IES Abroad Reviews

IES Abroad is very hands-on in their approach: from the excursions (22 days of travel and learning!) to the cultural events (Fasnet anyone?) to massive consumption of kaffee und kuchen, they know how to give their students a diverse, European perspective. I loved learning about the local politics of Freiburg one week, and then seeing the supranational recommendations of the European Commission the next week. European politics, economics, and affairs meet curious students who get the chance to hear first-hand accounts from academics and policy-makers, as well as individuals in non-profits and government run organizations. Anyone looking to work internationally or in government should seriously consider this program, especially if you love to travel!

I want to share one of my favorite stories from my time abroad in Nice. It encapsulates a lot of my favorite things about Niçois/French culture: crêpes, the North African influence in the south of France, and a good old-fashioned scavenger hunt. Ok, the last one wasn't specific to French culture, but that's not important.
Here is my story.

During my last week in Nice, my friend Meredith came to visit! We had a wonderful week catching up on each other’s study abroad experiences, and I had the pleasure of being able to show her firsthand what the highlights of my life in France have been.

She also arrived with a short list of things of French things she wanted to do. One of the biggest items on this list was to have a proper French crêpe. Being in a homestay, I’ve had crêpes a few times this semester, but only at home and never at a crêperie. In short, I didn’t really know where the best places were for crêpes. There was one restaurant near my apartment that advertised 1 savory crêpe + 1 dessert crêpe + 1 cup of cider as a package deal.

PERFECT RIGHT.

But no, because why would it be easy to find crêpes in France?

Day 1 of the crêst:

Saturday.

We were coming back from Antibes by train in the evening, and by the time we got back it was getting late. On top of that, I got turned around because I am me and knowing where I am is a challenge, ok? We got to the restaurant at about 10pm, by which time it was closed. However, the North African restaurant across the street was open, bless their hearts. Hungry stomachs are the real rulers so we gave up the crêst for the night and gave in to…Algerian pizza. Don’t ask. I still don’t know. But it was good so who cares!

Day 2 of the crêst:

Sunday.

An important part of French culture is their burning need to close everything on Sundays. So, after coming back from the honey festival in a neighboring town, we tried one more time to get crêpes at the same restaurant. But, you guessed it! It’s closed on Sundays. Do you know which places to eat are open on Sundays? Kebab places. Do you know which kebab places have crêpes? None of them. But who decided to advertise that they have crêpes? A kebab place.

Well, just to make sure, I asked the proprietor if they served savory crêpes and he seemed very sincere when he said, “Yes, with egg and cheese.” Perfect, sounds like a crêpe to me!

After much anticipation, we were served…tortillas. I kid you not, our Sunday dinner was closer to a breakfast burrito than a crêpe. Granted, it wasn’t bad, but when I ask directly for a crêpe, I mean I would like to eat a crêpe.

Day 3 of the crêst:

Monday.

After 2 failed attempts, I didn’t want to take my chances. I asked my friend Austin who I know has eaten out more often than I have as he lives in his own apartment in Nice. He gave me a great recommendation for a crêperie on the port. Meredith and I both ordered delicious crêpes. (She got a ham and cheese savory crêpe and a Grand Marnier dessert crêpe; I got a ham and cheese savory crêpe and a blueberry jam dessert crêpe.)

The struggles like this are some of the most memorable experiences from a semester abroad and our crêst is one of my favorite memories from the semester. I mean, when we’re eating good food either way, can we really complain?

- See more at: http://www.iesabroad.org/study-abroad/blogs/micha562umnedu/…

I studied abroad with IES Abroad in Freiburg, Germany during my sophomore year for one semester. Studying abroad in Germany was the best time in my life. Through my experiences abroad, I have developed to overcome challenges and gained new perspective to look at the world from various point of view. Student from diverse backgrounds, sitting together at the Augustinerplatz to enjoy the end of the day and picturesque landscape of the gateway to the Black Forest have indeed added charm to my experience in Freiburg. My memories from Germany are filled with limitless joy and happiness. I would highly recommend studying abroad with IES Abroad in Freiburg at the European Union program.

Before setting eyes on Granada, I was definitely nervous about studying abroad. I'd heard wonderful things about IES Abroad Granada from my friends who had studied there before, but I didn't know if I would have a similarly wonderful experience. I was eager to experience a new culture, try new foods, and meet interesting people, but I didn't know if all my expectations would be met. Turns out they were — and actually exceeded. Granada is an absolutely amazing city with an exciting culture, beautiful architecture, and tons of street life. It's not too big but not too small, which was comforting and allowed me to explore new areas without getting lost or feeling overwhelmed. From hiking up in the mountains, to climbing up to the Alhambra, to dancing flamenco, to going to outdoor markets, to taking part in street fairs and processions, to helping cook new foods, my time in Granada was a blast. IES Abroad was spectacular in helping me to acclimate to the environment and feel at home away from home. The classes at the IES Center are challenging and stimulating and exciting, all at the same time. The professors are great at helping you to improve your Spanish and develop new skills on an individual level, and you get small classes and personalized attention, which I very much appreciated. My Spanish when I entered the program was not amazing, but with my professors' help, I was able to improve so much. Moreover, IES organizes hikes, excursions, and other fun outdoor activities to get to know the area. Through these activities, I was able to better see the countryside and surrounding sites, as well as make better friends with my program mates and additional Spanish locals who would accompany us. IES also helped pair us with students from the University of Granada so we could practice our Spanish and meet more Granadinos. Through this "intercambio" program, I was able to meet some wonderful Spanish friends my age who could show me their favorite spots in the city. And I also got to see Granada from a new perspective, which increased my appreciation for the city. Overall, I really appreciated the time and effort that the program put into helping us acclimate to the environment, and I couldn't recommend Granada as a place of study enough. It's personal, it's lively, it's exciting, and it'll be one of the best decisions you've ever made. Just make sure to keep an open mind and try at least one new thing every day, and you'll have a wonderful time.

I had wanted to study abroad since my freshman year of college, but upon visiting the study abroad office on my campus, I became overwhelmed and did not go back until the first semester of my junior year. I had the option of graduating a semester early, but instead of taking that option, I decided to take that semester to study abroad. In order for it to be "worth it,"* I decided I needed a program that offered an internship. As an English major studying creative writing, it was hard to find a program that fit my requirements, but in the end, I found IES. Not only did IES offer a program specifically for writers, the program was in Dublin, one of UNESCO's cities of literature, and it offered an internship dealing with written works, which is what I wanted to do. The internship I ended up getting was working as a literary assistant for a theatre production company. I was astounded by IES' ability to obtain an internship that was both intriguing and relevant to what I wanted to do after college. In addition to the internship, we were also placed in high-quality apartments that came furnished with almost everything we could need. The staff at our centre was incredibly friendly and helpful, and by the time we left Dublin, they had become friends. IES also created a perfect balance between school work and free time. We didn't have Friday classes, and we were given a midterm break, but the classes were still engaging, and the teachers held high expectations for us so that it was impossible to leave Dublin without knowing quite a lot more about Irish history and culture. Apart from IES, Dublin was the perfect size. It was possible to walk almost anywhere within the city, and a day trip to the a seaside town was always only a short train ride away. Overall, it was hard to leave both the city and the people, but I will always take Dublin with me.

*I know now that it would have been impossible for my experience to not be worth it.

All host families are different and all my friends had different experiences with their host family. I originally thought I would be spending a lot of time with my host family, such as going out with them on their daily errands or learning Japanese culture from them. Instead, my experience was very mundane. They spent the majority of their time watching television, going over assignments with their children and preparing for dinner. It was a bit difficult to communicate with them because my Japanese level was not as high and elaborating on topics was very difficult on both ends. But, before you think about seriously applying to IES Abroad for Nanzan University, you should check if their Japanese courses are align with yours. For example, Nanzan University of second year Japanese does not start off with GENKI 2, it starts off with GENKI 2 chapter 15.

I was glad I chose IES, because they took us to various locations that were popular in Japan. Fushimi Inari, which is a shrine in Kyoto, was probably one of the best ones in my opinion. Also, just be prepared to have a jam-packed schedule whenever you go on your trips. You do have a short breaks in between activities to rest, but at most we got around 2 hours to rest, which is not a lot when you are always on the go.

When I studied abroad in Buenos Aires, Argentina, I went out of my comfort zone and got the most out of the experience. I learned about the culture in Argentina and how people there are so passionate that it brought out a side of me that no other experience can. I learned so much about how Argentina operates on a daily basis. I was able to see many differences in lifestyle and norms in society that made me appreciate what I have in the U.S. and what I grew to love in Argentina. I developed so much more as a person where I could express myself in a different setting through the Spanish language and understand life in Argentina. I learned the most from my host parents who taught me how to get around the city and to travel to places in and out of Argentina that would be worth seeing.

One of my best memories I have is going to Iguazu Falls to see one of the seven natural wonders of the world. I went to the falls with a small group for a weekend trip towards the beginning of my program when it was still warm there, but not overly humid and tropical. I spent one full day in the Iguazu Falls Park with my group of friends and that was enough. We went up to the top of the falls at La Garganta del Diablo and went below the falls and explored other parts of the park on the Argentina side. The falls separate Brazil and Argentina and it was amazing to see it all. One reason why one day was enough for me was because of the coati animals that live in the park. The coatis are kind of like raccoons, except they have really sharp claws and can open backpacks and steal food. There are many signs in the park warning you that they can scratch or bite you. When we first saw them, we were so excited to see them and got as many pictures as we could. But towards the end of the day there, as we were on our last hike down a trail, we were tired of them after they swarmed us when we were having lunch. We shooed them away and wanted to get out of the park. With all that happened, from taking in the spectacular views to fighting off the coatis, it was well worth the trip especially bonding with my friends there in the park and on our 20-hour bus ride there and 20 hours back.

My semester abroad was four of the most rewarding months of my life- I made new friends, improved my Spanish and became a more cultured and open-minded person. While abroad, I took classes both through my program and at a local university (Universidad Pontificia de Salamanca). As part of a full immersion program, I can attest to the fact that there is no better way to learn a language than to be put into situations where you have to use it. The amount of confidence that I have when speaking has increased so much from my time in Spain. Our program offered a great support system and any questions or concerns we had were dealt with immediately. I'm so glad I decided to go outside my comfort zone and study abroad- I wouldn't trade my experience for anything!

I spent my last semester studying abroad in Paris. I had an amazing time and so I'm extremely grateful with the IES Paris BIA program coordinators and staff for making this such an unforgettable experience! From day 1 of orientation to the last day of classes, the IES Paris BIA staff was always very friendly and welcoming, they would always go out of their way to make sure were happy and never passed an opportunity to share with us special events occurring around the city so that we could go and explore them.

To that point, the IES Paris program had a variety of different field trips within the city, but also to other regions in France. These were one of my favorite things about the program as they allowed us to get to know our peers, but also to get immersed in our host country's culture.

The classes were also an opportunity for us to learn more about France as they were all tailored to provide us with unique insights about the Parisian lifestyle. I was a little worried about the course credits not transferring properly, but the IES staff was very helpful in explaining how this worked in order to avoid such issues.

As for my housing situation, I can only speak for staying with a homestay as that was the option I went for. I had a wonderful experience, and truly recommend doing this when studying abroad. IES did such a great job matching students to host families that everyone felt very comfortable with their living situation.

Overall a very well organized program, offering a unique way of experiencing Paris, and something I will never forget!

My experience in Freiburg was one of the best 4 month periods of my life. I found the logistics of the Freiburg Study Abroad to be superb, and this little city in southern Germany offers everything. You’re surrounded by the Black Forest and Freiburg is an authentic German town with a lot of energy from the masses of college students. Dorm life was fantastic for me - that’s how I met the most germans and my roommates were very welcoming. All in all a fantastic experience.