Program Reviews

Future Leaders is an incredible introduction/real life experience for anyone who’s actively interested in entrepreneurship. For myself personally, even though that wasn’t my passion in the program, I was helped by the FL team to find outlets I could channel my interests into. I really liked the Spanish school portion of the program, and found that it was an excellent way to meet people outside of the program, along with the multiple chances of interaction you get with Absolute Internship students. Although your weekdays can be busy, weekends are a good chance to travel, however don’t expect to have a lot of time to do that. It’s only about 1 1/2 days of traveling, because you can only leave Fridays and have to return Sundays. However, depending on where you are you can get a fair amount done in that time! Overall, I would recommend Future Leaders.

1) Entrepreunership
2) Learning
3) General elements

Overall the program was a great experience. It’s super well run, with great communication and the right balance of independence and guidance from the program director Arantxa. Housing was good overall; the homestays during the first month in Madrid are nice enough and the dorms in Barcelona are remarkably well kept, especially by US college standards. The internship component of the program was really fun for me, and gave me great real life work experience. Generally would definitely recommend for anyone interested in a travel program where you’ll also learn a ton.

The Spanish classes alone provided a ton of hands on learning. However, the entrepreneurship and internship portions are what provided a level of experience that has changed my life. With the internship portion you are given the opportunity to explore a field of your interests while making connections within the field and learning real business and work skills. The entrepreneurial portion provided invaluable experience where one can create and chase their ideas while working with mentors who have real credible experience. The skills of forming, creating, and pitching an idea as a real world entrepreneur is invaluable. You will learn public speaking, networking, how to ask for help, what works and what doesn’t with business, and a million other practical real world skills.

The overall experience was fantastic, I don’t have any complaints. I always felt supported by all facilitators. I would say the overall attitude of some of the receptionists at the residency weren’t very welcoming. On the other hand, our host family was fantastic and very welcoming. Furthermore, the overall experience with the entrepreneurial aspect of the course coupled with the internships was extremely valuable as we got to learn a lot about all stages of creating a business and pitching it to investors.

I very much enjoyed the experience it was great for my own personal and professional growth. Barcalona was great host city, I preferred it to Madrid. My Spanish grew a lot I did think It took a step back in my time of Barcalona. The overall group was amazing and the support given by the mentors was incredible both professionally and life advice wise. They truely do want to see you succeed. The opportunity to live in a foreign country was also amazing, it’s much more of a immersive experience compared to just going on a vacation.

I enjoyed this program’s devotion to cultural immersion, exemplified through the homestays, historical tours, Spanish language courses, and cooking classes. We learned so much about artisanal farming through our visits to ecological, horse, donkey, and cheese farms. It also has an art focus through pottery, dancing, collage, and photography. This is a comprehensive program that provides a fully immersive Spanish experience. Overall, this program is more similar to study abroad with it’s classroom and guided tour model, instead of constant free-range outdoor activity - even though they do provide an intensive one week full of adventure in the North.

I'm sharing this review as a parent of Spring 2022 Gapper. My son was interested in becoming more fluent in Spanish and learning more about the country and history of Spain. His experience way exceeded his expectations as well as mine! Arantxa and the rest of the SGY crew were phenomenal. They thought through many details and were also open to suggestions from students, since the program is a bit newer. He was given structure but also a certain amount of independence once the students showed they were familiar enough with their location and Spanish customs and program rules. I never worried about his safety and can not recommend SGY strongly enough. My son's experience with this program was truly life changing for him and I am grateful he had the opportunity to immerse himself so completely in Spanish culture.

Writing as a parent of a gapper who spent 3 months touring Spain with Spanish Gap Year and Arantxa's team. Overall...GREAT Experience!

We would heartily recommend Spanish Gap Year and were very impressed with Arantxa's organization, staff, home-stay placements (AMAZING!), and connections with local resources. The activities (fun and educational) were super fun for our gapper. We would give a special shout out to Arantxa for connecting with wonderful group language classes for the gappers. The stay in Salamanca was especially well done. Our gapper now hopes to study abroad for a semester or even a year in Salamanca as part of her undergraduate work!

Although the program is still in its early days, Arantxa has loads of personal experience and tons of passion for what these kids are hoping to find, see, learn, and experience. She really gets it.

Spanish Gap Year is a well run outfit. The program offers tremendous opportunities for growth in Spanish language skills as well independence, social opportunities, culture, gastronomy, and understanding the fascinating culture and history of every region of Spain...a true crossroads of cultures.

My daughter had a wonderful time on this program. It provided a rich and diverse cultural experience across many parts of Spain and in a way which was fun and enjoyable. As a parent I always felt that my daughter was being taken care of and the communication was excellent. The communication not only consisted of email updates but am instagram and google drive location which provided videos and pictures. I would whole heartedly and without reservation recommend this program to other parents considering a gap year program for their son or daughter.

Arantxa (the founder/leader) is a rare gem. She directs the program with professionalism and has excellent communication with the parents, but her heart is with the students. She understands their age and stage of life and respects their independence while also providing a safe and enriching experience. Each aspect of the program is very intentional and provides immersion without pressure. It's a great rhythm of homestays and city hostel adventures with some wilderness adventures that aren't too intense for students who don't have experience. Arantxa co-leads with select people in every region and all of them were fantastic. My child was sad to say goodbye to each leader and host family but always knew the next adventure would unveil a new relationship. Her love of Spain is now deep and lifelong. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this program to anyone!