IES Abroad Granada

It was so bittersweet to leave the place that became my home in more ways than one. I’m so grateful to have had the experience of watching as, day-by-day, a place that bagan feeling so unfamiliar and big became a place filled with loved ones, favorite cafes, and memories at every former. It was a semester filled to the brim with café con leche and tinto de verano, sunset picnics and spontaneous weekend trips, Spanish conversations that varied wildly in their successfulness, and so many new beautiful friends. Granda is an incredibly beautiful, authentic, and culturally and historically rich small city. It has everything you could possibly want in a study abroad location but it’s also small enough that you can walk almost anywhere. All of my classes at IES were interesting and the professors were very passionate about their jobs. I also took a class at the local university and the IES staff was extremely supportive in finding a class and professor that fit well with my interests and abilities. IES was also wonderful in organizing several weekend trips. The trip to Morocco was a one in a lifetime experience – I was able to meet a family through a homestay as well as so a variety of Moroccan youth. I would absolutely recommend this program to anyone and everyone.

Studying abroad through IES Abroad Granada was the best decision I could've made. From the amazing program staff, to my beloved host mom, and the city Granada itself, I felt supported, challenged, and excited on a daily basis. I had the opportunity to take fun and engaging classes- a Spanish class, flamenco dancing, a literature course, a feminist film course, and a class on Islamic architecture (you get to have class in the Alhambra!!). The program offers support in helping students engage in the community. Through IES, I was able to take an extracurricular painting class at a local community art center. Every week, an email of all the amazing events and activities going on goes out- language meet ups, cool tapas bars to check out, museum exhibits... anything under the sun! IES takes students on incredible excursions- one of my favorites was our trip to Morocco, where we had the opportunity to stay in homestay families in Rabat and explore a bunch of different cities. I cannot say enough good things about the staff- Javier is absolutely the best person on the planet for this job, and I loved getting to know the folks at IES Granada. They strike an excellent balance of making students feel comfortable and supported while giving students independence and opportunity to shape their own experiences.

Granada itself is truly a magical city, with beautiful mountains, tons of nooks and crannies to explore, an abundance of tapas, and wonderful people. I loved sitting in a plaza with a café con leche after class, soaking up the Spanish sun and reading a book or talking with a friend. It's very walkable, very beautiful, and the ideal size for studying abroad- big enough where I felt like I had plenty to explore, but small enough to get to know well. There is also access to nature right outside of the city. I would hike often in the nearby rolling hills, or take a short bus ride to the beautiful Alpujarra, where you can explore the Sierra Nevada and take a breather from the city.

One of the biggest highlights for me was my host mom- she was undoubtedly my best friend while I was abroad, and I learned so much from living with her. She made me feel like family right off the bat, and hanging out with her skyrocketed my Spanish speaking abilities. We went shopping together, went for churros and chocolate, and spent many hours having long chats about life! Living with her was so special, and an experience I will hold in my heart forever.

I also had a really special experience with my intercambio, a local student from the University of Granada. She became one of my close friends, and we would meet for coffee or tapas every couple of weeks. I loved hanging out with the orientadores, local students who lead fun excursions for IES students and also help with orientation at the beginning of the semester. I did a bunch of cool activities with them- went to art exhibits, to cafés, on a hike in a nearby town. I established a strong relationship with one of them, and was invited to her house for lunch at the end of the semester! (a big deal in Spanish culture!)

IES Abroad Granda is an amazing program! I truly loved it and I would recommend it to anyone looking for an immersive experience full of challenge, fun, and adventure!

Granada has my heart! From the constant life on the street to sunsets from the top of old fortress walls and hills covered in olive trees and murals, playing pick up soccer before watching Granada FC home games with the extended homestay family or stumbling upon festivals and music on my walk home, I absolutely loved my time abroad with IES. A week without tapas or shwarma seemed unfathomable, a day without watching motos weave around on the street just silly. Granada is a beautiful blend of a city with architecture from many different times, religions and styles and a huge student population that keeps it young. It's walkable but not too small, a true city city but not without great hikes and the Sierra Nevada mountains close enough to touch. I'm so grateful for my warm and wonderfully wacky homestay parents and the Spanish pace of life and sense of time. IES program staff, professors, and orientadores are very supportive and provide unique immersive opportunities and excursions. Trips around Andalusia and Morocco helped us understand and explore social and political contexts. Classes were diverse and helped improve my Spanish (the accent and slang in southern Spain is notorious) while allowing for time to get to know and be a part of the city. I had the chance to take a course at the University of Granada through which I made my best Spanish and international friends, people who I will cherish forever. Every day in Granada can be, and was, its own little adventure.

Granada is truly a beautiful and unique city with a wonderful overall atmosphere. One of the first aspects of the city that I loved upon arrival was the ability to walk to almost any area of the city that I wanted to explore. Granada is truly the perfect size for studying abroad as it is not too big that it would cause one to feel lost; however, it is also not too small in that you will always be able to find and discover something new. One aspect of this program that I truly love is the cultural enrichment it provides. The courses that one is able to take directly correlate with the history and culture of the city. Therefore, one is able to learn and discuss their daily experiences and observations within the classroom. The ability to participate in an internship is another aspect of the IES Abroad Program that I loved! I had the opportunity to teach English at a local school during my time abroad and made amazing relationships with the children there! Furthermore, my Spanish and awareness of cultural differences was heightened through my working with these students and choosing to live with a family through a homestay. There was never a dull moment that I experienced while in Spain. Whether I was going on a field trip to explore a city within the Andalusia region, embarking on an excursion recommended by our orientation leaders, or finding a new cafe or tapas bar with some wonderful people who I know I will remain friends with throughout my lifetime, Granada gave me the chance to breathe, reflect, and most importantly listen and learn.

I wouldn't trade my study abroad experience for the world. Granada is so special and I’ve never been anywhere like it. IES made my experience so special with amazing resources and opportunities to fill my time with meaningful things. My classes were fulfilling and really interesting and encouraged me to learn in a style that I was unfamiliar with. Walking down Granada’s magical streets kept me amazed and always made me smile.
The homestays made my program really unique and made me feel more culturally connected as well as the other opportunities IES provides for cultural immersion. One of these opportunities was traveling to an unforgettable trip to Morocco filled activities I wouldn't be able to experience alone. I miss watching the sunsets with Alhambra as the background and walking through vividly colored streets. I have so much appreciation for IES for all that they did for me during my time in Granada. Granada is a part of me now and I can’t wait to go back and visit in the future.

Where to even begin? My semester abroad in Granada, Spain with IES was by far one of the best experiences of my life! Not only was Granada the perfect city to study abroad in, but IES helped make it feel like home. My host family was phenomenal; they were warm, funny, energetic, generous, and welcomed me into their home with open arms. The classes were interesting, and while not the most academically rigorous, they allowed me to both vastly improve my Spanish skills and have the free time to explore the city and travel. Speaking of travel, the IES led trips were some of the best I took all semester. The five days in Morocco were not only incredibly fun, but insightfully organized and educational. The other day and weekend trips throughout Spain were also great, as they brought me to beautiful Spanish cities I otherwise wouldn’t have explored. But the most incredible part of the travel was how happy I was to come home to Granada every time. Granada is beautiful, the people are friendly, it’s exciting but never feels overly touristy, and most importantly to me, it was small enough (but not too small) that I really felt like I got to know it by the end of my time there. Studying abroad in Granada was the best decision I ever made, and while it definitely had its difficulties (as all adventures do) I still wake up every morning wishing I was in Spain again.

Studying abroad with IES in Granada was one of the absolute best experiences I've ever had. Granada is a beautiful, extremely walkable city with countless things to do and sites to see. IES does an amazing job of helping its students find opportunities to integrate themselves into the culture and everyday life of the city. Classes within the program are challenging and diverse in their subjects. I found that my Spanish improved significantly while abroad through the daily Spanish class, the other classes I took in Spanish, speaking with my host mom, and through daily life in the city. IES also has many amazing field trips around southern Spain as well as an incredible five day trip to Morocco. I made some of my best friends abroad and would not change the experience for anything in the world.

I cannot think of a better place to study abroad than Granada. It is a beautiful, safe, eccentric city and you get to live right in the center of everything!

I have done two study abroad programs and IES definitely sticks out in my mind for their thoroughness, fun experiences in Granada and various other cities, attentiveness to students, and the way that they foster great relationships among the students throughout the whole semester. From the beginning of the semester, they set up great activities and excursions to meet friends early on. They really gave us the chance to ease into living in Spain. I liked the small to medium size of the program and that I knew a lot of people in my program by name.

A favorite memory of mine was the trip to Morocco. It was a true bonding experience as we spent the few days with the same small group of students and this was most of our first time experiencing a culture so different from that of the United States. IES planned everything so we just got to have fun and did not have to worry about a thing!

Another couple of highlights from my semester abroad were my homestay and the faculty at the center. My host mom was so loving and I loved having the chance to be more immersed in the language. Overall, the professors at the center were great as well. While the classes themselves were not always super interesting, most of the professors were really committed to getting to know the students as individuals. The course load was manageable, obviously the work picked up around midterms and finals but in general I had plenty of time to enjoy my abroad experience.

I cannot recommend studying in Granada through IES Abroad enough, when I look back, I know those months spent in Spain will be regarded as some of the best in my life.