to be very warm and eager to share their country. Quito has great nightlife and easy accessibility to the rest of the country via bus.

I was very pleased with IES staff - they always went out of their way to make sure we were safe and content. Field trips were well-planned, exciting and fun. When I was sick one of the directors brought me to the doctor, another helped me with a tough academic situation. That being said, the only negative aspect of the IES program was the class I took at PUCE, the university. While IES classes had great professors and content, the class in which I directly enrolled had confusing policies, unfair grading and a professor who refused to work with me as a foreign exchange student. Some of my friends also had issues with classes there, but luckily the credits didn't matter for my university.

I had an incredible experience in Quito and I would recommend this country and program in a heartbeat!

IES Rome is a phenomenal program. The teachers were all excellent and offered classes which catered to many different majors. My favorite class of all was "Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire." A great class taught by a professor born and raised in Italy who knew every in and out of his countries history.

One thing IES Rome does that others do not is that it requires you to take Italian. They offer all different levels and let you place into whatever you want. The teachers are all energetic and stress learning Italian and speaking to make your time easier as opposed to learning just to take tests. It is very helpful and what better place to learn a language than the country itself!

The facilities when I was in Rome 2007 were in the suburbs of Rome, good but far away (Took me 45 minutes to get there.) Since then the school has moved into the center (Piazza Navona) which could not be a better place to live.

The school only accepts around 200 people a semester and most of which are from large state schools (Mostly big 10.) The students are great and know how to have a good time, the nightlife is very good and don't forget about the beaches.

My favorite thing of all about the program were the field trips! They offer you to go on up to 3 free weekend field trips to places like Venice, Florence, Cinque Terra, Naples and Amalfi Coast. The accommodations are all first class and its a great way to bond with others and meet new people.

All in all going to Rome through IES was the best experience of my life. My only complaint was the school location and they heard the complaints and changed. They cater to the students and want all to learn but have a fun time doing it.