IES Abroad Reviews

Writing about my experience makes me want to return to Madrid. Everyday in Madrid is different than the next, and I loved the city. I had a blast playing the “let’s get off at a random metro stop and walk around” game, and discovered a city completely ALIVE both day and night. Everyone I met was super helpful with improving my Spanish, and there are quite a number of fun museums and attractions to visit. It’s also easy to get from Madrid to anywhere else in Spain and, quite frankly, the rest of Europe if that’s your thing.

I must commend IES on their excursions. During my time we visited Bilbao, San Sebastián, Asturias, Toledo, Segovia, and a few local places around Madrid. I thought the trips were well organized and gave us the perfect amount of free time to ourselves.

IES staff are sincere people. I think they do a great job of ensuring your living situation is comfortable, and I always felt I could approach them. They personalized my experience and provided me with a homestay right in the center of Madrid, which I absolutely adored. My host mother was the best!

I had fantastic professors in IES, including a A+ grammar teacher and an employee of the Prado Museum of Art. Every Tuesday and Thursday afternoon, I would check-in at the Prado and we would walk around the museum analyzing paintings and artist styles while the paintings were right in front of us! What a unique experience.

I loved my time in Madrid, and am grateful to IES for their support and excitement about my growth.

IES Abroad has been detrimental to my experience thus far as a soon-to-be graduated senior. It helped me grow in so many different ways - emotionally (battling homesickness while finding new friends), physically (all the hikes I went on, calves of steel!), and intellectually (Irish language, history, and literature are all fascinating to learn about). All of the IES Abroad staff were amazing and extremely helpful in acclimating us to Dublin and keeping us aware of the current issues. The professors were equally wonderful, and always went out of their way to help students out.

I will always keep this experience as a cherished one for myself, and I cannot wait to return to Dublin soon.

Really an amazing institution. Lots of cats which is super amazing. The cats hang out in little cat houses around campus. Sometimes the cats would wander into the classrooms, which was a little silly, but the professors took it well. All of them were really kind and intelligent (the professors, not the cats!) There are classes and educational opportunities that are just not available at any schools in the US, where I'm from.

I’m being completely sincere when I say that study abroad was a truly enriching, eye-opening, and transformative experience that allowed me to not only discover more about myself but gain worldly perspectives. I was not only able to explore London culturally but also take classes at the prestigious University of Oxford, where I was challenged to think beyond what I've been taught and excel academically.

With regards to the academic aspects, students aren't really given a choice in choosing their classes for the Health, Practice and Policy program mainly because it's already a highly specialized program that is focused more on the health aspects. This makes this program perfect for anyone already with a major in public health, pre-med, biology, psychology, or just with an interest in these kinds of fields. I took classes on social welfare, comparative healthcare systems, health and disease and human rights - all of which I can surely say I gained something I probably never would have gained from classes back at my home university. These classes are very English-style in that they are highly discussion-based rather than being lecture-focused. As a part of the class, students also took many outside tours and went on field tripos that supplemented the coursework and allowed us to truly gain that outside-the-classroom learning experience. Additionally, the professors were excellent, passionate and knowledgeable in their fields, making the classes very open to thought-provoking discussion. The health and disease class was held at Oxford along with a discussion tutor session led by lecturers. The Oxford class was without a doubt the most challenging part of the program in that there is a high amount of workload and expectation for the student to achieve highly. Nonetheless, the lecturers are also improvement-focused so just because you do poorly at first does not mean that you will fail the class. Rather, they want to see you improve and they do help you out during the way to help you do better, which you will as long as you put in the effort.

My service learning placement was a very unique and enjoyable aspect of the program. I worked with an organization that works toward helping the homeless population, and it was an extremely humbling and rewarding experience to say that I was making a difference in another country through the small work I was doing. For example, I washed dishes and prepared food for the homeless, but also had the opportunity to work in the office for more behind-the-scenes and logistical work (which is not the most engaging or fun). Through this experience, however, I learned so much about social issues plaguing London and the stereotypes I had about the homeless, which was truly eye-opening. I feel as if I'm a much more enlightened and passionate student due to my experience doing service in London. Likewise, other students were matched with other organizations that were not just social service/volunteer based but also towards the medical field, etc. and I know from their personal accounts that they also learned and enjoyed their time with their service learning placement. That being said, 8 hours of service a week definitely added to the stressful workload of HPP program students. A lot of times, most of us were doing homework, essays, or doing service that we didn't have time to enjoy the culture or travel as much as students in other programs may have. Nonetheless, this doesn't mean we have absolutely no time at all - it's mostly about how one manages their time and how ambitious they get with what they want to do, see, or travel.
In fact, even with all the stress and sleepless nights, I still managed to plan and travel to Spain and Scotland, two places that I absolutely loved. It's a matter of what YOU want and how you make that desire happen even with all the obstacles you'll face.

Lastly, Jamaica was probably the best part about the program. This is where you really get to bond with some of your professors/IES staff who tag along and truly immerse yourself in the culture. The people are kind, the settings are beautiful, and the work that you do at clinics and at the Missionaries of the Poor... it's a priceless experience. It's a short week full of cultural immersion, learning, and working but it will, without a doubt, be the most wonderful and rewarding week of your life.

IES Abroad London- Health Practice and Policy was such a great opportunity. I'll be honest, London was never a place that I was dying to go to. But the program fit with my major and school and had a lot of great aspects of it. The staff at IES, both within the Health Practice and Policy program and outside of the program, were great! They help you to feel accommodated and comfortable with being abroad. Although the orientation at the beginning of the program was a little boring, it was very helpful and helped me to feel more at home in this new city. London itself was amazing. I am not much of a city person, but I really loved living in central London. You live at a residence hall called Kings Cross Student Accommodations. The rooms are SMALL, but everything is in Europe! The building itself is very modern and really nice. There is also a gym in the building that I took advantage of every day. The location is really what is great about Kings Cross. By the name of it, you can probably predict that it is right near Kings Cross Station. Being near such a large station made transportation extremely easy. The IES academic building is only about a 20 minute walk or you can take the tube. The academics were great and the professors were all very experienced and helpful in any way you may need it. Through the health practice and policy program, you will take two HPP classes at the IES center as well as an elective course at the center. The classes are really interesting and the work is very manageable. One thing that I would suggest is to start working on things early! You will have your prompts for your final papers when you start the class. Start working on it as soon as you can (especially before Oxford starts) so that you are not stressed at the end of the semester. The other part of this program is a course at Oxford University. This is an 8 week program, so you will not go for the first month and a half or so, so take advantage of your three day weekends while you can! Oxford was a great opportunity and a cool experience. But I'll be honest, having to travel there and spend the day on Fridays was a little bit of a drag as it makes weekend travel a little bit harder. The course also requires a good amount of work. You will have about a 1500 word paper due each week so make sure you don't procrastinate! The class itself is pretty interesting but it certainly was not my favorite part about the program. Even with Oxford on Friday's, I was still about to travel to 7 different countries! One being Jamaica which you will go to at the end of the program. Jamaica was probably one of my favorite parts of the program. It is a really great opportunity and gives you a chance to really see first hand some of the things you have been learning about and see how the healthcare system works. Overall, I really loved my semester abroad. One thing that I would suggest is to travel around Europe, but also don't forget about London and other parts of England! Take advantage of all the opportunities you have and enjoy the time you have because the semester goes by so fast!

My summer studying in Paris via the IES program was the best summer of my young adult life. Not only did my French get so much better, but I made great friends and was really immersed in the Parisian culture. The program is really great at taking you on excursions and making sure you have everything you need. I also stayed with a host family and my experience with them was amazing. They were so welcoming and hospitable. There is nothing better than a summer in Paris.

I loved my study abroad program and really appreciated all of the programming that IES put together. All of the classes incorporated visits to various cultural and historical sites, often requiring us to navigate the city on our own to get there. IES made sure that we were completely immersed in the culture of Italy, between the language requirements and the field trips to other parts of the country. I would definitely choose IES again!

The weather was much warmer than I expected so make sure you do your research and pack appropriately!!! I had a beautiful apartment in a great little neighborhood. Not being from the city I had to get used to the long walk (no car like I'm used to) to class and back but I grew to love it. There was great support and any questions or concerns I had were quickly answered. It will take you a little bit of time to get off the touristy areas--befriend the locals and take note to where they're going. My first day I got roped into a 30 euro bruschetta and bottled water, so definitely beware of tourist traps. Loved my classes and we had regular excursions to accompany what we were learning about. Rome was a good hub to the budget airlines, trains, and buses if you're interested in travelling outside of Rome or Italy. I fell in love with this city and can't wait to go back!

Any organization is going to succeed or fail because of its people. At IES Abroad Tokyo, the people are experienced, motivated and more than willing to enhance the study abroad experience. I went to Japan for the semester in April of 2013. Before I arrived in-country, IES provided an E-pal that contacted me through facebook which allowed me to ask questions and have a friend upon arrival. Right as I got into Narita airport, the IES staff was there to help. From the moment I was in Japan, IES was there to help. This became a re-curing theme as anytime I or anybody else in the group had trouble, IES was there. The staff there understands, seriously, they get it. From presentations and small little group activities I was able to learn and bond with my fellow students. Once school started I developed a routine and just tried as much as possible to immerse myself in the culture. The academic program is great, the extra-curricular programs even better. Ultimately everyone in my group that wanted to return to Japan to teach or live did. As I write this I am preparing to move to Okinawa and I can't wait. Ultimately, your study abroad experience is what you put into it. You'll find that human beings don't differ too much from one another. The relationships and experiences we foster with one another define who we are. I can't thank IES Abroad Tokyo enough.

In high school I never even thought studying abroad was something normal kids did, just those who spoke 5 languages and were wealthy enough to travel. Once my sophomore year of college started I realized it was something possible for me too. Right away I made it my mission to make studying abroad possible. I had to change my degrees around a bit, load up on classes, and I saved all my gen ed classes for going abroad. Picking a place to go was difficult, but it ultimately came down to New Zealand because I wanted to experience nature like I never had before. Next I had to pick my program provider and I ended up choosing IES because they offered extra excursions and the option for homestay.
The University of Auckland is a beautiful and accessible campus, even though it's significantly larger than what I'm used to and I had no problem finding my way around after exploring the campus before classes started. The quality of learning there may be better or worse depending on where you come from; I had 2 wonderful classes and professors, 1 decent one, and 1 bad one. It would be helpful to look up reviews of professors if you can, though I think most classes only have one professor teaching it. The thing I disliked most about classes abroad was the size and style of teaching. I'm used to class sizes around 20-30 people, intimate relationships with other students and the professor, and tutorial style teaching all the time. It was quite a change having over 100 people in every class and adapting to lecture based teaching. It encouraged me to procrastinate since I'm not the best at managing my time and priorities. One thing I would recommend is to take a culture or history class pertaining to your country, my Maori studies class was by far one of the most engaging and interesting classes I've ever taken as a student (I had a wonderful professor and many guest lecturers).
It was a little hard meeting people in my classes because they were not interactive classes like dance, music, or philosophy, and because they were not first year classes so people already knew their classmates. Even though I hung out with locals in clubs and bars, the other IES abroad students became my best friends there outside of the classroom.
Adjusting to life in another country was easier than I expected, I only had a learning curve with public transport. I got lost many times but nice people on the street always helped me out! It's also incredibly easy to get absorbed in the city life and forget about your studies in another country because sometimes it seems like you're on a vacation instead of on an exchange. Thanks to my study abroad experience I can't wait to keep on traveling. I can't picture myself tied down to a desk anymore.