Communications Study Abroad Programs in Spain

I had such a great time, the program leaders were super helpful with living situations adjusting to the different aspects here and all my professors were awesome. They all cared a lot about the courses and wanted me to succeed and do better! They excursions that they provide are also super fun and you should go on as many as possible.

It was the best time of my life. I was able to learn so much not only from the amazing teachers but also from the welcoming community of Alicante. The field trips were also very fun, and ended with the most beautiful views of the ocean and the city. I am forever grateful for this opportunity and genuinely encourage everyone to study abroad at one point in their college career.

Best summer I have ever had the classes were so fun especially the sailing class ! The best part was all of the new friends I made and being able to travel ever weekend with them and explore Europe! I would do it again if I could !

I graduated from high school a semester early, and the only way I wanted to spend my semester was by being abroad. I've known about Semester at Sea for around 6 years and I wanted to take advantage of this opportunity. I searched up the requirements to be accepted and luckily fit all the requirements most importantly being 18, so immediately I applied. I then got an email back the next morning saying I got accepted into the program and that email brought me to tears in the middle of one of my classes. I couldn't wait to board the MV World Odyssey and embark on this journey of a lifetime. On the ship, I gained so much knowledge about different cultures and I was able to be fully immersed in them, not just sticking to the touristy things offered. Semester at Sea does an amazing job keeping the students' safety in country as a priority with having mandatory “Pre-Port meetings” the night before arriving in a country, and offering field programs which are ship run excursions with ship faculty leading them. The community on the ship was nothing I have ever experienced before. We were so close knit and it felt like I was truly in a connected, caring, and welcoming environment. I met the people I never imagined I'd connect with, and they ended up becoming the best connections I've ever made with people. Semester at Sea also helped me get out of my comfort zone which led me to have experiences I would have never imagined I'd have, best example being running a half marathon in Vigo, Spain even though I'm not a runner and have never been a runner. Semester at Sea has given me the world and the opportunity to appreciate it to its fullest. I left the ship with my passport full, but my heart is even fuller with people, memories, and connections I will forever cherish. Semester at Sea was truly the best experience I have ever had and would recommend it to anyone as it was life changing.

You know honestly I had a good time. It was a great time. I feel like SSA did a good job with my internship. I had fun and all of the excursions that I went on were a good time. I don’t really know what to say, but I would say overall I had a great time on this trip.

I had a great time in Seville. I loved my class and loved learning about the history in Seville and Andalusia. I also enjoyed all my excursions, both in with the center and with the friends I made there.

I stayed in Sevilla for three weeks as part of the summer high school program, taking an art history class in the center. The class was great, although kind of long it was very interesting and the classes were run very well, with field trips every week to things that we were learning about in class. The environment in the center was also very nice, with everyone wanting to help and all the counselors and professors were great. Activities with the intercambios were also great, the activities every week were cool and fun and well organized like kayaking, mini golf, and amusement park. Only thing that wasn't te best was that there were only two other students in my program and was a little hard to meet friends, but it did happen eventually.

I had a really great time being in Sevilla. I was able to meet a lot of great people and make a bunch of new memories. I loved going on the different excursions and beings able to practice my Spanish in and out of the classroom.

I had the best experience studying abroad in Sevilla! I learned lots about Spanish culture and language. My class was amazing and I loved my host family! SSA did an amazing job and made me feel very prepared for study abroad!!

I am so happy that I chose WorldStrides for my study abroad experience in Madrid, Spain. Going into the semester, I was worried about adjusting to a new country, a new school, and new people. The second I met the WorldStrides team at the airport, I immediately felt welcomed and safe with them. Throughout the entire semester, they went out of their way to support us and were there every step of the way. I lived in an apartment with five other girls, and they ended up becoming my best friends. Despite being in a completely new environment, I adjusted quickly because of the amazing support system I had. Madrid was the loveliest city, and I fell in love with it. I'm so glad I took this big leap because it ended up being the best and most formative experience of my life!

Before Expanish, I struggled to feel confident/comfortable in Spain due to my lack of knowledge in Spanish. Expanish not only allowed me to finally feel comfortable in Madrid, but helped me to really thrive in Madrid. By being able to learn Spanish I felt so much more connected in my Madrid community by being able to build relationships with my gym instructors, the clerks at my regular grocery store, waiters at my favorite restaurant. That changed everything. I also learned and saw so much of Spain and Madrid through the cultural immersion events. It had the most positive impact on my experience and I’m forever indebted to Expanish. The classes themselves were great! My instructor was Aurora. She was very kind and patient which is so necessary when learning a new language. She was also great at explaining new concepts and will repeat it as many times as you need. Everyone on staff is absolutely incredible. Everyone was more than willing to offer help if I needed something. I was having issues with my apartment agency and one of the staff was more happy to call the agency to speak with them in Spanish on my behalf (I didn’t stay in housing that was part of Expanish). It just goes to show how much they care. They all ask questions about you and want to get to know you personally. You’re not just a number at Expanish. If anyone’s considering signing up, I promise you won’t regret it!

Expanish responded to this reviewJuly 25, 2026

Alexa, thank you so much for taking the time to write such a nice review! :) Reading this genuinely made our day, especially the part about feeling connected to your Madrid community, building those everyday relationships that really make a place feel like home. That's exactly what we hope for, so knowing you got to experience that means the world to us. We'll be sure to pass your kind words along to Aurora, she'll be so happy to read this. And to our team, thank you for noticing and appreciating that extra effort. You're not just a number to us, you're part of the Expanish family, and we love being able to support you even beyond the classroom. Thank you for recommending us and for being such a wonderful part of this journey. It was truly a pleasure having you with us!

The five weeks that I spent in Alicante were some of the best weeks of my life. The friends I made, the experiences I had, and the things I saw are truly unimaginable. You cannot explain how life changing something like this is until you are there. I was really on the fence about going abroad and I am so incredibly grateful that I made the choice to go. This program is ran wonderfully. I loved my classes, I always felt so supported by our advisors, and we had the most wonderful landlord. If you are even considering going abroad, do it!! I will always have a special place in my heart for Alicante and my time abroad.

Every person was SO helpful and supportive. Luis and Veronica were amazing and so were the professors. They did a fantastic job with the tours and trips, they were always so fun. There was also just enough time that me and my friends I made were able to explore on our own and experience the holidays and festivals Alicante had to offer.

One of the most underrated aspect of semester at sea is the ship campus itself. Being able to live so close to your friends and just walking a few flight of stairs to your classroom and being able to sit down with your professors for lunch is such an amazing experience. It's eternal sunsets, it's endless travel stories from your friends, it's lifetime of memories. Highly recommend. One of the best decisions I made. And still day dream about this experience, still talk and travel to meet my SAS friends 4 years later.

I have not experienced anything like semester at sea before, therefore giving me a whole lot of different lenses to look at the world with. I completely enjoyed my experience and understand the importance of understanding others concerns, communication, communities, and countries. A overall wonderful experience that has changed my views as well as the way I live and who I am as a person.

My study abroad in Cordoba helped me grow, pushed my boundaries, and highlighted the parts of my life that I deeply value. I was able to view the world through different perspectives and challenge my ideas of what normal was. Finding new ways in which I fit into communities that looked different from the ones I grew up around helped me find different parts of myself. The global variety of people I was able to meet, talk with, and form deep relationships with, helped me understand myself in brand new ways. Additionally, Spain has so many different places with their own distinct cultures, histories, and communities. Being able to explore the different parts of Spain enriched my study abroad beyond my experiences in Cordoba. Studying abroad completely transformed how I will approach new people and situations in the future and fueled my desire to learn more about the cultures, languages, and people that form the world.

Studying abroad in Seville, Spain, was one of the most rewarding experiences of my college career. As a low-income college student, I never thought studying abroad would be possible for me, even though spending a semester in Spain had been a dream of mine since the beginning my freshman year of high school. Before coming to college, opportunities like this felt completely out of reach. Thanks to scholarships, financial aid, and support from my university and CIEE, I was able to turn that dream into reality. Living in a homestay was one of the highlights of my experience. It gave me the opportunity to experience Spanish culture firsthand, improve my Spanish skills, and learn what daily life in Spain is really like. The academics were engaging, and the support provided by CIEE was excellent from the application through the end of the program. One challenge I faced was healthcare, since I receive a monthly medication. It was little difficult to make sure I had enough before leaving, and I ended up needing to get a dose while abroad and had to pay for it out of pocket. This created some additional stress, but the staff were supportive whenever I needed help navigating challenges like this. I also found making friends difficult at times, but this is something I have always struggled with. Even so, I was able to form a meaningful friendship during my semester abroad. Overall, studying in Seville helped me grow academically, personally, and culturally. One finally piece of advice: If you are currently an undergraduate student who thinks studying abroad is financially our of reach., don't count yourself out. I once felt the same way and I encourage you to explore your opinions. I never thought I would have the chance to do something like this, and it ended up being one of the best experiences of my life.

Being a premed student I was at first quite hesitant about applying for a study abroad since I was not very sure how it would work with my science classes. That was until I came across Spanish Study Abroad's page and saw that they offered a wide range of classes and programs that could too work for science majors! My first time applying was for the Spring of 2025 for which I was able to take both Spanish classes and do an internship organized by the Spanish Study Abroad branch in Seville at IENSA (a neurosurgery and neurology center in Seville). My second time, was the Spring of 2026 and with how well the program is organized, I was able to do my last Biochemistry class at University Pablo de Olavide. Long story short, the first semester abroad was honestly one of the best decisions of my life and definitely the best decision for my Spanish since between learning in the program and engaging with the very friendly Andalucian people, I successfully moved a whole level up in my Spanish in just a couple months. Additionally, Seville is culturally rich and I love that the program makes it a point to explain and share the wonderful culture and cusine with us! From this experience, I built my confidence and knowledge in Spanish and made very important connections with both locals and in the Spanish healthcare system. I loved it so much, I did the study abroad TWICE and I can confidently say it was 100% worth it!!!

It was a pleasure and privilege studying abroad in Sevilla. Unlike other programs, Spanish Study Abroad allowed me to be fully immersed in the culture, living with a host mother in a local part of the city, improving my Spanish, and having a myriad of opportunities to integrate myself into the culture.

Sevilla was the perfect place to study abroad! I was able to build my Spanish skills and immerse myself in the beautiful culture Sevilla has to offer. I loved my professors and host family. I felt I was able to truly experience life as a Sevillan and will be forever grateful for this opportunity!