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Illinois Abroad Student Stories Blog
Spain/Latin America

blog posts

  • Discovering the Many Facets of Costa Rica

    “In my classes, I learned about all of Latin America, not just Costa Rica. I really enjoyed this broad curriculum because it complemented my out-of-classroom experiences. It was interesting to learn about migration as a global phenomenon in the context of prevalent economic migration to Costa Rica. Both my coursework and the conversations that I had with locals sparked an interest in this topic that I could see translating into my future career path.”

  • Inclusive Teaching Philosophy Inspired In Granada

    “Granada is a city that is so rich in history and culture from different groups of people. This whole experience really strengthened my belief in the importance of inclusivity in language education curriculum. As a Spanish teacher, I will make it a point to ensure that when teaching history, everybody’s history is a part of the lesson. When teaching the language itself, I think it is so important to teach the different variations of how things are said in Spain, Latin America and South America. It’s one language, but spoken in many different (yet equally beautiful) ways. I can’t wait to teach my students as inclusive of a version of Spanish as I can.” - Daniel Donovan, junior in Spanish Education

  • How Study Abroad Prepared Me For Med School

    Arnold Oparanozie, a senior majoring in Molecular and Cellular Biology and Global Studies with a minor in Chemistry, studied at the Universitat Pompeu Fabra in Barcelona, Spain to work on his Spanish language skills.

  • Returning from Spain with a Spanish Major

    Getting academic credit while studying abroad is one of the many advantages to studying in another country, and sometimes you’re even able to earn credit toward a course of study you had never anticipated. This is what happened to senior Paulina KocoĊ„ when she studied abroad in Barcelona, Spain on the Liberal Arts and Sciences’ S&P program during the Spring of 2016.

  • Host Families: The Best Housing in Bilbao

    Studying abroad is an experience that allows you to learn more about yourself as well as the different cultures you’ll interact with. But living with a host family during your time abroad, like Roberto Estrada Lobo did while studying at the Universidad de Deusto - Bilbao, allows you to be immersed in a culture each and every day.   

  • 365 Days of Brazil

    Everyone has different ideas about where they want to study abroad and what culture they want to experience. Mary Gan, a senior majoring in Agricultural Consumer Economics with a minor in Portuguese, spent a year in the city of Piracicaba, Brazil at the University of São Paulo-ESALQ.

  • There and Back Again: Jacklyn Montiel in Granada

    Sometimes studing in a country once just isn't enough. Read about Jacklyn's study abroad experience in Granada, Spain and how she intends to study there again.