My Exchange at The University of Salamanca
As a high school girl in her YouTube vlogger era, watching videos of American students moving into their universities, it sparked a dream to study abroad. Travelling the world has and always will be a goal in mind, but studying abroad topped the list. While researching possible study options at UoA, I stumbled across the 360 International Exchange Programme, which made it my ultimate goal to go abroad.
In all honesty, I was scared. It was my first time travelling solo, studying abroad in a foreign language, and living away from home, so I plunged into deep waters this year. Thankfully, I had a family member living in Madrid who would help me get sorted and adjusted en route to Salamanca. When arriving in Salamanca, I wanted to go home, but I didn’t like giving up, and it would be a waste of money if I just gapped back to New Zealand. I couldn’t give up on my dream now. Speaking Spanish felt so buzzy to me. After taking up the language for around five years, I felt like a toddler trying to communicate with proficient adults. But thankfully, over time, I adjusted and felt more comfortable with the speed and slang.
I stayed in a Residence Hall to be safe, as I didn’t want to overwhelm myself with flat hunting in a country I had never been to, though it was on the pricier end. If I were to go back again, I would 100% stay in a flat to save money. I enjoyed my accommodation. I had my own room, bathroom, and shared kitchen with a girl from Peru. So, from the get-go, I made a friend and got to practice my Spanish. There was a shared study space on each floor and one big study area on the main floor, as well as a pool table, ping pong, gymnasium, courtyard, communal kitchen/eating area, laundry room and a lounge with a TV, so for the price I paid, I suppose it was worth it for the amenities. I walked everywhere! As it was a 15-minute walk from my campus and the Plaza Mayor, so a big yay for getting my step count up. I only took the bus three times during my five-month stay and the taxi to and from the train station for my day trips to cities near Salamanca, like Madrid, Valladolid, and Segovia.
In my experience, my host university did not organise a formal orientation. Still, I was a part of the Erasmus group chats, so there were a lot of events in the first month to mingle with international students. I was glad I was a part of Erasmus because of the trips they organised around Spain, Portugal and Morocco. I highly recommend going on these trips as they are student-budget friendly and worth it, considering I travelled 35 hours to Europe! I didn’t see much advertising for clubs in USAL, but Erasmus does the job. One group associated with the university was “En-Vivo”, which is a group for university students, and that is where my closest friendships were made.
My first thought of the course and teaching at USAL is that UoA spoils its students! I was surprised to learn that they do not upload lecture slides before or after the class, which means that you physically have to attend to get the notes or ask a friend. (Attendance is taken very seriously, so I always attended all my classes). If my class required any readings, I had to go to the library and get a physical copy of the book. Crazy! There is no course schedule for assignments, so show up to a class, and they’ll tell you the assignment and how many words/readings are required. One class made me write around 3000-word assignments almost every week, with readings included. Every class had an exam, and I was so nervous because they were all in person, closed book. All my classes were in Spanish, so I was fully immersed in the language. Still, reflecting on how much I’ve grown in Spanish, I have developed so much! There are no big lecture halls at USAL; they are all like high school classroom size, which is nice because it feels less intimidating, meaning the teacher can dedicate more time to helping you as a student. All of my classes were from 4pm – 8pm. Some friends that I met had classes until 9pm! This may seem absurd, but I adjusted super quickly. With the time difference, I could wake up around 8:30 am, call my family/friends, study, go to the gym, and do my grocery shopping before leaving for class! That meant that when I came home, I could chill or hang out with my friends.
Over time, I grew to love Salamanca! Arriving in winter wasn’t the best because it got dark early; there was barely any blue sky, but it didn’t rain much in Salamanca and Spain. I got to experience snow properly for the first time, so that was epic! Spanish nightlife and culture are at their peak! Most events started at 8 or 9pm, and I usually came home around 11 or 1am. Therefore, Salamanca is incredibly safe, even if you walk late at night by yourself.
Salamanca was incredibly cheap! I didn’t want to return to Auckland because of how expensive it had gotten. As I was going to travel after my studies, I set a tight budget each month. 500 euros to cover my groceries, laundry, phone plan, personal shopping/eating out, travel trips and gifts to bring home. I walked everywhere in Salamanca, so I barely took transportation, and my residence came with a gym, so I didn’t need to spend money on that. I bought an “Abono” for unlimited rides to and from Madrid for 4 months. On average, I spent $80NZD a month on groceries. Eating out was reasonably cheap, a meal would be around 6 euros pp (you have to know the good spots!) Uber was surprisingly cheap in Salamanca! They don’t hike their prices online; a delivery fee is only 20 cents! My most significant expenses were flights (of course) and my residence.
If you’ve made it this far, this is your sign to go on that study abroad. You won’t regret it, I promise!
Q&A
What were some of the highlights of the academic experience at your host university?
Personally I think it is seeing how the students cope with standards that are completely different from UoA and seeing them maintain their study/social life was so interesting to me. In my report, I mentioned how slides and recordings weren’t uploaded, so you would have to physically attend the class to learn the content. This was the norm for USAL students and I would often think “wow, if they attended UoA, they would be so shocked at our learning system.”
Another highlight was the field trips I got to partake in! As my papers were mainly geography related, I got to explore (with my class) the Spanish landscape and soak in every bit of its beauty. I wish that I could’ve done my degree in Europe because lots of the students were telling me that some of their trips involved going to other countries to study their geographic reliefs!
Would you recommend any particular activity/activities unique to your host country or university?
I would definitely join the Erasmus/international student community to make the most of your abroad!
This also isn’t an activity directly related to my host university, but as USAL is one of the oldest universities in the world, I would spend a weekend exploring the different buildings and learning about the history of them. Trust me, your mind will be blown.
What are your top 3 tips for future students attending your host university or going on exchange to your host country?
- Bring necessities with you that you can leave there. What I mean is to bring tea towels, bedding, towels, toiletries, cleaning supplies with you so that you don’t have to spend a whole lot of money as soon as you arrive. That way when it’s time to go back home, you can leave these supplies and have more room for personal shopping/gifts to bring back to your friends and family!
- Connections are KEY! Try reaching out to 360 to see if there is anyone studying at your host university. I reached out to a girl and she left me a whole bunch of supplies/essential items that I forgot to bring, so it saved me some money! You can also ask them for personal advice as they are someone who was in the same shoes as you, which can definitely take away the jitters!
- JUST DO IT. Like Nike always says… if there’s a new food that you are wanting to try, DO IT. If there’s a dress you want to buy, DO IT. If there’s an event which you get invited to, DO IT! Most of the things you will get exposed to are very rare to find in New Zealand, so make the most of your abroad and JUST DO IT!
How much did you budget for your exchange? Was this enough? Were there any lessons learned that would help future students budget for their own exchange?
I think $10,000 is a safe bet for any student wanting to go abroad. The 10K included my flights, residence costs, living costs, personal expenses and travel post-study abroad.
What are your most significant takeaways from your experience abroad?
- Life goes by waaaay to fast. At first all I could think about was being homesick and wanting to go back home, but by the end of my abroad experience, I really did not want to come back to New Zealand.
- The Spanish don’t take life too seriously and I LOVE IT! No-one arrives on time and no-one gives you crap for being late. The Spanish are so extroverted, every corner you turn there will be an event or some people just performing to provide entertainment.
- New Zealand is so sheltered and isolated compared to the rest of the world, it’s crazy.
- New Zealand is really expensive. Spanish prices were cheap, coming from New Zealand, but the locals were telling me that their prices were increasing and I found that so hard to believe.
Do you want to share anything about travels you did outside your host city/country?
During my study abroad, I went on a few trips with the Erasmus group to Portugal, Bilbao, and Toledo. I did a solo day trip to Valladolid and lots of day trips to Madrid. After my study abroad, I travelled with my family to Valencia, Barcelona, Germany, Austria, Czech Republic, Netherlands, France and to end of my study abroad, we spent two weeks in Singapore/Malaysia upon returning back home.