How I Was Able to Study Abroad in Barcelona at 19: A New World

The Story

One simple “f*ck it” was all it took. I didn’t know that I was going to be living in Barcelona until about two months prior.

I was sifting through my emails during finals of my freshman year in college when I noticed one titled “Barcelona Study Abroad – May 30th application deadline”. It had been about ten days since the deadline, but my curiosity piqued and I sent an email asking if I could still apply.

Students taking Spanish classes were encouraged to apply, but I wasn’t in any Spanish courses and had never been in one at the college. The only reason I was a part of this chain was due to a conversation that my French class was having about not having a reciprocal study abroad trip like Spanish did. That day, I asked the teacher if they could send my contact info to the Spanish department because I was interested in going.

Well, it seems that I immediately forgot about sending that email after I sent it. I only remembered about a week later when I skimmed through a long email thread between professors and organizers trying to determine if I could still apply for the program. They concluded that I could, however, they only had one spot open for a shared apartment.

Wow, alright. I didn’t think this was actually something I could do; my mind started to explode into fantasies about actually living in Barcelona, like I had always wanted to. After a little bit of thinking, I was already convinced. I talked with some close family members and they all encouraged me to do it, and finally study abroad.

Now, most people would like to travel abroad, but there are a lot of things that prevent them from doing so: “What about my family and friends at home? How will I finance it? What about my job? What about my school?” These are all valid concerns. Fortunately, I was at a point in my life where I was already going to uproot everything and move away anyway. So I thought about it, and genuinely there isn’t anything holding me back. Yes, I will miss my family, but it is only for a few months that I will be gone. So, why not? Why not try it?

The day I turned 19, things changed for me. I reflected on everything that I had done, and pondered everything that I will do. I told myself that studying abroad was something that I needed to do, before I get locked down in a job, or before I finish my education. This was something that needed to happen.

But what is my infatuation with this? Why was I so adamant about traveling abroad? I developed a burning desire to travel when I went to Spain & Barcelona for the first time. I had a moment of sonder, realizing that there are billions of people living their own lives differently from mine. I saw the elaboration of humanity over the course of thousands of years defined by culture, people, architecture, food, and language.

Well anyway, I have been spending the last few weeks preparing to go abroad, figuring one thing out at a time. There are a lot of logistics to resolve, like phone plans, car insurance, health insurance, and travel. I compiled all of the documents that I have received from the program (information, invoices, etc.) into one folder that I can refer to if I need to figure anything else out.

Information

Requirements

Although I was instantly accepted into the program, there were a few requirements.

• Be 18 years or older before the program starts.
• Completed 12 credits or more.
• Maintain a 2.5 GPA or higher.
• Completed SPAN 101.

Thankfully none of these were an issue, especially since I had been through my first year of college already.

Cost

The cost of the program is $10,400. This doesn’t include tuition for courses hosted by my college. Shared apartments do not include meals either, so I will have to cover that with student loans.

Length

Three months (a quarter term).

Program

Now I would like to clarify that these are the requirements for my college only, and they could be completely different with other colleges depending on their partnership. This program isn’t hosted by my college, my college is a sponsor of this program.

Specifics

I was able to get a phone plan with my service provider that permitted me to have limited data usage while I am over there, so there isn’t any need to get an E-SIM.

I could have sold my car, but I figured that since it will only be three months, it’s better not to. So, I’ll still have to pay car insurance while I am over there. I was able to cut the cost of that by calling my insurance and telling them the situation. They were able to switch it to a storage insurance policy, which is a lot cheaper.

Courses

In total, I will be taking four courses: two hosted by the program and two hosted by my college. I will be taking a Spanish Culture class and a Spanish Language class. They place students based on their CEFR level which is tested upon arrival. I will also be taking Geography (I believe specifically to the Iberian Peninsula) and a Geospatial Science class.

Visa & Travel

ETIAS (European Travel Information and Authorization System) won’t be released until 2026, which means travelers will not require a visa to travel within the Schengen Area.

Public transport is covered by the program, I imagine that I will have some sort of membership card.

Concerns

Money

Ten thousand dollars. That is quite a lot. I unfortunately did not have all of this liquid when I was applying for the program, and I was able to get support from family members whom I will repay once I get back. I understand that my situation isn’t realistic for most people. I am extremely grateful for my family’s support. There are a couple ways that I plan on paying it back.

1. Getting a job.
   • Well yeah, that’s the obvious answer. I plan to get back to work as soon as I get back. Since I will have completed most of my degree already I won’t have to focus on school as much which will give me more time to work.

2. There aren’t any more ways I plan on paying for it actually, I just thought it was comical to add that to make it seem like I had a better grasp on how to pay for it. I apologize.

Homesickness

In the grand scheme of things, three months isn’t a long time. However, I will definitely miss my family.

I am going to try and set up weekly phone calls to my parents just to stay in contact. I might feel pretty lonely over there, even if there are people I’m hanging out with. Everything will be okay, and I will be glad that I made this huge step to study abroad like I have always wanted to.

Next Steps

I guess now it is time to wait until I go to Barcelona. I don’t really know what to expect, and honestly I can’t believe that I will be on a plane by the end of this week, and I won’t be back home until December.