Testimonials

I was an English-teaching intern in Viña Del Mar, Chile for a month. The city was an amazing and beautiful place to be and I felt quite safe. It was relatively expensive to live during the month I was there as my roommate and I had to provide our own food and transportation. However, the work that we were during was great. I had never taught English before until this internship, and I learned a lot about myself; how well I work in a position of authority, and my planning skills. The program had a lack of guidelines on what we were supposed to be teaching, and although that was a challenge, it provided us with the opportunity to create an entirely new lesson plan that catered to the needs of the students. We taught four amazing adults who were eager to learn from us and it felt great! I’d encourage future interns to take as many weekend outings as they can in Chile. The city has so many amazing activities and sights that will keep you busy in between your working hours. The only downside of the program was that I had to find my own transportation back to the airport at the end of the program which was expensive and difficult to navigate. But my experience in teaching in Chile outweighed any cons that arose!

The main reason why my experience was unique is due to the type of company I worked for and activities that I was able to perform. When I discovered that my university program required me to work for a full school year in a foreign country I was worried that I would have had to take part in one of those classic, mundane and monotonous 9-5 jobs which involved performing tasks while sat at a desk in front of a computer screen. This is basically the equivalent of suicide to someone like me who loves living his life outdoors performing sporting activities. Thanks to Adelante’s program, however, I was able to find a football club in Madrid that allowed me to actively participate in their training sessions, as well as help out coaches in as many ways as possible during the sessions. My university accepted the program and I was able to spend these 7 months here about as well as I could have ever hoped for.

I had a wonderful experience abroad in Chile. My Spanish most definitely improved, or I should say my Chilean Spanish since they use so much slang. I loved our teacher so much, in fact, I am still in contact with her. My internship placement also was great, I was an assistant to a professor who had other architecture projects as well. Very nice, welcoming, patient, and open-minded. Overall an awesome experience, I met some wonderful people, learned a little bit about a new culture, improved my Spanish, and my architecture.

I originally chose this program with Adelante because it was by far the cheapest one available. The price is reasonable and includes meals and housing– both of which turned out great. I loved my host and the meals she made for me. I felt at home there. Also, Sevilla, in general, is a beautiful city that is very safe, colorful, and walkable. The university (UPO) is not within walking distance but has its own metro stop so getting to class is easy and convenient. The courses required some work but were not overly stressful. Adelante was helpful as well with connecting me with a local study abroad program and continuing to check up on me through email throughout my stay. I will say that the program works best for students that are independent, as Adelante representatives will tell you. Many other programs are so expensive because they have some trips bundled in the cost– this is not the case with Adelante. So, if you are interested in planning your own trips and activities around Spain/Europe with more flexibility, this program may be a good fit. You also may want to consider how willing you are to meet new people and try solo travel for the times when the schedules of other students who have more boxed-in programs don’t align with your travel plans. These aspects worked for me and I got to travel a lot with the money I saved by choosing this program– also, there are many student/erasmus travel programs for the weekend like We Love Spain which I also would recommend. Sevilla is a beautiful city and I had an awesome time there. I gained a lot of confidence in myself during my stay there and would highly recommend it!

My two months in Ecuador was an incredible experience! I lived in Quito with an Ecuadorian family and completed 2 weeks of Spanish Language classes before beginning a 6-week placement at a veterinary clinic. Not only did I gain incredible skills and knowledge from my work placement that I can apply towards veterinary school in Canada, but I was also able to travel around Ecuador and get to know its culture and people. My main goal out of this experience was to learn to speak another language. I came to Ecuador with some basic Spanish but being immersed in it every day, both at home with my host family and at work, allowed me to accomplish this goal. I met so many amazing people during my time in Ecuador and I am so thankful for this amazing experience!

Everything in Spain is going well. The internship has been really great thus far. I mainly help to coordinate volunteers for projects that (my internship’s NGO section) has going on. But I have also helped with revisions in Spanish, French and English, and have translated a few articles into English. It’s been really interesting learning about all the programs, software, and how other people translate.

Adelante truly is a wonderful program from beginning to end! They were very prompt in responding to my initial interest and setting up a first phone call, followed by comprehensive guidance before my arrival in Spain. I told Adelante my field of interest and they found a perfect internship for me in Sevilla. The two weeks of Spanish class prior to the internship were also excellent; the school had wonderful professors and organized free, fun cultural excursions we could participate in after class. The program is perfect for people who enjoy independence with accessible support when needed. I felt very comfortable in Sevilla and enjoyed the opportunity to shape the experience around my interests.

I owe so many thanks to Adelante Abroad for allowing me to satisfy my love for travel while also getting to fully immerse myself into living in another country. The staff at Adelante was so quick to answer any questions I had, whether it be from preparing for my trip to things to do while actually in Scotland. I spent weekends traveling to the Highlands, Iceland, and London in addition to doing some sightseeing throughout the city (such as some of the many museums, the castle, etc.). I think you don’t truly get the cultural experience unless you are actively trying to immerse yourself in the city and its surroundings. Overall, I would recommend Adelante Abroad to any independent traveler looking to gain work experience.

I could not have asked for a better internship opportunity than the experience I had here in Edinburgh. All of the people who we interacted with for our program were so friendly and helpful. Our living situation was spectacular- right off the Royal Mile! The actual internship program at the University was absolutely outstanding. We had the opportunity to learn new software, code data, run participants, research new literature, and I even had the opportunity to work with a professor to collaborate on a brand new study. Definitely the right program fit for me and has immensely grown the confidence and ability I have in my research skills. I would definitely recommend this program to anybody that wants to further their research experience in a unique and independent way.

This program was a lot of “firsts” for me. The classes were really hands-on and real-world applicable. The professors were really helpful and they made sure we were all happy and taken care of. My favorite parts were riding – I had only done some Western riding before so it was a bit of a change! I also liked getting the opportunity to ride several horses to fine-tune my own riding abilities and to gain more experience in riding horses with all varying personalities, strengths, and weaknesses. I’m really glad I got to come on this trip and visit Scotland and experience the culture.