Starting classes, I had a lot of doubts about what to expect about school in a new country. Although there have been some adjustments, being at UPO has been a great experience due to their great international program.
The most obvious difference between my American and Spanish classes is language, as I am only taking classes taught in Spanish at UPO. Since my classes are for international students, our professors tailor lectures to non-native speakers and make sure they talk at a slower rate. Another interesting difference is how my classes will transfer to the United States. Currently, I am taking two civilization/ culture classes and two history classes, both of which will count as upper-division Spanish classes, as all my coursework and instruction is in Spanish. Whereas I am used to Spanish grammar, writing, and oral skills classes, at UPO I can apply my Spanish abilities in a different academic setting. I was very surprised to learn that my grammar counts very little towards my grades (normally around 5% of any given assignment) – whereas I agree that ideas should be weighted the most, I was still surprised by how little grammar counts towards my overall grade.
Finally, I was surprised to hear that failing classes is much more common in Spain than the United States. Talking to locals, many have offhandedly talked about classes they are retaking from previous semesters; the stigma about failing is much less severe here. In comparison, I have found that education in the United States is much more product-driven than Spain.
Overall, academics hasn’t been too much of a significant transition for me and have enjoyed taking culture-based classes to develop my Spanish abilities. All my professors are exceedingly kind, as well, and are happy to chat about UPO, Sevilla, or Spain. Lastly, I believe that UPO is a great choice for studying abroad because they have a lot of international students in a well-developed exchange program. The Center for International Education has three student interns and multiple full-time staff that are wonderful and very helpful with any issues that have come my way.
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