Internships in Seville, Spain

Spain’s economy took quite a hit in the 2008 recession, but the country has been slowly recovering. Today, there are plenty of opportunities to intern in Seville. The most popular fields for internships in Seville include marketing, education, tourism, and hospitality. With plenty of options, those most important thing to remember is to do your research carefully before deciding where to apply!

Seville is also a major center for arts and architecture, making it a great place to intern in Spain for those interested in the finer aspects of Spanish culture. Looking for an internship in Seville at one of the many museums or art galleries is a good place to start. There are also internship placements in other creative areas too, like in event planning or at architecture studios or firms.

Most internships in Seville will be based in a Spanish-speaking workplace. If you are already adept in the Spanish language, then interning in Seville is a great chance to improve your fluency. If you are still learning the language, you can take advantage of one of the many programs which offer Spanish language courses as a supplement to an internship in Seville.

Internships in Seville tend to last from two to six months, depending on individual availability. Summer is the most popular time to intern in Seville; but be warned, Seville is Spain’s hottest city, with average temperatures climbing as high as 95 degrees fahrenheit at the height of the summer!

Spaniards tend to live a fairly laid back lifestyle, and Seville is no exception to this cultural norm. Siestas in the afternoon, dinners which don’t begin until 11 p.m., and nights on the town which don’t end until the early morning, are all to be expected. While culture shock might require some adjustment, soon the Spanish lifestyle will become second nature and interns will come to fall in love with Seville as a new home.

Seville is often thought of as the most romantic city in Spain because of its sweeping baroque architecture, pristine setting on the banks of the river Guadalquivir, and cultural adherence to Spanish traditions, such as flamenco, tapas, and bullfighting. The layout of the city is very friendly to bikers and pedestrians, and indeed you will want to spend a lot of time outside, as the sun shines on Seville for much of the year. When you get tired of strolling, you can just hop on one of the busses or metros which connects throughout the city.

Some of the can’t miss attractions in Seville include the Alcazar royal palace, the Seville Cathedral, and the General Archive of the Indies, a Renaissance style building which boasts some of the most important archival documents from the reign of the Spanish empire. With its many museums, galleries, theaters, bars, cafes, parks, and everything else, you can be positive you will never become bored with your free time while interning in Seville!

Life in Seville is cheaper than in Spain’s major cities of Barcelona and Madrid, and Spain also is one of the more affordable countries where to intern in Western Europe. All in all you can expect to live comfortably in Seville on about $1,500 total per month, including rent and other costs of living.

Unfortunately, most internships in Spain are unpaid, so you will probably not be making any money to put towards these costs. This being said, some employers will compensate interns in other ways instead, such as with a stipend or by providing meals and transportation.

Most foreign interns in Seville opt to either find their own apartment or rent out a single room living with locals or international peers. Real estate is fairly affordable in the city, with a one bedroom apartment typically ranging from $500 to $1,000 a month, depending on size and location. Generally you can expect rent to be cheaper the further you live away from the city center.

If you have an unpaid internship in Seville, then you will likely be able to obtain a student or visitor’s visa, which is less of a hassle to get than a work permit. If your internship in Seville is less than 90 days, then you may not have to apply for a visa at all, depending on your home nation.

Network Globally. Interning in Seville will likely give you the opportunity to network both with locals and other interns from around the globe, expanding your international contacts and making new friends while at it.

Improve Your Spanish. Speaking Spanish everyday in the workplace and in the streets will bring your fluency to a whole new level. If you are trying to learn a language, there is nothing more valuable than living in a place where it is spoken natively.

Prepare For a Life Abroad. Interning abroad in Spain is a terrific opportunity to get a taste of the expatriate life and learn all about another culture firsthand. If you plan on eventually making a career abroad, or in the international sector, an internship in Seville will prepare you personally and make you a more qualified job candidate.

Read our comprehensive guide on interning abroad in Spain.