IES Abroad Freiburg

Absolutely loved my program. With the program visited 12 countries. It is a lot of traveling, but the semester is built the way that you don’t get tired or exhausted. Freiburg itself is a safe picturesque city. A lot of good places to go out, weather you want to go hiking or to a nightclub. If your level of German is low or non-excitant, it is not an issue. Pretty much every country we went to and in Freiburg, Englsih is widely spoken, so it was very easy to navigate and live there. IES stuff is incredibly caring and attentive. They helped me and any student who needed help or advice. Living situation is very nice. All buildings are located in safe area, close to a grocery store, downtown and IES center. Even not being a political science or related majors, you can definitely benefit from this program. There is a good variety of classes you can choose from.

My semester abroad was more than I could have ever hoped for. I spent my semester improving my german, making new friends, immersing in the culture, and learning how to navigate a new country. I was supported by the IES staff and faculty the entire time I was in Freiburg. If someone got sick a doctors appointment was made available that day for the student. I personally had a medical issue and I was able to recipes antibiotics and the medical attention I needed the day I asked for help. IES planned trips for us: one was to Venice and Padua, and another one to Berlin. I attended both trips, although both optional, and they were very fun and exciting. The trips were a good balance of planned activities and free time for us to do what we wanted to.
We didn't have class on Fridays which allowed for travel and exploration of Freiburg and surrounding areas. The classes were exciting and informative, they were taught at a level of German that was easy to understand. The individual classes had various excursions pertaining to the class.
The social aspect was very fun, we had 32 people in the language and area studies program and I got to know each of these people on a personal level. We spent most of our time together cooking, exploring and immersing in the culture. Our living situations were all slightly different, no room was identical. But everyone had a shared kitchen and bathrooms for the apartment. We also had a few people do home stays.
Overall my experience was incredible and I would highly recommend it to anyone who is confident in their German skills and want to see a smaller town aspect of Germany.

I enrolled in the European Union program in Freiburg to gain a better understanding of European culture through the Political Science and International Relations lens and have the ability to visit famous European cities that were also relevant with our studies.
As a Business major, it would seem that my studies were not exactly compatible with my major. However, I was able to fulfill some of my major requirements while still being able to take some Political Science and International Relations classes that I thought were very interesting and could diversify my academic background.
The semester when I studied, the Fall of 2016, could not have been a better time to study abroad. With Brexit and very similar elections occurring in nearly every major European state coupled with the US elections, the subject matter was relevant to everybody and we had plenty of material to discuss in class and when we visited the different bureaucratic cities.
The relevance of the material we study in class were extremely relevant with the current events and that was vital for me as there was the study aspect in my study abroad and also in practice, as I was able to combine the two together and gain a better understanding for European political culture.
As this program is geared towards Political Science and International Relations majors, there were times where I felt I was out of my element, as I did not possess the foundational knowledge of the subject matter we would study. However, it was still very beneficial for me to study different subjects as a Liberal Arts student.
The program did a fantastic job of balancing class work with our travels, as the professors had a great understanding of our time constraints as our schedule had us outside Freiburg almost every two weeks.
With my college tuition and the study program expense being equal, it was fantastic to be able to visit these cities without paying more out of pocket.
Freiburg is also a vibrant, university-driven town to be in, and in close proximity to France, Switzerland, and other European states.

My semester with IES Abroad European Union was an invaluable opportunity to learn and grow. As a student of International Relations and History, I was able to explore my passions within a practical context in Europe. One of the biggest advantages of studying abroad with IES Abroad EU is that you learn just as much in the classroom as outside of it. Within our multiple field trips, I visited 12 countries across Europe, and engaged in meetings with EU officials and academics from a wide variety of fields. Some of my favorite memories include visiting the European Commission in Brussels, hiking in the Alps, and bonding over the cold in Latvia. Moreover, the base city of the program, Freiburg, is a gorgeous and quaint town. It is easily accesible, due in part to the excellent tram system, and will quickly make you feel at home (and it also has a great selection of restaurants). Additionally, the IES Abroad Staff are some of the most attentive and caring people I've ever met, and they would always make sure that everyone on the program was doing well. My semester abroad was a big leap for me - a push to try something new - and I'm immensely glad I did it!

My time in Freiburg was the greatest time of my life, and I highly recommend this program. Freiburg is the perfect city, because it is the right size to feel comfortable and very safe. One of the best parts of the program is the travel included in the curriculum, where you get to travel to eight different cities. The IES center staff do an incredible job planning the trips, providing suggestions and tips for each city and exposing us to unique speakers and experiences. As someone who had never traveled outside the United States before, having a structured form of travel was very beneficial and made travel a lot less overwhelming for me. For a personal example of how helpful the center staff is, I cut my hand while in Freiburg and needed stitches. A staff member scheduled an appointment for me with a doctor that speaks English to remove my stitches, which was incredibly helpful and made a stressful and scary situation much easier. This program and this city is one you will not regret experiencing!

I always said I could never miss anywhere but my home in Indiana, but Freiburg proved me wrong. I don't know if it's the cobblestone streets, streams lining the roads, or gothic cathedral in the city's center, but Freiburg and its charms captured my heart. I had an apartment to myself, but you can also share an apartment in Vauban, either of which is just a tram ride away from the IES Center where classes are held. The staff at the IES Center was great. They gave us jerseys to wear during the Euros, advice on where to find the best souvenir shops and restaurants, and opportunities to bond with the other program members. We took field trips to three different countries: Bosnia-Herzegovina, Greece, and Cyprus, and they were all very well organized. The program even provides classes in German for beginners, although the daily courses are in English. My life has forever been changed by this program, and I highly encourage studying abroad, wherever that may be.

fernweh | (n.) when you feel like you have to leave your familiar surroundings to discover new places. it is the need for distance, the wish to experience something far away from home, the urge to escape from your everyday life by travelling

The IES Freiburg EU program was the perfect way to find Fernweh! Freiburg was the perfect home-away-from-home. It was safe, beautiful, fun, and the perfect size for the aspiring city girl. I had my little slice of heaven hidden away in the Black Forest! We were able to travel so much - which was so easy due to the central train station in Freiburg.

The EU program was so much fun!! Especially the travel aspect, you go somewhere once a week every month and it's the best thing about the program. The center is really nice, some of the professors are great while others are meh, as usual. Classes were interesting for the most part.
There's some good places to go out in Freiburg, and the food is the BEST. There are a bunch of shops down the main street downtown to go shopping. It felt like we weren't in Freiburg much because of the travel but the time we were in town was great.
A couple things to think about are if you plan on fully immersing yourself in German culture you're going to have to do everything you can do to that. In Freiburg you're in classes at the IES Center not the local University, so you're spending 80% of the time surrounded by Americans. Also, this is not a program you can go into assuming you're going to barely be doing any work. For me, it was like any other semester work wise. All of that being said I LOVE Freiburg and being there was so much fun, and I would absolutely go again!!