CIEE Communications, New Media + Journalism (English) in Seville

I mean, it was incredible. Absolutely amazing. I knew I wanted to study in Spain because I wanted to practice my Spanish, but I also wanted to be able to travel through Europe. I went abroad during my fourth year (out of 5) of college, and hadn't really taken many Spanish courses since high school. After my time in Seville, living with a host family and taking classes in Spanish, I can now put "Spanish (Conversational fluency)" on my resume without it feeling like a lie.

The host family I was paired up with was incredible, and we're still in touch and I love them dearly. And the support given by CIEE was so incredibly helpful. When it came to choosing classes, traveling around Europe, or general in-class support, the staff and professors went above and beyond to make sure all my questions were answered. I couldn't imagine a better group of people to studied under/with. The program director even began to help me search for opportunities to stay in Spain another semester after I mentioned to him I was thinking about it! They all really truly cared about the students and what they achieved, especially in the smaller CNMJ program.

The program also brought us on multiple excursions (Córdoba, Cádiz, Morocco...) and showed us around the cities in a fun and interesting way. And they struck the perfect balance between watching us/giving us support and also letting us explore the cities on our own.

Oh, and DUH I made some of the best friends of my life. I'm still in contact with some of the people from my program, and I'm actually living with one friend now! CIEE really knew how to establish a community.

I loved my time in Seville so much, and I really hope this review does a good job capturing that. I loved my time in Spain so much, that I'm actually living here again now that I've graduated from college! I'm so grateful for the opportunity CIEE gave me to learn about myself and my obsessive passion for travel and living abroad (sorry, mom!)

I had studied Spanish for 8 years prior to my semester in Seville, Spain with CIEE's Communications, New Media & Journalism program. As a communications major, this program provided me with the best of both worlds--a way to combine my passion for storytelling with the goal of improving my fluency abroad. As a senior in my last semester of college, I'm looking toward the future and am feeling a strong draw to return to Spain. CIEE both supported and challenged me during a semester abroad, and from those moments of personal growth and pure bliss I feel confident in my decision to return for an extended stay post-grad.

The CNMJ professors are all about engaged learning. This is not a program where you'll coast through classes, but rather one where you'll create things with your peers to add to your portfolio. I interviewed locals and refugees for a bilingual magazine. I hit the streets to record podcasts on flamenco culture in Andalusia. I took an art course that toured me around Seville, taking me to the sites where the history actually occurred. The CNMJ program made sure that learning wasn't confined to the 4 walls of a classroom; a true experience abroad was built on cultural immersion. I am proud of the work that I completed while abroad, and it definitely has enhanced my professional portfolio when seeking internships and jobs back home in the states.

With the CNMJ program, we also went on trips to other cities and countries. There were only 33 people in the group, which made it easy to get to know new friends. We went to the port city of Cádiz for a day trip, and also spent a few days in Morocco where we were toured around by host families. The professors are so, so fun and very passionate about their jobs, which I appreciated.

The only downside to my CNMJ experience was with my host family. I ended up having to switch families, which was uncomfortable, but the CIEE staff made sure to coach me through the process. My second homestay was better, but it definitely was a more difficult transition abroad having to up and move again only a few weeks into the semester.

I would highly recommend this program to any communications major who is interested in an abroad experience in a Spanish speaking country. Seville is the perfect city for study abroad--I felt very safe, it's affordable, rich in history and a beautiful location. I'll forever cherish the memories I made during my semester abroad with CIEE CNMJ, and I look forward to returning to Spain soon.

I spent the Fall semester of my junior year of undergrad in Seville, Spain as a member of the Communication, New Media, Journalism program. I chose to go to Seville because this program existed and it appealed to my major. To say I was satisfied with my academic and social experience in Seville would be an understatement. Not only did CNMJ push me academically in a way I had not anticipated, CIEE coordinated events and fostered friendships with peers and professors that will be valuable for the rest of my life. The CNMJ program taught me how to be a better journalist and creator of media. It pushed me out of my comfort zone, to set up interviews with Spaniards in a new language, and to tell the stories of the city. Aside from continuing to build a portfolio for myself and my future, I learned about this industry from a different cultural perspective with field trips and guest speakers. The staff and faculty of CNMJ are incredibly qualified and experienced in the communications field and have so much to teach and offer young minds. One of the biggest benefits was the full Spanish immersion this program offers, as all classes are in Spanish and your skills in both Spanish and Journalism are constantly growing. CNMJ taught me academically, but it also taught me about myself and helped me grow as an individual in ways I am very thankful.

I absolutely loved studying abroad with CIEE Seville: Communications, New Media and Journalism (CNMJ). This program is much smaller than the general Liberal Arts one, which means you really get to know the other students -- I made some really close friends while studying abroad. I was lucky enough to be in Sevilla for the whole school year (2014-15) and could not be more grateful to the CNMJ program for such a life-changing experience.

One of the highlights of this program that makes it stand out from others is the trip to Morocco. In the middle of the semester, the CNMJ staff lead a FREE trip to several cities in Morocco with just the CNMJ students. You stay with host families in the beautiful city of Chefchaouen, giving you the opportunity to be completely immersed in the culture, eat authentic homemade Moroccan food (which is DELICIOUS), build a relationship with a specific family and learn a ton about life there. This was a truly unique experience for which I am incredibly grateful. I will never forget riding the ferry across the Strait of Gibraltar as Oscar, the amazing CNMJ Program Director, tells us, "See that land across the water? That's Africa."

CNMJ gave me some great opportunities to expand my communications knowledge and experience. Through Oscar's class, Magazine Reporting and Writing, students write articles for, take photographs for and design a high-quality magazine that is distributed throughout CIEE and various locations in downtown Sevilla. Carlos' class, New Media and Audiovisual Workshop, introduced me to the world of videography and gave me video editing skills that I did not previously have.

Marina's class, Social Justice, Action and Media, was one of the best classes I have ever taken in my life. Not only did we learn about crucial topics centering on human rights, but Marina is an amazing professor and an all-around wonderful person. She cares deeply about each and every one of her students and is interested in their lives -- and, in turn, her students care a lot about her.

I highly recommend this program to anyone who is interested in developing their writing/media/general communications skills through high-quality, in-depth classes with small class sizes and wonderful, knowledgeable professors. I am still in touch with the program staff and hope to return to Sevilla in the near future. CIEE is great in general, but I recommend CNMJ in particular for a more intimate and personalized study abroad experience.

Admittedly, Spain was not at the top of my list when it came to selecting a country to study abroad in. I had known that I wanted to be overseas for a year, and with a last minute change in my initial study abroad plan and my degree requirements, I ultimately decided that CIEE's CNMJ Program in Sevilla was the best fit. I could not have been more pleasantly surprised. Sevilla is one of the most precious cities I've ever visited; the laid back atmosphere is contagious, the people are wonderful, and few places have more ideal weather. However, it was also in part due to CNMJ that I felt at home so quickly. The staff cares about your wellbeing, the classes are personal, and the work can be challenging, but not overwhelming. There are tons of options for classes both within CIEE and the university, anything from Spanish linguistics to cooking. I lived with a host family that I adored and still keep in touch with, I made lifelong friends, and I improved my Spanish tremendously. I am someone that values my independence, and CNMJ encouraged this independence while making themselves available for any assistance along the way - including printing a boarding pass on a Sunday at the director's home because no shops were open. It's also worth mentioning that the director wrote me a recommendation which helped me to receive a Fulbright Scholarship upon graduating. I cannot say enough positives about CNMJ. Both during and after the program they have been extremely valuable to me.

I knew I had hit the jackpot when I discovered this program, being that it was in Sevilla (the best city in Spain) and that it spoke of a very creative and involved environment that offered something much more than simply taking classes in a foreign country. What I found when I arrived, was that it would offer even more than I had expected: the courses and the program itself act as the catalyst in helping you discover, learn and love the city and its people. Through the involved classes, such as the audiovisual and magazine workshops, you are forced to immerse yourself into the culture by exploring, talking to the people of Sevilla and telling their stories. And while my love for Sevilla grew, my knowledge and skills for storytelling through media increased exponentially because I was surrounded by such passionate professors and well-designed assignments. While the course work is definitely intense, much more than what's required from students in other programs, it is definitely worth it in all manner of speaking. At times it may seem overwhelming, but for students that are creatively inclined, outgoing and eager to explore, this program is the perfect match.

My last night in Sevilla I wrote in my journal, “I think I learned how to hold my own and be my own person. I think I am going to return a more confident person who can stand up for her own beliefs and not care as much about what people think because I did make it through this challenging experience. My time abroad has given me the confidence to trust in myself, and for that this experience was beyond worth it.” Maybe that’s why they say you should study abroad or live in another country. It is to gain perspective of yourself and learn how to trust yourself. I won’t lie and say that I didn’t really stumble at some points because I missed home, my own culture and my friends, but as I wrote in an earlier in another journal entry, “If you aren’t uncomfortable at least one time a day, you aren’t growing.” Now putting myself out on a line and possibly embarrassing myself seems so much less intimidating because for the past four months every time I spoke in Spanish there was that possibility. I think it’s good that I don’t take myself so seriously now and am okay with making mistakes and making a fool of myself. I spent a lot of time on my own in Sevilla as well, and so now I feel as though I have learned more how to be alone with my thoughts and do things on my own. I now have a new found confidence in knowing that I went to a foreign country without knowing anyone and still made a community of friends.

I wasn't sure of where I wanted to go or what I hoped to get out of my study abroad experience. I only knew I wanted to be in a Spanish speaking country. Honestly, I had to look up Sevilla on a map when I got the call that I would be headed to the CIEE Communications, New Media and Journalism program there.

The faculty and staff where there to help, literally whenever one of their students needed support. They were there to walk me step by step through the grueling process of extending my visa, and late one weekend night when I needed a trip to the hospital. It wasn't all crazy emergencies though. The professors all truly care about each individual and take teaching to mean all the skills of life. From hosting Thanksgiving dinners to talking class projects over tapas, the people in CIEE and their courses extend beyond a classroom. The assignments get students out in the community, seeing the real, local people and interacting with them in an authentic way. It's an awesome resume builder too, but by the end you realize that it's more what you can offer the city than what you're "getting" out of studying abroad. I learned so much about what I wanted after graduation as well.

I already cannot wait to get back, and I'm always free to talk about how wonderful my time was living in Seville, Spain with CIEE.