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Eager to step into the footsteps of a college student who studied abroad in Spain? We recently caught up with AIFS Abroad program participant Justin from Bradley University. He spent a fall semester studying abroad in the Catalan city of Barcelona.
Read on to learn more about his study abroad experience with AIFS Abroad and the impact of being an international student in Barcelona.
Adeline: Hello, everyone. Welcome to today’s episode. I’m an AIFS Alumni Ambassador, and last year I studied abroad in San José, Costa Rica. I’m here today with Justin, who’s currently in Barcelona, Spain. Introduce yourself and then talk a little bit about your background.
Justin: Thank you for the warm welcome. My name is Justin, and I’m studying abroad at Barcelona with the AIFS program. I’m a finance major with a minor in accounting. I’m from Chicago, Illinois, and I study at Bradley University.
What was a memorable experience you had while abroad? How have you changed as a person since going abroad?
Justin: What comes to mind is just being in classes with people from all over the world—meeting people sitting right next to you who grew up in Germany, Denmark, and other places throughout the world. It opened my mind about different cultures and experiences. It’s definitely a unique opportunity. That has been one way I’ve changed, learned, and grown. So just meeting people from all over, especially in my classes, that’s lovely.
Adeline: Yeah, I know it’s kind of a cliché… people always talk about the relationships they formed while abroad, but for me, I can really say the same thing. My housemate, we still talk to this day, and that’s a year since the program. So it was really, truly incredible… some of the friendships I made. Do you want to talk a little bit about what it’s been like for you as an American in Spain? Do you feel safe? What are some of the resources that the AIFS Abroad program offers?
How has AIFS Abroad supported you during your study abroad experience?
Justin: In terms of being safe, I would say Barcelona is pretty safe for the most part. Obviously, there’s some pickpocketing that goes on, but I feel comfortable walking around. Typically, I’m with my friends, but if I am by myself, I still feel pretty comfortable. The metro is great—great transportation—so you can really maneuver throughout Barcelona. In terms of what AIFS Abroad offers, they offer some great contacts in case you’re ever in a situation—they have an emergency number and an office located in Barcelona. So honestly, yeah, I would say I feel safe.
Adeline: I like how you mentioned the transportation. I know you’re from Chicago, but I’m from South Carolina and we do not have public transportation. So, when I got to Costa Rica, I got introduced to the bus system there, which is incredible—it’s a $10 ticket to go anywhere in the country. That was really a game changer for me in terms of affordable travel.
Have you been able to travel outside Barcelona?
Justin: Yeah, traveling has been really easy and really fun throughout Spain. I’ve gone to Girona with a day trip that the AIFS Abroad program offered, and it was really good. I’ve been to other places, like Sitges with some friends, which is a nice beach town—beautiful beaches, great environment, and the food was pretty good as well. I’ve also been to a few other places, like Besalu, which was really nice, too. Great things to look at. I’ve also gone on a few other day trips throughout Spain with the [AIFS Abroad] program—they offer many, many day trips. Montserrat was really cool, but, yeah, I would say it’s been really easy to travel. I’ve also been on a few other trips outside of AIFS Abroad. I’ve been to Nice, France. Honestly, I really like how easy it is to maneuver from Barcelona. So, it’s been great.
Adeline: That is great.
Did you have travel experience prior to studying abroad?
Justin: This has been my first experience in Europe. I have traveled throughout the States quite a bit for sports and some of it for leisure travel with family or friends. But I would say, I haven’t traveled like this—just being in Europe, being able to travel to a completely different place in a few hours. So, I would say that’s been very cool.
Adeline: I think that’s a great note you touched on, because Costa Rica was my first experience outside the country. Although I had traveled a bit for sports in the U.S., as well. So something I’d like our listeners to understand is that even if you don’t have a background traveling internationally, it’s not something to hold you back from going abroad. Because I think it’s the best way to do it with these [AIFS Abroad] resources and during a time in your life where you can be adaptable and flexible.
Were there any opportunities to play your favorite sports while abroad?
Justin: Yeah, so most of my life I played basketball. While abroad, there’s a lot of different ways you can get involved in sports. For me personally, I haven’t played as much basketball, but AIFS Abroad offers a soccer league, so I played soccer for the first time over here, and it’s been really fun. Honestly, you can play any sport—there’re people that play tennis with their friends, people that play lacrosse, and they have games. They’re talking about how they’re going to play Madrid. Yeah, you can get involved in any [sports] you want to out here. I would say that’s one of the best parts as well. I’ve enjoyed playing soccer and I’ve just enjoyed being able to stay active.
Adeline: I got the chance to play soccer too, while abroad in Costa Rica. That’s been my sport my whole life—I play forward. But for me, it was really interesting [experiencing] culture through sports and how I was able to form real relationships with people through commonalities like soccer or basketball. And I also found a lot of Europeans, or just people from other countries generally, they do like certain aspects of American culture and American sports. So, you can really find conversation points through that.
How did you use your American background to connect with others?
Justin: Talking to people about playing basketball… There’s a lot of people out here that still follow the NBA, and they talk about basketball, and it’s easy to talk about sports. I know football (soccer) is big here, but still, a lot of people out here are avid about sports. So, it’s an easy conversation point and makes it very easy to meet people. I actually ended up playing soccer one of my first nights here and met a whole bunch of people. So I would say it’s a really great connection point to just meeting people.
Adeline: Definitely. Maybe if you want to talk a little bit about why you chose Spain, because a lot of students travel in Europe, maybe not Spain specifically. So I’m kind of interested how you made that decision.
Why did you choose to study abroad in Spain?
Justin: My decision was mostly based on taking a few years of Spanish in high school. I just wanted to go somewhere that spoke Spanish and get back to learning. I have a few friends that also went abroad last year, and they were telling me just about how fun Spain was, and I was torn between Madrid and Barcelona. But what really made my decision clear was learning about the beaches that are near Barcelona, and my friends went to Barcelona. So they were telling me about their experiences and giving me recommendations. So it’s been great. I’ve been able to improve my Spanish and also just grow outside out of classroom as well. It’s been really good.
Adeline: Yeah. Language is a really incredible skill that I think is harder to learn as Americans, since we’re so landlocked and, you know, because the country’s so big, we don’t have that same interaction all the time with other languages and cultures. But I like what you said, how you were torn between Barcelona and Madrid. I was torn between Costa Rica and Argentina. But I never thought growing up, that’s a decision I would have to make—one day being able to travel. So, for me, it was an amazing, amazing experience. And then I learned so much about myself, and I’m so glad I did it.
Any advice for future study abroad students?
Justin: Go for it—college is a time for you to grow and get outside your comfort zone and just experience new things. And I would say it’s a unique opportunity to be able to study somewhere else in another country. Do some research and go for it. It’s great.
Adeline: Exactly. I’ll definitely underscore that. Not to think about your return to the US already, but what’s one thing you’re going to miss most about Spain? Have you thought about ways to maintain those connections with the language and the country you spent a few months in?
What will you miss most from your study abroad experience?
Justin: I’ll miss the people, the diversity of people… being around people from all different cultures and experiencing new things every day and just talking to people. I think I’m a social person, so I enjoy hearing about other people’s life experiences and hearing things I’m not accustomed to hearing… It’s really cool to have this diversity of thought and life experience and to be able to grow from that. Also, there’s a lot to do out here… there’s a lot of festivals, a few holidays (la muse), Independence Day of Catalonia… In order to maintain that connection, I will reach out to some of the friends I met out here, and just maintain those relationships and continue to stay in touch with a diverse group of people.
Adeline: Thank you, Justin. It’s been amazing hearing about your experience in Spain.
Justin: Thank you so much.
Are you a student who’s ready to take the leap and study abroad like Justin did in Barcelona? We’d love to help you start your journey!
Here at AIFS Abroad, we know a thing or two about helping college students and pre-professionals study and intern abroad. Our programs are incredibly inclusive, which takes a lot of the stress out of planning. From coordinating your housing to providing things like cultural and social activities, excursions, comprehensive insurance, 24/7 emergency support, on-site staff, and more, you’ll take comfort in knowing you’ll have support throughout your entire experience abroad.