CEA CAPA Education Abroad in Madrid, Spain

I chose CEA CAPA because as a student studying Spanish, I knew I wanted to go to Madrid and experience living in Europe while I'm still in my early 20s. From the moment I started researching, the organization and concise information of the CEA website made it so easy to gather the information I needed to choose the perfect study abroad program. And I'm glad I did because CEA CAPA made it possible for me to study in Madrid, improve my Spanish, meet new people and try new things all over the world!

I spent the first semester of my first year in Madrid through CEA CAPA and a new Global Launch program through my school. Going in, I knew that I would enjoy it, but during my time there, I learned just how much I loved it! The city of Madrid was amazing, and so were the CEA CAPA staff. I had the unique experience of taking my classes in the CEA CAPA office, right in the center of Madrid! The location was so beautiful and felt so safe and all of the staff made me feel so welcome.

Even though I had some personal difficulties during the semester, the CEA CAPA staff were amazing at helping me through it and communicating with other staff members in the best way possible.

Overall, this experience was incredible and I would highly recommend it to anyone looking to study abroad!

CEA CAPA is altogether an amazing company. My experience in Madrid was so awesome, I got to do cooking classes, go to a flamenco show, go to Segovia and Sevilla, and more through CEA CAPA. My only complaint was the housing situation was a little interesting as many people had super modern and big apartments while others were left without even a common living space. Even with this small downside, my experience abroad was the most amazing semester of college by far! Madrid is the most amazing city in the world!

I traveled to Madrid alone, not knowing anyone, and while I was nervous, I couldn’t help but feel excited for the month ahead. When I finally met the other students in my residence, I was immediately struck by how warm and welcoming everyone was. We all shared the same excitement about making new friends and having people to hang out with during our time there. My residence was just a 15-minute walk from campus, and I loved starting each day with a stroll to school.

Madrid quickly became my favorite city in all of Spain. It’s incredibly affordable, the people are genuinely kind, and I always felt safe, no matter the hour. The city truly comes alive at night—everyone stays out late, and the energy is contagious. I had the chance to practice my Spanish, visit a few clubs (Kapital is a must-visit!), and overall, my experience was unforgettable. It was a month I wouldn’t change for the world.

I had an amazing experience with CEA CAPA for my time in Madrid. I had never traveled to Europe before and had never even used public transportation before. That changed within my first day arriving in Madrid and I do not think there was a day that I did not get on the metro. Because the school where I was studying was so far away from the center of the city, where I lived, I had at least a 1.5-hour round-trip commute every day. I say this not to say that it was bad, for me, it was very fun. One of my all time favorite experiences abroad occurred because of this commute. I was getting on a train that I had to take only for one stop between the 2 campuses and at the platform I had helped someone find which train they were supposed to get on and we had been talking. When the train arrived and we got on, there were some performers busking in the car that we got into (as there are, more often than not). These performers were having a particularly great time and they were singing a bachata song and dancing with each other. They then invited the person I had been talking to to dance who then invited me to dance and for the very short ride, I got to dance bachata on a train with a stranger.

From the moment I landed I had a very welcoming experience with the CEA CAPA program and all the staff members of the organization. They were extremely helpful in the orientations and made it seem as if they already knew me. All the interns working int he organization and extra people helping that were from the city of Madrid were also extremely welcoming and made the experience so much more fun. The education was also very immersive and I loved the amount of field trips offered in the courses I was taking. It really helped immerse me into the Madrid culture.

This was the most fun summer of my life! It was the perfect balance of classes and adventure. The CEA CAPA staff were incredibly helpful and always quickly dealt with any snags that came up. My classes were super engaging and the professors were well prepared and easy to understand. I truly could not have picked a better place to study. Madrid is such a huge city, and has a metro system that makes getting anywhere accessible and easy. I always felt safe traveling around. You will also never run out of things to do. Madrid has everything from go-karting to concerts to amazing good. It is such a vibrant city, with such welcoming people. It's also central to Spain, which makes traveling around the Iberian Peninsula very accessible and cheap.

My time in Madrid with CEA CAPA was undoubtedly one for the books. It had been on my bucket list for years to study abroad in Madrid, and I am so grateful for this experience. CEA was extremely helpful and supportive from stateside all throughout my time in Madrid. On top of being an excellent resource for the logistics and academics, CEA CAPA hosted exciting excursions such as flamenco dinners, cooking classes, and trips to cities such as Segovia, Toledo, and Seville. I truly felt acclimated to the Spanish culture with CEA's guidance and I would jump at the opportunity to go back!