ISA Study Abroad in Granada, Spain

I spent five months abroad in Granada, Spain, during the Spring semester of 2024. I lived with a host mother, and two other roommates from my university. There are so many positive things I can say about this program and my time. To start, ISA is such a wonderful organization that I highly recommend traveling through. They were so helpful with everything from getting my Visa, to the on site staff in Granada, and my return to home. They have everything organized in easy to locate places, and communication was always clear. I chose to study in Spain for the language. I am a Spanish minor, and have always loved Spanish and had a goal of becoming fluent. All of my classes in Spain were in Spanish (however, I had some friends whose classes were in English, it just depends on your language level :) and my host Mom didn't speak any English. Both of these components aided in mastering my fluency in Spanish, which I will be forever grateful for. My trip included excursions, which were amazing. My favorite excursion was my trip to Morocco. The Sahara Desert and cities of Fez and Meknes created so many memories for me that I will cherish forever. There are so many amazing aspects that ISA and studying abroad has to offer, and I would HIGHLY recommend you check them out!

Words don't do it justice. Life-changing. Truly. I feel like I am an entirely different person from who I was before studying abroad. It was perfect down to every last detail. To be honest I didn't even do any extensive research on Granada or the program prior to going, I just was sure that I wanted to study abroad somewhere. In fact, not a single other person from my university was going to Granada, so I knew zero people going into the program. Naturally, I tend to go quiet in social situations, so I knew this new environment could be a challenge. Instead of falling into my old ways, I made a daily effort to push myself to meet new people and be more gregarious. This was the root of my growth, and it was massively facilitated by the staff of ISA Granada. Not only were my hosts passionate and welcoming, but the ISA staff organized dozens of events to help involve us students. The three coordinators, Angel, Marisa, and Lorena, made it abundantly clear to us that not only were they there for our every need, but they really cared about us individually. They were curious to hear how we were enjoying our experience and keen to suggest ideas for us based on our interests. My school held a pre-study abroad conference in the winter before I left, and when one of the coordinators asked me where I was going and who I was studying abroad through, the response was incredible. I told her ISA Granada, and her face lit up with excitement for me. She was elated to tell me how amazing ISA was and how much I had to look forward to. She did not exaggerate in the slightest. I hope that this review can serve to others as she did to me, encouraging you to study abroad with ISA, and be excited to do so. You will be so happy you did.

This provides various opportunities culturally, academically, and socially. Therefore, one aspect I was able to integrate myself in the community was through service-learning at a local emergency department in Vithas La Salud hospital in Granada, Spain. This allowed me to immerse myself in learning new medical ethics and implement practices that are appropriate to cultural diversity and acceptable to community needs. These opportunities have assisted me to develop compassion and leadership attributes, meanwhile, integrating cultural perspectives and language influences in my journey aboard (not to mention GREAT on a resume).

Excursions and housing was amazing but there was not much language and culture immersion. I felt like all events were coordinated with other Americans and we rarely got to interact and learn with locals. The grading and attendance system was also not lenient or understanding at all and some of the professors were biased towards Americans. It was a fun experience that I would recommended but I did not learn as much culture and language that I hope for even when I was trying to make an effort in immersion.

Despite COVID erupting during my semester in Granada, I am very happy with the memories I gained while being present. I did not travel outside of the country while I was in the semester because I wanted to save travel for after academics. For this reason, I spent a great deal in Granada and neighboring villages and towns which was incredible for me. I found that I had a better understanding of place and belonging because of this. Our program directors were absolutely amazing and handled the difficult circumstances with grace and compassion for all of us.

Full immersion was my goal when I chose to study abroad in Granada, Spain. The ISA program gave me all the tools to make that a reality. I stayed with an incredibly kind, generous, and eye-opening host family within a two minute walk from the school building where I had classes. I was able to feel like a full Spaniard each and every day. And if I saw any ISA program directors somewhere in town, they always greeted me with friendship and genuinely cared how I was getting on. Overall, I had an unforgettable experience.

My semester studying in Granada was one that I will never forget. The city, the culture, the people, the language was all enough to make me fall in love with the experience. I learned so much about myself while only abroad, I learned how to be brave, how to push myself and my friends to achieve really spectacular things, and how take in the moment for everything that it is. Granada is a beautiful place and I am so fortunate to have left with memories that I will never forget and lesson that will help me become someone that I am proud of.

My time in Granada was nothing short of enchanting, wonderful, and outright life changing. This program allowed me to see a whole new side of the world, and I just can't wait to go back already! From dancing in the streets of Toledo to visiting the beautiful Alhambra palace, to having the opportunity for travel on a budget...it couldn't have been any better. I made some of my greatest friends through this program, and saw so many new things and places I never would've been able to without it. The onsite staff were amazing and helped my friends and I at any time that we needed them, and they took us on so many tours of the city where we were given the opportunity to learn more about the beauty that is Granada. My language skills improved tenfold, I met people from all over the world, and most importantly, I learned more about myself and grew as a person. So what are you waiting for? Granada is the place to be!!!!