Spain: Alicante - Spanish Language, Linguistics, European, and Gender Studies

I couldn’t be more happy with my decision to study abroad through USAC! USAC made the process easy and provided all of the students with a lot of support throughout the entire experience. I was extremely happy with my professors and the classes that I took during my semester abroad. I stayed with a wonderful host family and my Spanish improved a ton and I learned so much about the Spanish culture and history through my home stay. I made great friends and got to travel a ton! Studying abroad is truly and experience of a lifetime and I’m very grateful I chose to go through USAC!

I absolutely adored my experience with the USAC Alicante program! Not only was the staff accessible and easy to communicate with before departure, but once I arrived in Alicante the staff was extremely helpful and helped accommodate myself and all students in every way they could. This program did a great job providing opportunities for students to authentically explore Spain while providing the avenues for independent adventure as well. Alicante is easy to navigate, inexpensive, and has a great airport!

I absolutely loved my experience abroad and USAC exceeded all of my expectations! Living with a host family was such a fun and unique experience that immersed me in the culture and helped me quickly improve my Spanish skills. I met some of the most wonderful people I have ever met and I got to travel all over Spain and other regions within Europe. My professors along with the other USAC administrators were extremely helpful and made studying abroad a seamless process. I have recommended studying abroad to all of my friends, it was a life-changing experience!

Studying in Alicante was the best choice I've made for my college career. I loved the city environment, especially coming from a university in a more rural area, it was a much welcome change. I thought that Alicante was the perfect city to study in; it still had the urban feel, but wasn't too large and overwhelming and everything was walkable from my apartment, except for the university which I was able to take the tram or bus to. My program director Luis did a great job of showing us the area and he explained many aspects of local culture that I wouldn't have otherwise known. Everyone in Alicante was extremely welcoming and encouraged me to practice my Spanish speaking skills, which I feel greatly improved during my time there. I couldn't recommend studying in Alicante more for an authentic, local Spanish experience.

Studying abroad in Alicante was one of the best choices I have ever made. At first, I was a little worried about going abroad alone but I'm glad that I did because I made lifelong friends and learned so many new things about the culture in Spain. I studied intermediate Spanish at the University of Alicante for one month over the summer and the staff there were always so helpful and passionate about what they were teaching. Learning the language in Spain never felt like a hassle as the teacher always kept the students engaged and was always interested in the topics that she was teaching. I felt like this trip had a very good balance between the educational part and the exploring the city and the life part.

Before leaving to study abroad, I was experiencing burnout. What I mean by this was that I began losing motivation for school and activities and stopped paying attention to my mental health. It got to a point where I felt tired all day and was no longer myself. I contacted counseling services when I knew this wasn't getting any better. I was nervous that I would experience these emotions while abroad, so I worked with my counselor to create goals for myself in hopes of not allowing my current state to get in the way. Some of my goals consisted of being comfortable with uncomfortable, trying new foods, being open-minded, and not allowing financial reasons to get in the way of what I hoped to do. Luckily studying abroad was an experience that positively changed my life—studying abroad allowed me the opportunity to be stress-free. Every day I woke up ready to experience the unexpected. Experiencing the unexpected has had a significant impact during my experience, and even today. I was finally opening up to trying different foods I knew I would not be open to back at home. For instance, I was not too fond of burgers and refused to try them back at home, although, while in Alicante, I was surrounded by burger restaurants and people who loved burgers. Therefore, I decided to have my first burger in Spain, and since then, I have come to terms that burgers are not as bad as I thought they would be! I was also able to make friends with students of the university. It was a great experience being able to learn their perspective of their country while I was also able to teach them my perspective of my life in the states. Having met them was very helpful. For example, I previously did not know anything about bullfighting and debated whether to attend the event. With their feedback, I decided not to participate because I realized it would be a traumatic experience for me. I also got out of my comfort zone to meet other students from Italy and Japan who were temporarily studying at the same university. We were able to exchange numbers, and we hope to see each other again in the future! Before this trip, I knew swimming was not my forte because I didn't know enough to swim deeper than 5ft. Within the program, we took multiple trips to the ocean, although the specific trip that stood out was where I went on a catamaran. I was hesitant about whether I should get in the water since I didn't know whether I could swim. I had supportive friends who all encouraged me to get in, and if anything, they would help me get back on the boat. IT TURNS OUT THAT I CAN SWIM, and the best part is that I found out I could swim while in Spain! This was an amazing experience I will never forget. I felt butterflies in my stomach when I realized I could swim, and I still feel the same excitement today. I was finally pushing myself to participate in activities I had always hoped to do. I have always wanted to read books for fun and journal. I bought a journal and book before I left abroad, not knowing whether I would actually use them. I met girls from USAC who loved to read and journal. Participating in these conversations with these girls helped motivate me to begin my book. I finished my first book in Spain, and since returning home, I have already completed two other books and plan on continuing to journal. As you can see, I have accomplished multiple goals that I could write a whole book. Words cannot explain how thankful I am for this experience because I feel the happiest I have ever been.

My time in Alicante was the best year of my college experience. Studying abroad gave me the confidence, friends, and world experience that I needed to transition successfully from school into the workforce. The staff at USAC in Alicante were my family away from home, and even convinced a few members of my group, myself included, to stay for a second semester. I often find myself happily reminiscing on my time in Spain, and wish more than anything that I could relive that year! Take the chance to study in Alicante with USAC, you will NOT regret it.

I had so much fun, learned so much about the culture, and got to experience much more than I anticipated for the limited time that I was there. I would like to focus on the care though: I have health issues. (Epilepsy being the main one.) I had a seizure that led to hospitalization. My beloved coordinator, Luis, made sure I was safe and taken care of. Everyone I met genuinely cared for me and made me feel safe and wanted. I wasn’t limited because of my illness. I got to explore the city, the castle, the beach, and other countries regardless. This was also made possible by the wonderful friends I made while abroad. I would move back to Alicante permanently given the opportunity.