Planning
When planning my semester abroad, I quickly decided that none of the partner universities at my university would be an option. In addition, I really wanted to go to Spain to learn Spanish and Barcelona was already my favorite city anyway. So why not go to Barcelona for a semester abroad ? Said and done. After talking to friends who had also been with MicroEDU in Barcelona at UAB two years earlier and were totally enthusiastic (both about the city and MicroEDU), I made contact.
Right from the start, every question I had was answered instantly and the entire application process is made super easy with the help of MicroEDU ! I found it particularly helpful that everything is checked again before submitting the application. Visit toppharmacyschools.org to get information about Japan higher education.
Occupied courses
Spanish Language Beginner
For the Spanish course at UAB, you have the choice between a 45-hour and 90-hour course. I decided on the 90-hour course, which then takes place every day from Monday to Thursday.
In advance, a placement test is taken from home online, which then assigns you to the appropriate course. At my home university I already had two semesters of Spanish and therefore had basic knowledge. I was assigned to the A2 course and felt that I was in very good hands there. Overall, the Spanish course was my favorite by far. On the one hand, because I had the greatest motivation here, because I wanted to learn the language, on the other hand, the lecturer was by far the coolest. What I particularly liked here was that the focus was on the language and that there was really a lot of talk instead of learning dull grammar. In this course you write a mid-term and a final exam and you also have to take small oral “exams” in between or write and submit short texts.
International Marketing Strategies
With this course you had most of the work, but of course you also learned the most at the same time. Here the marketing strategies are discussed in different cases from international companies and a little basic marketing knowledge is also imparted. The lecturer Myriam Hikimura is super nice and really tries to make it as easy as possible for you. Still, you have a lot to do: mid-term and final exam, as well as three group lectures.
Managerial Skills for International Business
This course was the least fun for me personally, even if it is probably one of the easiest. Professor Maydo is really super nice. This is about topics such as creativity, leadership, teamwork, motivation, etc. In addition to a dry lecture, there are many smaller games here, some of which also take place outside. For the grade you write a mid-term and a final exam, each of which consists of only 20 right-wrong questions. Participation and attendance also count towards the grade.
Digital photography
Since I am studying Marketing at my home university, I was able to take this course and even have the points credited to me. It must be said here that this course is really aimed at absolute beginners who have little or no prior knowledge. The only requirement is that you bring a camera. Since I already had a lot of knowledge, I sometimes felt out of place, but I still enjoyed the course. The two lecturers Gunnar and Christiane are super nice and really happy to help you with any question. With the course you go out a lot to take photos and receive several assignments over the entire semester, which are then graded. Participation in the course also counts towards the final grade.
Finding accommodation / living
I can only recommend everyone to look for an apartment on all platforms, as the competition is sometimes incredibly strong. I flew to Barcelona a week before the start of the semester and used this week to look for an apartment, as the Spaniards like to invite you for a spontaneous visit and it’s good to be there.
For me, the best areas to live are El Born, Gotico, Raval. You can’t go to university in 5 minutes, but you are in the center of the action and for me these are also the most beautiful districts.
Costs for a room in a shared apartment: 300-700 € per month.
Leisure
You don’t really need to say much about this in Barcelona. The offer is huge! Anyone who wants to party every evening can do so in countless clubs. The city also has an incredible amount to offer and discover besides nightlife!
A little tip: don’t let yourself be pulled away.
Barcelona is known for pickpockets and my cell phone was stolen from me too. But that shouldn’t put anyone off! You just have to take care of your things.
Conclusion
As I said at the beginning, Barcelona is my favorite city and it will remain so after the four months. In my opinion, it is also the perfect city for a semester abroad: the weather, the beach, nice people and a city that has so much to offer. I got to know a lot of interesting people from all over the world and the semester abroad also helped me personally.
I can only recommend everyone to do a semester abroad in Barcelona!
