IFSA Argentine Universities Program

My time abroad with IFSA was challenging, but profoundly rewarding, both academically and personally. My IFSA classes in the specialized academic program I chose were tailored beautifully to the program’s theme of human rights, taught wonderfully by local professionals/scholars, and they encouraged very high-level critical thinking. My classes abroad were some of the best I’ve taken in all four years of college. My abroad experience was just as challenging and rewarding personally as it was academically; I learned how to be alone, how to adapt to others’ customs and communication styles, and how to balance being independent with finding community while abroad for a relatively short amount of time. One of the most profound lessons my experience abroad taught me is that saying goodbye to a place can be just as painful as saying goodbye to a person—IFSA helped me develop a personal connection with the city I lived in, which made my time there so incredible, even though it also made leaving extremely difficult.

I studied in Argentina through IFSA between the end of July and the beginning of December in 2019. The program was well-managed, with a strong array of orientation activities to get us acquainted with Buenos Aires and our peers in the program. The ability to take classes through a variety of institutions was a great opportunity, although it was a bit daunting trying to figure out which classes were offered where amidst rather disorganized directories that the universities offered. My host mom was nothing short of perfect, and she helped make my experience abroad exceptional. IFSA organized interesting academic courses of their own, and the excursions they organized were also fun. All of those running the program were very easily approachable for any assistance we needed, and my advisor helped me a lot in getting academically situated.

I absolutely loved my semester abroad in Buenos Aires- I can't imagine a better place to study abroad. The city is incredibly affordable and has something for everyone- beautiful parks, gorgeous architecture, shopping, trendy restaurants, nature and SO MUCH culture. One of my favorite things to do was visit cultural centers throughout the city to listen to live music or comedy and meet locals. Getting around the city was super easy too, with several subway lines and over 100 buses. IFSA's program was incredible. My favorite part was how many academic options there were and how helpful the staff was. I did the Spanish Translation and Linguistics Learning Community since Linguistics is my major, so four of my courses were taught in the IFSA office by professors from the University of Buenos Aires (the best university in Latin America). I loved the small class environment and learned so much about linguistics that has really helped me in my classes back at school. My learning community also involved an internship/field work experience where I worked with local freelance translators. This was immensely helpful in my classes and for learning Spanish in general. IFSA provided us with amazing academic advising and academic tutoring if we needed it. The staff was also very attentive in seeing how we were getting along with our host families and were in touch with our home universities often. In addition to taking classes with IFSA, we were required to take at least one class at a local university which was a great way to become more immersed in Argentine culture. I also chose to do some volunteering while abroad, as IFSA was connected to a few organizations and helped us get involved. I volunteered at a local elementary school teaching English, which helped me see if I liked working with kids and helped me feel like I was actually contributing positively to my host country. All in all, I had a fantastic time abroad. From nightly dinners with my host family to exploring the city and being challenged in my classes, internship and volunteering, every day in Argentina was a blast and I truly grew both professionally and personally.

There isn't a day that goes by that I don't think about Argentina and the wonderful life that IFSA staff introduced me to there. I don't think I've ever met a staff as passionate and overtly caring as the IFSA staff in Buenos Aires. Although there were initial issues with my homestay situation, the IFSA staff acted quickly and tactfully in transitioning me to another home with the loving family that I had needed. Although I felt like a bit of a wild card at times, the IFSA never hesitated to support me, even in doing things that they'd previously never done before -- like guiding me in my search of Italian and Chinese classes at a local community center. Just to brag a little bit about Argentina in general.. the diversity of beautiful landscapes is unimaginable, the ice cream is the best in the world (or at least rivals Italian gelato) and the meat is so good you'll have to become vegetarian after coming back, and the Argentines are the most energetic and visibly affectionate people I've ever known. I never could have imagined feeling to welcome and loved so far from home.

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I had an incredible experience in Argentina because I was challenged in my academics and in life outside the classroom. I took a wide variety of interesting classes at different universities. My host family experience made me more confident in my Spanish speaking ability and enabled me to learn more about the culture I was living it through food and conversation. I also had the opportunity to play on a a university soccer team which further improved my Spanish speaking ability and encouraged me to build relationships with local Argentine players!

IFSA in Buenos Aires was a great program that really allowed me to engage with the city and the country. Class schedules were very flexible, and it was amazing being able to choose classes at 4 different universities. IFSA organised trips to Tigre and Uruguay, guaranteeing city breaks and excursions. The staff at the office were also great whenever you had any problems. Overall it was a great program!

I loved my time abroad with IFSA in Buenos Aires! The on-site staff were so friendly, understanding and supportive of each individual’s needs. It was clear that IFSA genuinely wants you to have a good time on both an academic and a personal level. Not only do they understand that studying abroad may be challenging but they are willing to work closely with each individual in order for everyone to have the best experience possible. At the same time, the strong sense of community that IFSA provides is balanced with a sense of independence that is inherently built into the program. With IFSA you can really tailor the experience to your personal needs and interests. There is a perfect mix of supportive structure as well as freedom to choose between a variety of classes and extracurriculars that can facilitate individual exploration of the city and personal growth.

I had never given much thought to Argentina a year ago, nor was it the idea of living in Argentina what drew me in to this program. What caught my interest was the IFSA program that offered a group of classes that focused on human rights, immigration, and gender diversity along with the option to take classes from four other big name universities! I signed up for the knowledge I knew this program would give me, but as soon as I became settled I knew I had made the right choice. Everything about my experience went better than I could have imagined. First and most importantly of all, my host family made me feel like they were exactly that: family. I felt like I had known them for a long time because of how easily they welcomed me into their home and into their lives, and they kept this warm feeling going with each delicious meal they shared with me. The quality of one's home life can often make or break one's mental well-being and academic success, so I felt very blessed to have had such wonderful people in my corner, and to have made a home away from home. In terms of academics, I won't even lie, I had a rough start with my classes. It's very daunting to be completely submerged in a language that's not your native tongue, and the classes lasted twice as long than what I was used to. Don't even get me started on my learning to navigate public transit having lived in a suburb my whole life! In the end, it was these challenges that made me not only a better Spanish speaker but and a better student, and I began surprising everyone from taxi drivers who were impressed with my fluency to my parents upon seeing my impressive grades. I truly could not have picked a better program. Despite taking a full course load I was still able to maintain an internship, complete a research paper, and volunteer weekly with a group I dearly miss. I still keep in contact with the friends I made on this journey and I find myself daydreaming about going back to Buenos Aires as soon as the opportunity presents itself. I refuse to sound cliché and claim that the experience was "life changing," but trust me when I say that it was definitely life-altering in the greatest of ways.

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I studied abroad with IFSA and found that the resources and services provided were far better than anything I could have imagined. The predeparture newsletters, the weeklong orientation, and the incredible staff really helped ease my way into a semester abroad! They helped with everything from public transportation, to phone service, and finally to healthcare! There was such a wide variety of classes to take (from 4 universities plus program classes)!! This really was the best experience I could have asked for.

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Studying abroad in Buenos Aires with IFSA was my first time going abroad. It was a bit difficult in the beginning finding friends and becoming adjusted, but the Buenos Aires staff was always extremely supportive, regardless of what I needed. I really enjoyed the structure of my classes and my professors were accommodating to my needs. IFSA offered great activities that allowed us to immerse ourselves in the culture, including Tango tutorials and theatre visits. My favorite part was interacting with locals and practicing my Spanish and helping them with their English. I would recommend this program 100% and to get the best out of it, I suggest interacting with the local community every chance you get.

The IFSA Program in Buenos Aires was ! Socially, I made several close friends from the US through the program, and I got to know plenty of people from Argentina and other countries through activities in Buenos Aires. Now I have a place to stay if I'm ever traveling in Colombia, Mexico, or Portugal, and I've already gotten to see one of my friends from IFSA who goes to a college nearby. Academically, IFSA offered the chance to choose from classes at 6 local universities, in addition to the courses with the program. It was hard at first to take classes in another language, but the professors knew what it was like for international students and offered personalized help. By the end of the semester, I could understand everything that was said in class, and I had grown more confident in my ability to speak Spanish in a professional setting. My homestay was another highlight—I loved getting to know my host mom, and it's been great to keep in touch even after leaving Buenos Aires. One of the best parts of the experience, and one of the most unexpected, has been coming back after study abroad. As much as I can't wait to go back to Buenos Aires some day, I'm so happy to have had the experience and bring the lessons I learned abroad back home. I'm more grateful for what I have at college, and I feel refreshed after a semester stepping out of my comfort zone and meeting new people.

From staying with a host family in Buenos Aires’ Recoleta, to spending time with local college students, to volunteering with a local non-profit, to working with IFSA professors to complete my research project, I grew in unimaginable and innumerable ways that will forever shape the way I view the world and my role in it. My experience in Buenos Aires has positively impacted my worldview in ways that will forever affect my personal and professional growth. IFSA-Butler study abroad program is incredibly supportive. I still think about the IFSA staff in my final year of college, and am so appreciative to their attention to detail and thoroughness in the creation of the program. They were incredibly attentive to our adjustments as students living in a new country, honest about the study abroad process, and truly wanted to see us not only grow but thrive in Argentina and beyond. My academic experience both in IFSA and the local universities was fantastic. I enrolled in the directed research program, and it was one of the most rewarding experiences I’ve had thus far. As a student majoring in Law, Jurisprudence & Social Thought and Spanish, I am also deeply interested in public policy, diplomacy and international affairs. Studying in Buenos Aires, Argentina was an experience that gave me a different perspective on the importance of effective diplomacy (I took a legal history course at a local university). Because of my semester in Buenos Aires, I am even more aware of the importance of the human connection, understanding the different ways that people engage with others across societies, the importance of remaining curious, and the urgency of truly listening to others, even if their opinions or practices are different than my own. I am so grateful to have found such a fantastic program, and wholeheartedly recommend it to any student looking for an experience of a lifetime with trustworthy support.

My time in Argentina was full of new colorful experiences. Thanks to the helpful staff and program support, I was able to get the most out of my classes at the local university, my travels around the country, and my at-home time with my host family. I got to try new things, and meet new people, learning how the stories of others are similar and different to mine, meanwhile grounded in a whole different world. My time was unparalleled and unforgettable.

Throughout the entire process of studying abroad, IFSA was a great support system that prepared me for every step of the way. From pre-orientation newsletters, to the orientation period in Buenos Aires, and finally academic support throughout the program, I felt very supported. The planned trips were also amazing. Thanksgiving break in Uruguay was unforgettable! The negatives of the program was that I felt surrounded my American students and did not immerse as much into the local culture as I would have hoped. I recommend enrolling most of your classes in one university to get immersed in student life there.

My time in Buenos Aires was one of the best experiences of my life. As someone who has travelled to other countries and had homestay experiences, my time with IFSA Butler in Argentina was the most enjoyable and comfortable study abroad experience that I have had. I would recommend my study abroad program hands-down. But I will be honest. The Argentine Universities program is challenging. 5 semesters of a language are required to join the program and you could be in classes surrounded by all Argentine students at your universities in classes that aren’t specifically taught for exchange students. However, the program does allow you flexibility with your classes that you can choose as challenging or easy a class as you would like. I loved my homestay. I lived with a an older woman who became like my second mom. I had my own bedroom and bathroom and breakfasts and dinners covered every day (except Saturday night dinner). My host mom and I were extremely close, considering she had to take me to the doctor at the beginning of my time in Argentina. I learned so much from her in the house about the language and the culture. Another thing that I loved about the program is that there are so many options for classes and you are really given control of your academic life abroad. I did the human rights concentration with IFSA on genocide studies so I had one class with IFSA on the topic and a human rights internship. With this internship, I got to conduct research for a non-profit in a hospital which was such a transformative experience both professionally and personally. I would highly recommend finding an internship or volunteer experience while abroad and IFSA helped facilitate the experience. The program is designed to be immersive and program directors really encourage us to not hang out with all Americans. We are encouraged from the first day of orientation to immerse in Argentine culture and make Argentine friends. That was also one of my goals coming to Argentina and a goal that I made! I made these friends through my classes, a program called PALS at the Catholic University of Argentina, and by stepping out of my comfort zone and meeting people at concerts, bars, etc. and taking advantage of the city’s busting night life! I also had the opportunity to travel around Argentina at the end of my program. Some students find ways to travel on the weekends and it very easy to get a quick plane ride/longer bus ride to incredible places around the country. I choose to wait to the end of the program so that I could really experience all that Buenos Aires had to offer. Buenos Aires is a city for young people and I encourage anyone who wants to study abroad there to study abroad through the IFSA Butler Argentine Universities program.

I chose a program in a Spanish-speaking country for the language immersion, but the reason I specifically chose Argentina was the literary scene in Buenos Aires. A well-travelled aunt promised that I would love the urban atmosphere and the unbelievable literary culture of the city (there's an independent bookstore almost every two blocks in some barrios). The IFSA-Butler program offered an academic concentration through the massive, prestigious public school of Argentina (Universidad de Buenos Aires or UBA) and still left me several credits to take in classes of my choosing at any of the local universities. My study abroad was a deeply engaging and rewarding experience but the part I most want to champion is the IFSA-Butler literature concentration because I learned so much and so differently than I had ever experienced before in an academic setting. The concentration, freely offered to any interested IFSA students to help them shape their course schedule and engage with the local literary scene, is only three classes: Contemporary Argentine Literature, Castellano (essentially a Spanish language class), and Literary Methodology. Each course is taught completely in Spanish. The contemporary literature class was incredible: taught by local author Martín Kohan (whose work is available at many of the bookstores throughout the city), he gives both a sort of crash course on Argentine history and culture and unique, almost tender insights and in-depth analysis that could come only from lifelong study of the lives and work of cornerstone Argentine writers including Jorge Luis Borges, Rodolfo Walsh, Julio Cortázar, and Roberto Arlt. Some form of Castellano is a required course for all IFSA students, but in the literature concentration we read more extensively and had a smaller class size (only two students!) which gave us lots of opportunities for practice and direct tutoring on our pronunciation and grammar. Finally, the literary methodology course, taught by an IFSA professor who also teaches for UBA, was the first course of literary criticism that I have ever taken and will certainly not be my last. We investigated what it means to read critically and how one can and should, using Argentine hero (and famously voracious consumer of literature) Che Guevara as the prototypical reader for our studies. This guided track helped me to understand the context of Argentine literature as I browsed bookstores and poetry readings across the city, opening my eyes to an entire regional kingdom of literature that has never been offered in classes at my home university as anything other than "Latin literature" -- losing all of the regional, historical, and cultural richness of work that is the product of a specific people, time, and place. Thank you to Diego, Darío, and Martín (along with all the rest of the IFSA staff) for giving this English major so very much to think about.

I studied abroad in Buenos Aires, Argentina for 5 months and was enamored with my experience. This was my second time doing an immersion exchange (first time was a 5-month program at a French high school), so I thought this would be a piece of cake. I was wrong. However, it was an exciting challenge and not more than I could handle. I would really recommend this program to someone who has had some international experience before. The best part about my program was the staff, who helped me through some emergency events but never held our hands so we could go out and experience things authentically. Buenos Aires itself has a lot of international students, so there are tons of free cultural activities to meet other people and explore the giant city. On the other hand, there is still a strong local culture and Spanish-speaking expectation that I believe it was much easier to learn Spanish than if I had been in Spain. This is not a country to choose if your goal is to travel to a different city every weekend, as transportation usually requires a plane and they aren't dirt cheap like in Europe. This is a program if you want to make great friends from different US universities and have opportunities to intern, volunteer, join a local dance or art studio, and immerse yourself in the rich and complicated history of Argentina. Academics can be as easy or demanding as you choose, and the host family was a critical component to my experience. Vamos BA!

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This program is perfect for anyone with decent Spanish skills. You can literally choose to do whatever you want to do. I am a nerd so I got to take lots of classes where I was the only foreign student. The staff in Buenos Aires is amazing and they will treat you like family from the moment that you step off of the plane. The admin in the US leaves much to be desired but the staff abroad more than makes up for it. I made lifelong friends in the program and in the city so I have people to go and visit and live with. Probably the best decision that I've ever made.

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One of the best aspects about IFSA was the flexibility they gave us with choosing classes. I felt like we were given plenty of options in a variety of different universities. This allowed us to customize our schedules, giving us plenty of time in the day to explore Buenos Aires before or after class. The workload was not as intense as I expected- most of the "work" ended being translating into castellano. It was nice to learn about the contemporary society and culture though, although much of that ended up being through our own individual experiences outside the classroom. I found all the IFSA staff to be super approachable and always willing to help, whether it be with our classes or adjusting to the local culture. Orientation was tedious, but I imagine most of them are, and there was plenty of useful information. Afterwards, you could really utilize IFSA and their resources as much as you needed them, whether through their staff or the activities they offered once in a while.

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Studying abroad in Buenos Aires will forever be my most memorable college experience. However, with a transition so huge, but yet so sudden, IFSA staff was very supportive all the way from the first arrival at the airport, through the days of orientation and up to the course selection process. With the hundreds of course offerings for students from 6 different universities, kids are often overwhelmed, but the staff did an amazing job making this difficult task less arduous. There was ample time to roam the city of Buenos Aires and to explore the rest of South America on the weekends. In addition, I think I got paired with the best host family ever imaginable in a cozy Almagro apartment with an amazing family.

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