Semester in Spain
12 weeks
for 12th graders only
for 12th graders only Overview
Overland’s Semester in Spain offers graduating seniors an unbeatable gap year opportunity to immerse themselves in all that Spain has to offer.
Capably led by two dynamic Overland leaders, Semester in Spain students will live in Barcelona, Madrid and Seville for three weeks each, receiving daily native-speaker language instruction and exploring the vibrant life of each city. Based in centrally located apartments, we’ll enjoy the day-to-day life in our neighborhoods—getting to know nearby parks, museums and architectural monuments, as well as searching out our favorite coffee shops and tapas restaurants. In each city students will spend one week in a homestay, learning about local culture firsthand and further enhancing language skills.
In addition to our time in Barcelona, Madrid and Seville, we’ll head to the Pyrenees for a week-long hiking trip in early October and to the Costa del Sol for the last days of Mediterranean warmth in early November. For our final week in Spain, we’ll leave Seville and return to Barcelona to pull together the various strands of our semester abroad: the beauty and variety of Spain’s language, landscape, people and culture, and the friendships and fun of our Overland group.
Highlights
- Explore Barcelona, Madrid & Seville
- Master Spanish through instruction & conversation
- Experience a week-long homestay in each city
- Hike the Pyrenees
- Travel to the Costa Del Sol
- Immerse yourself in Spain’s culture, landscape & language
Grade
For students who will finish grade 12 in June 2010. Call us (800.458.0588) to check on current availability.
Challenge Level
5 (1-10, 1 is easiest)
Start and End Location
Families are responsible for making travel arrangements to and from Barcelona International Airport.
FLIGHT ARRIVAL: Barcelona, Spain between 8:00 a.m. and 12:00 noon Friday
FLIGHT DEPARTURE: Barcelona, Spain between 8:00 a.m. and 12:00 noon Thursday
*Please note: To arrive in Barcelona on Friday morning, flights must depart from the U.S. on Thursday night. If possible, please choose a flight that does not connect in Europe (e.g., fly non-stop from a U.S. gateway). Overland’s leaders will be on hand at the airport to provide supervision and assistance at program start and end.
Dates and Fees
Friday September 10 to Thursday, December 2
$14,795 (airfare not included)
Itinerary
Semester in Spain spends three weeks, including a one week homestay, in each of the following cities: Barcelona, Madrid and Seville, with excursions to the Pyrennes and Costa del Sol.
Trip Details
Additional Costs
Transportation to and from program start and end locations, spending money and personal gear are not included in the program fee.
“These programs have changed Mercedes from a shy, introverted child to a confident, social, young woman. We are grateful to have found your fabulous company!” Mercedes Smith, Westfield, New Jersey
Videos
Check back for a video of this trip soon. To see other trip videos click here.
Prepare & Pack
Semester in Spain - Preliminary
Overland's Semester in Spain offers an unbeatable combination of native-speaker instuction, activities, excursions and travel. The key to preparing for these programs is to keep it simple; this information is designed to help you do just that. Don't hesitate to contact us if you have any questions.
Preparing for the Demands of Semester in Spain
Language learning and cultural understanding require dedication, patience and hard work. Begin your preparations for a great semester now by organizing your luggage. As the semester nears, stay active and fit through sports and exercise. The more you prepare, the more you will enjoy your program. Then once your program starts, commit yourself wholeheartedly to your group and all of its activities.
Luggage
Luggage
On our Semester in Spain program we travel light—we cannot emphasize this enough. Please bring just one travel backpack (between 2500 and 4000 cubic in) and one small day pack for weekend excursions and day hikes. Experience has shown that this is the only way to go. Dimensions of the travel backpack should not exceed 22"H x 14"W x 9"D if used as a carry-on, however it may be larger if you plan to check this luggage at the airport. We recommend travel backpacks from REI, EMS and LL Bean. Use your day pack to carry essentials on the plane (but do not use this bag as additional luggage space). Be sure to tag all items with your name, address and phone number. If you are checking your travel pack as luggage, ask the airline to bag it for you. This will help protect the pack.
Packing for Your Program
Please stick to the following guidelines when packing for your program; your group will have access to laundry on a weekly basis. In many of the places we visit, it is culturally inappropriate for girls to wear short skirts, short shorts or spaghetti-strap tank tops; this clothing can bring unwanted and possibly unpleasant attention. Please pack accordingly.
*Keep in mind that the weather will be hot in Barcelona; however, it can be very cool in the Pyrenees.
Clothing
- Tennis Shoes or Sneakers. 2 pairs of comfortable shoes to wear around all day AND on day hikes.
- Sandals or Flip Flops. Casual sandals for the beach or dinners out
- Waterproof Raincoat.
- Fleece Pullover or Sweatshirt. One only.
- Comfortable Shorts, Skirts or Pants. Four; one pair of shorts and one pair of pants must be suitable for day hikes, one should be suitable for a casual restaurant.
- Shirts. Five short-sleeve shirts or tank tops. One of the short-sleeve shirts should be synthetic. One long-sleeve shirt.
- One (and only one) casual/nice outfit. We will dine at a typical Spanish restaurant once a week. Boys—one pair of khaki pants and one casual, nice shirt; Girls—one skirt or dress.
- Underwear. Seven pairs.
- Socks. Five pairs.
- Pajamas. One pair.
- Bathing Suit.
Gear & Miscellaneous
- Valid Passport. Also bring a photocopy of the inside front cover of your passport and leave another at home.
- Student ID. Current school identification (if you have one).
- Spanish-English Dictionary. Small travel size.
- Toiletries. All travel size.
- Beach Towel. Medium size.
- Water Bottle. Any kind, to stay hydrated out in the sun.
- Hat. Optional, with visor (e.g., baseball hat).
- Sunglasses, Sunscreen (SPF 30+) & Chapstick (with SPF protection).
- Camera/Batteries/Memory Card Optional. Interested in seeing your photographs or videos on Overland's website next year? Bring a camera with lots of pixels (10 or more) and lots of memory (4GB or more). Buying a new camera? One of our favorites is the Canon PowerShot SD960 IS digital camera.
- Spiral Notebook & Pen. For class and immersion activities.
- Journal. Optional.
Note: Please do not bring any type of knife or multi-tool (e.g., Swiss Army Knife, Leatherman).
We do not permit personal electronics on our programs (for example, cellphones and iPods). We do, however, allow students who fly to their program to carry a cell phone while traveling; on arrival, Overland's leaders will collect all cell phones and personal electronics for the duration of the program and return them for flights home. Perhaps, a better option would be to bring a pre-paid phone card so that the leaders do not have to carry cell phones for the duration of the program.
Admissions
Below is the Admissions Materials packet and other information for Semester In Spain.
Apply
We welcome your interest in joining Overland this summer!
To apply, please complete and sign the application on page 47 of the Overland catalog or download an application. (You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to download the application).
Please refer to page 46 of our catalog for important information you should know before signing the application.
Send your application and $795 deposit to:
Overland
P.O. Box 31
Williamstown, MA 01267
For overnight mail via UPS or FedEx, please use our street address:
Overland
63 Spring Street
Williamstown, MA 01267
Sorry, we are unable to accept applications by fax, and we do not take credit cards. Applications are reviewed in the order in which they arrive at our office and we cannot hold spots over the phone.
To learn about our admissions process, please click here.
Leader Profile
Anna Sobotka grew up in St. Louis, Missouri, and graduated from Washington University in 2009 with a major in English and a Spanish minor. In 2008, Anna backpacked and studied abroad in Chili for a semester and then traveled around South America for three weeks. In 2009, she led our four-week Language Immersion Spain program. She is currently working for the Americorps emergency response team in St. Louis helping to organize community leaders and increase their capacity to take more responsibility for long-term recovery efforts in times of disaster.
- Watch Semester in Spain's Video
Check out photos from Semester in Spain
