International Business and Culture Program, Fall 2017, Issue I

¡Bienvenidos a Sevilla!

The Seville International Business and Culture students have had a productive first few weeks!   Upon arrival, students participated in key orientation sessions in which they discussed homestay expectations, health and safety abroad, academics, cultural and social activities, host culture diversity (as well as what it means for them to be “diverse” within the Spanish context), etc. When not in sessions, students enjoyed time with their orientation groups, exploring and learning more about their neighborhood alongside their Spanish student orientation guides. 

Survival Spanish 

Students jumped right into the two-week, 3-credit, Spanish Intensive Grammar course following the onsite orientation--this semester we offered classes for absolute beginners to advanced Spanish speakers. Although the principle focus of the course is Spanish grammar, professors make a concerted effort to take in-class learning out of the classroom. For example, the beginning Spanish language students spent a morning exploring restaurant menus and learning how to order.  The intermediate Spanish students took part in an exercise entitled “obvious-curious” in which they explored the Mercado de la Encarnación, taking photos of objects (or behaviors) that were obvious to them, things they might see or experience in the U.S. or curious to them, things not seen often in the U.S., student later presented their “findings” to classmates (in Spanish) via oral presentations...the Elementary II students took to the streets to interview their Spanish peers about university life. Finally, the advanced Spanish students were sent on a scavenger hunt, with the task of finding historical clues around the city.

Getting to know Seville and Universidad Pablo de Olavide

Several cultural activities were held in the afternoons and weekends during the first couple of weeks, including a tour of the city with CIEE professors, a cooking class to introduce students to Spanish gastronomy, and a daytrip to Cádiz, just to name a few. Upon completion of the Intensive Spanish course, students headed to the University Pablo de Olavide for an orientation and tour prior to the start of their semester-long classes.