CEA CAPA Education Abroad in Dublin, Ireland

I studied abroad In Dublin, Ireland, with CAPA, and it was the experience of a lifetime. I went for my spring semester of 2020, so my experience was cut short; however, I did get to go for about 50 days. To start, the people at CAPA were so helpful before and while I was there. Any questions you have, they can answer, which helped relieve my stress. CAPA is a great company that wants to make the transition as easy as possible. The city is absolutely beautiful, and it is easy to get around! Dublin is filled with history, culture, and amazing people. They have an excellent public transportation system as well, and you can walk everywhere. As a hospitality major, it was fantastic to take classes from a different perspective. I met some of the nicest people while I was there, and I would do it again in a heartbeat!

I am so glad that I spent my summer 2019 abroad in Dublin, Ireland. It was without a doubt the most fun and adventurous summer I have ever had in my life. The program I was in lasted ten weeks. CAPA did a great job coordinating both my classes and my internship. CAPA was instrumental in setting everything up beforehand (where I would be staying, where I would be taking classes, etc.) as well as maintaining the same helpfulness after we had arrived. Studying at Griffith college was an amazing opportunity and a new experience for me, as I had never taken classes outside of my home university. The university is only about a mile away, which doesn't seem very far after the all of the walking you will inevitably be doing around Dublin. I was also very happy with my internship. CAPA asked me a few questions beforehand regarding my interests and where I would like to be placed. I really enjoyed the company I ended up working for. CAPA also provided everyone with detailed directions on how to navigate the city and get to your internship site, along with bus fares if needed. Lastly, the housing accommodations were very nice. Staycity apartments, where we stayed, is a very nice apartment complex that typically holds four people in two bedrooms, a kitchenette, a small living room, and a balcony.

Before deciding where to study abroad I looked into many different locations and programs but I could not be happier with my decision to study abroad with CEA in Dublin, Ireland. All the teachers and advisers at the school were so friendly and fun to be around, I always say they weren't just my teachers but they were also my friends. I loved how the school planned different trips and activities throughout the semester to help students see different parts of Ireland and really get to experience true Irish culture. Thanks to the programs I have decided to get my masters in Ireland next year because how much I fell in love with the city and the country thanks to CEA.

I studied in Dublin in the fall of 2019. I was the only student from my college, and I was completely terrified. I had never traveled further than outside the New England area, much less out of the country. In addition to this, I was a first semester senior. So I knew going in that this may be one of my most challenging semesters. Especially in a new academic environment, different from any other I had been exposed to.
Most of my worries and fears stemmed from this. I was petrified that I wouldn’t be able to handle my course load. Since I was a senior, my home institution required that I take 5 courses, as well as an internship while in Dublin. I had already known that I had good time management skills. At home I had taken five classes and worked during one semester. I knew I could do it at home, but I was worried that the cultural differences would make it difficult for me to succeed.
I have never been so happy to be wrong in my life. They say that studying abroad changes you in ways that you’d never imagine. I can say from first hand experience that they are absolutely true. My semester abroad was the best that I have ever had. I ended up becoming friends with everyone in my program! This made my transition and adjustment so much easier. In addition to this, I had the endless support of the CAPA staff in Dublin. If ever I had a question, comment, concern, or just wanted to share something I had learned, they were always there and more than happy to listen.
My courses were some of the best I’ve ever taken while in college. Each lecturer made their class filled with new knowledge in ways that I can apply to my career. We analyzed problems for real-life scenarios, then worked as a group to find real life solutions. As a business major, with hope of one day starting my own business, this is incredibly useful.
My internship was one of my favorite places to be during the week. I worked 15 hours, going to my site four days out of the week. My internship was at a startup Irish fashion company called Tonn. They make specialty T-shirts themed with the beauty of Ireland. I learned so much from being there. The company itself is only made up of four to five people, so I was able to see first hand the ups, downs, joys, and struggles of owning your own business. Here I learned how to plan for the unexpected, when and how to cope with frustrations, as well as when to walk away. In the U.S. I feel we sometimes struggle with this. Sometimes we take on more than we can chew, or get so invested in what we are doing that we can forget how important it is to take a break. My internship and my courses taught me that walking away and taking breaks are essential to success. While we would love to complete a task all at once, it is important to remember that we are not robots. We cannot run, continuously, forever. We are all human, and that is what makes us unique.
They say that studying abroad changes you in ways you can’t imagine. I can say that they are right. My time abroad allowed me to learn more about myself than I ever had before. It allowed me room to grow as a person, and find myself in places I’d never thought I’d be. I have made relationships that will last a lifetime, and I couldn’t be more grateful.

An experience of a lifetime! CAPA supported me from the moment I applied to the moment I arrived in Ireland. CAPA made me feel safe and kept me engaged and informed while I was in Dublin. Anyone who wants to study and learn about the culture of Dublin is the place to visit. I learned so much about the history and the culture of Ireland. Be apart of a family and go with someone who will connect and show you the ins and out of the country CAPA is the program to go with! Thank you to everyone who has supported me on this journey.

I was so nervous before studying abroad, as I had never been overseas for three months before. Now, I would go again in a heart beat!! CAPA organized an amazing program for all students, with wonderful representatives to help Americans feel comfortable and confident in their abilities while in Dublin.
I was able to meet so many incredible people while abroad, from all corners of the world. As Griffith College was a diverse community of international students, it allowed for a great academic opposition, where my ideas and perspectives were challenged by other students. The 20 other students in the CAPA program were a great deal of fun as well. I lived with 3 other students in the program, and we all got along so well and often spent evenings cooking together and spending our weekends abroad. I personally did not do an internship abroad, which made for some extra free time. Due to this, I travelled a great deal while in Ireland to mainland Europe. This was incredibly doable thanks to the accessibility of Dublin's airport.
Overall, this semester was one full of challenges, growth, and FUN! My semester abroad was easily the best three months of my life, and I would redo the program if I could. CAPA organizes a terrific program for students, and ensures that everyone feels confident, comfortable, and able to take chances while in Ireland. Whether you are branching out and meeting new people, travelling on your own, or taking classes outside of your major, this semester proposes challenges of all kinds that enable students to grow and develop faster than any US University campus. If you have the opportunity to study abroad, choose CAPA Dublin. Most amazing experience of my life.

Studying in Dublin, Ireland was the best decision I have ever made. Now, most people would probably say that after spending a month in another country exploring and learning about the local culture. However, this program is special because it was with CEA. The staff from CEA was willing to help me more than my own university! My program visited Galway for a weekend with a trip to the Cliffs of Moher and we also visited Belfast on a day trip to learn about the Troubles. Without CEA planning some trips, it would have been much more expensive to travel to all of the big attractions that Ireland offers. It was nice to be picked up outside of our housing, hop on a bus and be taken to our destination!
By studying through my home university and partnering with CEA, I was eligible for a scholarship from CEA which helped lower the overall costs. There are many scholarships available making your dream to study abroad possible and CEA is willing to help you!
If you have ever considered studying abroad, talk to CEA and your home university study abroad office and it can happen!

I studied abroad through CAPA’s Dublin program for an entire semester.My two favorite things about CAPA’s program is their opportunity to do an internship and the attention they put towards making you feel like you’re truly apart of a community. There was only about 22 people in the program so we all bonded very quickly. CAPA organized so many events so that everybody could become a second family. From walking tours around Dublin on our first day to weekly lunches, movie and game nights, to thanksgiving dinner to side trips to places like Galway and Belfast. CAPA really put effort into making Dublin feel like a second home. Our three advisors were always there 24/7 to make us feel comfortable and safe our group always called them our Irish mom, dad, and big sister. When I think back to why I loved all of my experiences abroad it’s because of the people I was with.

By far the best part of being in Dublin was my internship. Before going abroad students send their resume and a general cover letter to CAPA and they set you up with a skype interview with an internship.I interned for a non profit organization called Fighting Words which was founded by popular Irish author Roddy Doyle. Fighting Words holds daily creative workshops for primary and secondary students. Students come to Fighting Words on a field trip.
In the morning we had a class of primary school children and I took turns with the other interns to teach the workshop where I would go through the basics and foundations of what a story needs such as a main character, title, plot. The kids worked together to come up with the story and they came up with the funniest things like a main character who is a french fry who’s greatest wish is to get a pet unicorn and is afraid of being dunked in ketchup and then they would break off into tables of 3 to 4 where an intern would sit with them and help them finish writing the story and create illustrations.
In the afternoon the secondary school students came and we’d give them a situation such as you’re both in trouble in the principal’s office but only one of you actually did it and then we’d have them improv a scene. We’d type out their dialogue and then we’d get the class to fill in the gaps and create a story and then they’d also break up into groups with an intern to finish writing their own stories. There was honestly no better feeling than getting a hug from a kid or to hear them walking out saying they wanna come back here everyday. It solidify my future career goals to be in education and work with students.
For doing this internship I got 6 credits and I worked 20 hours a week. Once a week CAPA held a night class where we discussed our internship. We learned how to “sell” our internship during interviews and we had to write reflections on our internship and what we learned about the culture. At the end of the semester we had to do a mock interview where we talked about abroad experience. These assignments and the class were where we earned our 6 credits from.

CAPA requires you to take a minimum of 12 credits so I had to take two classes along with my internship. I actually loved my internship so much that I wished I could’ve done it full time but I really enjoyed my classes as well. The first class I took was called Irish History & Culture. We met once a week for three hours. Each class was a 40 minute lecture about Irish history followed by a 2 hour field trip with in Dublin. These field trips included walking tours, visits to Trinity College, ChristChurch Cathedral, Dublin Castle, the Dublina museum, and the Irish Emigration museum. We were graded on our weekly reflection that were 800 words where we had to tie in the lecture from class to our experience on the field trip. The second class I took was a film studies class that also met once a week for 3 hours. We had an hour long lecture and then used the rest of the class for screening of that week’s film. We went through different units of various film genres such as Italian neorealism, French new wave, and road movies at the end of each unit we were assigned a paper where we picked a film to focus on and show how it exemplified that genre.

Being in Dublin was a memorable, life-changing and magical experience.