I have always wanted to study abroad in Barcelona because of the Spanish immersion and great night life. However, my school offers the University of Edinburgh or the University of Granada. While I like that I could use my Spanish in Granada, I feel as though the city will not offer the booming atmosphere that I am seeking. I feel like neither of these places are particularly desirable to study abroad. However, I know almost absolutely nothing about either.
I am looking for more information on how these abroad experiences would compare to each other as well as to those in Barcelona and London in terms of:
- academic rigor (particularly for business/economics)
- value of international experience
- night life
I only get to study abroad once so I would much rather travel to the best place for me with an outside program, rather than succumb to my school’s limited offerings. But…
—> If these places are arguably better than Barcelona/London, I would like to consider them <—
Any insight would be greatly appreciated! Thank you.
U of E is considered a very good school. No idea about Granada. There is no big deal about doing an outside program approved by your college, if it is where you prefer to be. Mine did an outside one due a bit to location but more due to the desirability of the program. Succumb? how passive (and dramatic)
“I feel like neither of these places are particularly desirable to study abroad. However, I know almost absolutely nothing about either.”
See the problem?
Any student travel guide will tell you about things to do and nightlife and tell you how to get to other cities. Or you Google what seems to be your keyword, nightlife. You should be able to ask your college about the academic program.
Edinburgh is a great college town and is overall a very strong university- top 100 in the world for business & economics (QS) or top 200 (Shanghai). I don’t know anything at all about Granada, but both QS & Shanghai put it in the top 500, so I would hazard a guess that it’s academics are less rigorous than Edinburgh.
But, as @BrownParent points out, you can usually choose from pretty much anywhere through outside programs.
Edinburgh is a beautiful city and a top university. No idea about Granada.