high school semester abroad

<p>hey, so i am considering a high school semester abroad... I am a sophomore at boarding school and would take the semester abroad during first semester of junior year. I have been wondering how a semester abroad affects one's college transcript, especially during junior year. Also what programs are reputable? Has anyone done a semester abroad on this board. If so, good experience? I'm interested in Spain and England...thanks for any feedback</p>

<p>If your school supports it and you want to do it, go for it! Somehow I doubt a college is going to mind. They have more than enough information based on your other semesters to make a decision. </p>

<p>Just make sure that you're okay in terms of standardized tests--if you're trying for National Merit, in particular, you'll want to see if there are test sites available near your location abroad (perhaps contact an American School) where you could take the PSAT.</p>

<p>Hey i'm a high school senior who is currently spending a semester in spain. Before leaving, i interviewed at Washington University in St. Louis and the University of Chicago and both seemed to think that it was a good idea and seemed to be a bit impressed by it. I believe that Chicago's website says that they are looking for intellectually curious kids that are willing to take risks. And i would assume that most other schools value the same qualities. So, I would think that it could only help your college chances. As for transcripts I'm not getting credit for my classes abroad(all classes in my spanish school last a year) but i think that they are listed on my transcript, just with a note explaining them.</p>

<p>But a few things to look out for:</p>

<ol>
<li><p>bilingual regions- my exchange program, Intrax, put me in Catalonia, a bilingual region in northern Spain. Intrax assured me that my family could speak spanish fluently, that most of my classes would be taught in spanish, and that Catalan would be fairly easy to pick up. All were lies. My family speaks Catalan 90% of the time and all of my classes are in Catalan except spanish lit and spanish lang, which are like electives. So, watch out because Europe is full of bilingual regions and languages that youve never heard of.</p></li>
<li><p>Don't expect a huge adventure. You are going to be living with a normal family and do normal things. There will be a lot of sitting around watching tv and playing video games with your host siblings.</p></li>
<li><p>Don't expect to be fully immersed in the host culture. You CANNOT escape the english language or american culture. While most of the adults in my town cant speak English, all of the students can and always want to practice their english with an american. As for culture, I don't think that i have ever turned the radio on here without hearing Bruce Springsteen. Everyone loves the simpsons and family guy. And 007 is extremely popular. There is a bar in my town completely decorated with Clint Eastwood movie posters. So, rather than experiencing spanish culture, i'm experiencing american culture with a spanish point of view, which is much closer to spanish daily life than flaminco and bull fights.</p></li>
<li><p>Don't expect to be able to take standardized tests. I was considering taking the SAT again, but the past three tests dates haven't been offered in Barcelona. The closest test center was in Madrid.</p></li>
</ol>

<p>Now a few things to take advantage of if you decide to go:</p>

<ol>
<li><p>Trains- Trains are awesome. I can get from my host town to Barcelona for around 3 euros(5$). They are extremely fast and get you anywhere in the continent in a matter of hours.</p></li>
<li><p>Bakeries- There are bakers everywhere that are eager to sell you a delicious baked good at a very reasonable price. I spend most of my money on croissants and do-nuts.</p></li>
</ol>

<p>Other:</p>

<ol>
<li><p>Low/lax/non-existent drinking age- Don't forget that you will be living with high school students. They are not that different from american high school students. They go to school, play sports, watch TV, and, yes, like to party a little on the weekends. I'm not sure what life is like at your boarding school, but at my fairly large public high school drinking is a popular pastime. It's the same in my Spanish school. Only, the lax attitude toward drinking allows the students to drink openly in bars, as opposed to sneaking around trying to hide it from their parents. This lax attitude has also lead to an extremely low amount of binge drinking. Since i've been here, i have not seen a single person drink too much or get sick. They just kinda chill in the bar, have a few beers, talk, and listen to music.</p></li>
<li><p>Intrax study abroad- I used Intrax because their website was the first that popped up on my google search. They seem to be fairly incompetent. It takes weeks for them to respond to phone calls and emails. They just mailed me my exchange student ID, two months into my 5 month program. But at the same time, they rarely contact me, which gives me more freedom to do things. They make a big deal about things like parents visiting at the end of the program and getting these 15 billions forms signed before taking a two hour bus ride, but their never around, so you have the freedom to make the most of your exchange experience.</p></li>
<li><p>The spanish eat a lot. You said that you were interested in spain, but are you interested in eating more than 3 full meals a day. If so, the food is extremely good. </p></li>
<li><p>Futbol is EXTREMELY popular. My first week here, I had more than one person tell me that soccer was their religion and that Messi(Player from FC Barcelona) was God.</p></li>
</ol>

<p>well, that's about it. I just read your post and felt like writing about my experience. All in all, great experience. Just don't expect too much and stay chilled.</p>

<p>Peace/Paz/Pau</p>

<p>Dear lazydog,</p>

<p>AYUSA Study Abroad (formerly Intrax Study Abroad) appreciates your candid feedback—it’s how we make our programs better-- and in response we have instituted a new policy in 2009. We will no longer place students in the Barcelona region unless they are already fluent in Spanish and want to be exposed to the Catalan dialect. The rest of our students will typically be placed in one of the following areas: Andalucia and surrounding area, Alicante, Aranda de Duero, Ronda, and Salamanca. Again, we appreciate your thoughts. We generally have a very high satisfaction rate among our participants but it’s immensely helpful for us to see what areas we are excelling at, and where we could improve.</p>

<p>If anyone is interested in more information about our new program in Spain, follow our blogger Sarah in Valencia.</p>

<p>[url=<a href=“http://intraxstudyabroadsarahspain.■■■■■■■■■■■■■/]Sarahspain[/url”>http://intraxstudyabroadsarahspain.■■■■■■■■■■■■■/]Sarahspain[/url</a>]</p>

<p>Students from our high school have gone abroad, usually for a full year, with AFS. Here is a listing of their fall programs.
[|</a> AFS USA - Student Exchange Program](<a href=“http://www.afsusa.org/usa_en/link/6659]|”>http://www.afsusa.org/usa_en/link/6659)</p>