CEA Study Abroad in Madrid, Spain

I had a stellar time abroad in Madrid this past semester, and a large part of that was thanks to CEA. The on-site staff team were incredible (Thanks Silvia, Alvaro, and Emilia!) and they did a great job at making the transition to Madrid as smooth as possible. Throughout the semester, the staff were readily available to answer any questions and were quick to resolve any issues that arose. Additionally, the excursions and trips made up some of my best memories, and helped to enrich my experience abroad. My parents were grateful for all the planning that the CEA team did before I left, giving them some peace of mind as I headed across the Atlantic. I highly recommend this program!

CEA Madrid is an incredible program and I am very glad that I made the decision to study abroad with CEA. They really help you become allocated with your brand new location and take you step by step to make sure you are all set to embark on a semester abroad. That being said, if you ever need anything throughout the semester the on-site contacts are very easy to get ahold of. Also, the weekend trips and Friday excursions were amazing. I highly recommend to attend as many as you can because they are all included in the program cost! I highly recommend CEA.

I was only 15 years old when my Dad sat both my brother and I down and broke the news that as a family, we would all be moving to China. I had lived in the same house in the same town my whole entire life, and I did not know what to think. Two years later, I was on a plane back to America with an invaluable experience and an itch to venture out into the unknown. Once I became a sophomore at the Virginia Military Institute, I became eligible to study abroad. I decided that since I had already been to Asia, I would try to conquer Europe. CEA was enormously helpful at every step of the application process. When I arrived in Spain I didn't not know to expect; I knew Asia, but not Europe. I had elected to be put into a house with eight other college students. I got along very well with my housemates (probably due to the personality tests that matched us up) and ended up travelling all over Europe with them. I studied at the Universidad de Nebrija, which was a small private school located inside the city. Classes were about 80 minutes long and they alternated between Monday/Wednesday and Tuesday/Thursday. There was no class on Fridays so that you could get an extra start to the weekend and have more time to explore all of Europe. I took international business classes (in English) along with a Spanish class and really enjoyed the teachers and the curricula. Here at the school, you were able to meet people from other programs and continue to build your network of abroad friendships.

The culture of Madrid is very slow paced. It is a great option for someone to break away from the stress of their regular college life and relax for a semester. It is fairly easy to get around Madrid, with the metro, cheap ubers, and reliable bus systems. The food options inside Madrid are relatively diverse, so you always have an option for something different to eat. Produce at the local grocery store is significantly cheaper than it is in the states, allowing you to have some freedom with your budget elsewhere. The local people are friendly and will do their best to communicate with you and help you on your language skills if you put in the effort. the Madrid airport is a major airport in Europe, making flights both in and out of Spain relatively cheap and travel around Europe fairly easy. The Spanish railway is a cheap and great option to visit places

CEA offered many opportunities to immerse yourself into the Spanish and Madrid culture. From meal excursions, to museum trips, to paid weekend excursions to Barcelona and Sevilla, I felt like I was provided with the best opportunities to see Spain and Madrid. The CEA staff were very friendly and would always responded to emails concerning recommendations or other questions.

I left this program feeling more confident in myself and my language capabilities. I am a more capable traveler, and I made some lifelong friends that I have made plans to visit over this past year. My favorite memory was riding a camel in Morocco one weekend, and then snowboarding down the Swiss Alps the next weekend. If you are looking for a semester to step back and take a breath while simultaneously becoming immersed in a whole new culture and lifestyle, look no further.

Studying abroad through CEA is an overall incredible, memorable and life-changing experience. I was truly skeptical and terrified going abroad because I felt like there was so much work to be done prior to departure, but CEA made it easy. They constantly were updating me and keeping me on track with deadlines, they got me my metro card, and they also were super helpful with getting my VISA. While abroad, CEA is also incredibly supportive. During my time, I ended up in the hospital 2 weeks into my program with appendicitis. My CEA advisors were so helpful in staying in contact with my doctors, calling CEA in the US to help give my parents more information and overall just be supportive through such a difficult thing being in a foreign country. My CEA advisors always came to see me and see if I was okay. I always felt cared for and safe because my CEA advisors were there for me. CEA planned so many trips as well during my semester, like going to Segovia, Valencia, Sevilla, the Royal Palace in Madrid, the Spanish Congress, Flamenco shows and we got to try great foods with them like fried calamari sandwiches and tortillas/croquetas. The housing was beyond amazing. I lived in an apartment in a really safe area and my advisors made sure to give us tours and help us get to know what to do and what not to do in the city. My university was great! They were helpful professors and you got to meet so many international students which was my favorite part! You grow so much being abroad and CEA really helps you succeed!

Madrid is such a special city to experience, and the program I went through made it even better. From day one, CEA was there for us, picking us up from the airport and taking us to our housing. CEA had several excursions planned, including chocolate con churros and weekend trips to Barcelona and Sevilla! The on-site staff were SO helpful and SO friendly to us. Overall, I would recommend this program because the quality of the staff, the quality of the program, the quality of the excursions, and the quality of Madrid cannot be beat.

When I embarked on my journey to Madrid, I never imagined the richness and variety of the experience I would have. There are so many uniquely fascinating people in Madrid, and most of them are willing to engage in conversations that will blow your mind. The most intriguing thing that I found was that these conversations would always come when I least expected it.

A brief illustration: I was exploring the barrio around my homestay near the Metro stop Legazpi (south of Sol about 5 stops) and I stopped at a corner bar to watch a Real Madrid game. This was a bar that served free tapas with a drink, so I took full advantage of that, while subtly eavesdropping on the conversation next to me between a Madrileño family. Eventually, they approached me and asked about my story, and the conversation eventually ended up with the discussion of European fútbol and bullfighting. These older Madrileños preferred watching bullfighting and didn't really enjoy soccer, whereas the younger generation is vehemently against bullfighting and raves over soccer. I never would have guessed this generational disparity to exist, but nevertheless, I walked away from that conversation with some more insights into life in Madrid.

This is a short illustration of countless experiences that happened in Madrid with the locals. There is so much to do in Madrid, so many barrios to get lost in, and countless bars/shops/restaurants to stop at and spark up conversations. And don't worry if you are intimidated to start conversations with random people - they will often approach you because they are always curious to learn more about Americans.

Prior to studying abroad I'd been to Europe once before to visit some family in Berlin but other that I had never done anything like this. Studying abroad was the most liberating experience I've had in my life so far. I was living in spain for five months thanks to the early start liberal arts , Madrid program through CEA. Upon arrival I was greeted by the CEA team with warm signs and smiles. We spent the first day and night getting oriented but the program took off quickly and soon we were in our new homes. I was taking spanish classes at the Nebrija University and the staff there were so friendly and understanding of our journey as american foreign exchange students. Overall it was a wonderful experience. I was very scared before I left because i didn't really know what to expect and although there was an itinerary I was always looking for more details. That's part of the experience though, some parts you will only know once you've done them. I remember trying to research what the metro will be like since in my city (Baltimore) we barely have one. Our CEA representatives took us to the metro as a group and explained to us how it worked and what to do and instantly my reservations fell away.I later found out that this wasn't a feature of all the programs studying in my university so we were fortunate to have that kind of guidance. If that isn't enough the shopping was spectacular. We arrived right after new years so there were many sales to take advantage of. Our CEA reps were even so kind as to send us tips on which areas would be nice for us to explore and go shopping. They were like our spanish parents for those of us who decided not to do a homestay. They set us tips about great places to eat and things to do. If we ever felt sad of were not feeling well they were a simple call away.