CISabroad - The Barcelona Semester

CISabroad made my time in Barcelona AMAZING!! Without them and the amazing support, adventures and fun activities the staff put together I think my experience would have been so much worse. I had friends who went abroad with other companies and didn’t get to go ANYWHERE! CIS is the cheapest study abroad program and you get to do the most things with the money you spend. I knew friends who spent $5-10,000 more on the semester than I did and the programs never took them on any excursions or out for any fancy dinners! Our advisors in the program took us out all the time and gave us free food and took us to Seville, Zaragoza and so many other cities! The staff was amazing and so helpful too! I had housing difficulties because my host family was terrible, but the staff made it so easy and they gave me and my roommates the option to move even though the semester was more than halfway over. I am so glad I picked CISabroad and so happy they helped make my semester amazing! Classes were extremely easy, but also fun and I still learned a lot! We went on many field trips and had great teachers! Program is also safety concerned and teaches you ways to avoid danger in the city! They really care about you!

Do not hesitate to make your choice whether to go abroad or not, the answer is always yes! Experience new traditions within a new area. Any questions or concerns there are always onsite people to help you and support you if you get homesick.
Going abroad enables you to be the cliche annoying person saying "When I was in Spain.." more than you actually think you are. It gives you the lifetime friends you never thought you would ever have and lets you become and wanderer!

My study abroad experience with CISabroad was truly one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. I was able to make lasting friendships, experience an amazing new culture, study a new language, and have a deeper appreciation for diversity. While living a block away from the Sagrada Familia, I attended class at the University of Barcelona. I was able to expand my Spanish skills while meeting other students from the United States, as well as students from all over the world. With CISabroad, I also got the opportunity to go on cultural excursions to other parts of Spain. Our CISabroad mentors were very helpful and provided us with resources so we could make the most of our time in Barcelona. I highly recommend this to anyone considering studying abroad! My semester in Barcelona was an experience I'll never forget.

My time in Barcelona is something that I will never forget! Each day there was a new barrio (or neighborhood) to explore. The staff also provided weekly suggestions of things to do, see, and restaurants to eat at. The culture was really easy to adjust to and the city is very welcoming. By far the best 4 months of my life so far!!

Barcelona is an incredible city. The program made me feel safe and included. They set up many incredible trips, events, etc. that made me more comfortable in the city, highlighted the Spanish and Catalan culture, and made my experience so much more incredible. The classes are incredibly easy compared to my home college. You can make the experience what you want. You can club everyday, you can travel every weekend, you can hike in the mountains in the morning, sit on the beach during the afternoon and grab tapas and a beer at night. The world is your oyster in Barcelona and I encourage everyone to take advantage of this program and all that they offer. It was incredible!

The most important part of my studying abroad was the people I met, I still talk to them all the time and were meeting up in January for New Years. Barcelona was an amazing place and there was always something to do.

Barcelona is the most magical city I've ever visited. Depending on where you're standing, you can see mountains to your left and the Mediterranean Sea to your right, which is what makes this city so unique. There's so much to do and such a wide variety of activities available throughout the city that I never even had time to be homesick.

While living in Barcelona, some of my favorite places to visit were Sagrada Familia, the Gothic Quarter, Park Guell, Montserrat and Tibidabo. One of my biggest concerns of studying abroad was missing home and feeling uncomfortable in a new country, however CIS made sure that I was the "good kind of busy" for the duration of my stay. CIS also went above and beyond to accommodate the needs of all students and make sure that we always felt comfortable in our new home. Each week neighborhood tours were offered so that we could continue to get to know the city better. Barcelona is big, so knowing my way around different parts made me feel much safer than I ever could have imagined. Another way that CIS assured our comfort was by taking us on weekend trips to other cities in Spain, which included Madrid, Zaragoza and Besula in Girona. This allowed us to get to know everyone in our program on a family-like basis, which in turn made everything more fun.

While I was studying in Barcelona I had the opportunity to travel to 10 countries. My absolute favorite trip that I went on was my trip to Morocco, which was organized by CIS just for our program. My favorite thing about CIS is how organized they are with everything and how willing they are to work with students no matter what the issue may be.

Lastly, on top of all of the traveling and fun, CIS made my education a priority. Before arriving, I was nervous about moving to a Spanish speaking country and only knowing basic Spanish. I took 12 credits total during my Barcelona semester, and my teachers were some of the best I've ever had. I learned so much about Spanish culture and with the help of my teacher, became conversational in Spanish which guided me through my four months there. I would recommend the Barcelona semester to absolutely anyone looking to expand their cultural horizon and grow immensely as an individual. You will undoubtedly have the best four months of your life!

I had a really great experience in my study abroad program with BIC in Barcelona. The staff was super helpful and supportive with whatever we needed, and also engaged us outside of class. I had a spectacular host family, the Gil Figueria house. I loved the city and the people, and there was never a lack of things to do. I did encounter difficulty meeting locals other than the people that ran my favorite restaurants. But overall, it was the best experience of my life.

The school was a good balance between manageable and challenging and there were many interesting courses to chose from, some of which helped me gain a better understanding for the Catalan and Spanish cultures.

The apartment I lived in was nice, with a dishwasher and a washer/dryer for laundry. It had everything you needed to comfortably live, and was close (10 min) walk to campus.

The staff were very friendly and helpful throughout the semester. We had a few weekend excursions including a trip to Madrid that made the experience even better.

Overall CIS did a real good job and my only complaint was spotty wifi service at times, but other than that it was nearly flawless.

Definitely recommend this experience to anybody.

The people who worked at CIS abroad made my life amazing. If I ever had a problem I could go to any of them and ask for help. They always made sure that I was okay and it was absolutly amazing. I would highly recommend CIS abroad because they were very helpful and helped me adjust to a foreign city.