IES Abroad Madrid

IES Abroad's Madrid Language and Area Studies' program provided me with a full and cohesive abroad experience. I was able to do everything I wanted to; live with a host family, interact and make friends with Spaniards and with people from all over the United States, take classes through the local university and really experience city life in Madrid.

IES's Madrid program is very integrated with the Universidad Complutense and makes it very easy to take classes through the different schools at the university. Unfortunately, the IES schedule and the university schedule don't sync up exactly for the fall, but I was still able to take the class I wanted to (Screenwriting) at the Universidad Complutense and move my final exam earlier.

IES Madrid also offers many great classes of their own, including an art history class taught at the Museo del Prado which in itself made the program worthwhile to me. It was an unbelievable class which exposed me to art in a way I had never experienced before. I know because of that class, I will have an appreciation for classic paintings for the rest of my life.

IES Madrid has a great team. The staff are wonderful; they make themselves very available during the school day to answer questions about activities or help fix problems. They also do a fairly good job of encouraging speaking Spanish as much as possible, although there is still a fair amount of English spoken as well. IES was not as strict about total language immersion as I was expecting going in, but I still found my Spanish make huge strides. I now feel confidently fluent, and can hold an intelligent conversation behind "I thought that was good." However, I would have appreciated more of an effort on the part of the teachers and the students to put more emphasis speaking only Spanish at the center.

One of the most wonderful things about IES Madrid is the opportunity to live in such an amazing city. The program does a good job offering outside classes and tours to expose you to the city, especially right off the bat, helping you get out and about while you develop confidence navigating Madrid. It's a gorgeous city to live in and explore. There is always something going on if you look for it and it is impossible to be bored.

Studying abroad is an invaluable experience. I learned so much about myself during my four months in Madrid with IES and I know when the time came for me to leave, I wasn't ready to go.

Although the standard response to the question "How was your semester abroad?" is that it was amazing, unforgettable, best experience of my life, etc, in my case it is indubitably true. I lived in a residence hall which allowed me to meet local and Latin American students. The night life is amazing as is the food. The actual courses, however, were not very challenging or stimulating, which isn't a bad thing as it opened up more time to explore Spain. Overall, a fantastic program.

Going abroad to Madrid with IES was a great experience. The staff is extremely professional and truly cares that each student has a good experience. The classes are excellent as they are all taught by professors from the Universidad Compultense de Madrid, the best university in Madrid. My favorite was definitely Velázquez, Goya and El Greco at the Prado Museum as each class took place at the world-renowned Prado Museum and the class was taught by a curator from the museum. I lived with a host family in Madrid. While I was initially very nervous about it, it ended up to be one of my best decisions while abroad as it allowed me to be fully immersed in the culture and to practice my Spanish. There are no classes on Friday which allow students to have an opportunity to travel both in and around Spain and throughout Europe. Additionally, IES offers field trips every weekend in Madrid to sites such as the Royal Palace or the Botanical Gardens or to nearby cities such as Toledo and Segovia. Another benefit of the program is its size. I went in the fall of 2014 and there were 50 students. This allowed everyone to know each other, but it never felt too small. Overall, I would highly recommend going abroad to Madrid with IES to any motivated student looking to study abroad in a cosmopolitan city in a Spanish speaking country.

I am extremely happy that I chose IES Madrid for my semester overseas. The staff was organized and knew everyone's names and also the name's of our host moms and where we lived. I was able to travel all over Spain while still maintaining a rigorous academic course load. After seeing the other cities of Spain, I can proudly call Madrid home and the best city I have lived in. The public transportation is so easy to use and efficient, the night life is incredible and the students are all willing to practice their English with you and open to learning about American culture. I found that the fastest and best way to improve my Spanish was just to speak to others, even the other American students. The city has so much to do and IES provides trips and activities that are easy to partake in. Everything is well organized and everyone in the program is supportive without being too overbearing. I highly recommend IES Madrid to anyone.

I highly recommend studying abroad with IES Madrid. The staff was unbelievably helpful and supportive and they truly made IES feel like a family. I was placed with an incredible host family which definitely had a huge impact on my immersion. Overall, the program was amazing in every way.

This was truly one of the greatest semesters of my life. Being in a city so full of culture and livelihood led to an adventure every single day. There was never a dull moment in Madrid. I stayed with an incredible host family who really made me feel welcome and helped me gain a better hold on the Spanish language. The classes through IES were also very informative in terms of learning more about the Spanish culture, however they could have been more challenging for the students. I also really enjoyed that there were no classes on Friday, which gave students ample time to travel. IES also gave students multiple travel opportunities with the program to various locations in Spain that were all very interesting. I would definitely recommend this program to anyone who would like to learn Spanish in a lively and vibrant city like Madrid!

Going abroad was an amazing experience that I would not trade for the world. I was incredibly lucky to have chosen the wonderful program that I did through IES Abroad. The staff were so friendly and nice and I made so many friends that I know I will keep for many years to come. I explored a new city and now better understand the Spanish culture.

My daily life included waking up, eating breakfast with my host mom and then going to class at the program center. After class, I would return home and eat dinner and then go to my internship for work.

It was difficult getting adjusted to the Spanish schedule and culture, which is very different from America's, but after a couple of weeks, I felt right at home. The food is delicious, and Spanish people are so friendly.

On the weekends, I would typically travel to other cities, or spend the day exploring different parts of the city