<p>I am currently in Spain right now studying abroad for my junior year. I am with the Rotary Youth exchange program and I wanted to know if anyone knows how this looks to colleges. I am missing a whole year of school back in the United states, but I am learning/becoming fluent in Spanish, and learning all about a new culture and gaining so much more. I have enough credits to graduate on time so I won't be taking an extra year. So, if anyone has any input on this that would be great. Thank you!</p>
<p>It’s a great experience that will make you an interesting candidate. There is no replacement for gaining that level of fluency, and that will be appreciated. That’s a long time to be gone so that’s pretty bold of you. I’m sure it looks great to colleges, but other people do other things that look great too, so I don’t know that you should depend on it. Apply to an appropriate range of colleges and write thoughtful essays.</p>
<p>It makes you different, with some advantages and disadvantages. The way I see it if you are majoring in Spanish or something like that, it would make you highly desirable.</p>
<p>Focusing on one aspect of the experience, with strong intercultural analysis, a sharp eye for detail, and possibly some humor (// Meghan McNeill Libby’s Postcards from France) is going to provide you with an excellent source for essays that will help you stand out.
In all likelihood, upon your return, you’ll realize how much you’ve learned and matured.
In addition, you had to take a full load of classes, probably 8 to 10, entirely in Spanish. Not only are you fluent, but you’ve discovered a new approach to education, new perspectives on material you may have learned before but never realized was “framed” in a specific way, and new material. If on top of it you got good scores, you do have a big advantage for all schools with admit rates 30%+.
For schools with admit rates 30% and under, the competition is so fierce that the study abroad year keeps you in the running but does not, on its own, guarantee anything.</p>