Elite Rowing Gap Year in Seville, Spain
| FALL: Mid Sept. - Mid Dec., 2026 |
| SPRING: End Jan. - Mid May, 2027 |
| GAP YEAR: Mid Sept., 2026 - May, 2027 |
| ELG: High School Graduate or done with Year 13 (UK) / Born in 2007, 2008, or 2009 |
| ROWING REQS.: Please see below >> |
| LANG. REQS: No Prior Knowledge of Spanish is required |
11,995€* See full breakdown >>
ELITE ROWING PROGRAM
ACADEMIC PROGRAMS
ACADEMIC CREDIT
PROGRAM ACTIVITIES
PROGRAM DATES, COSTS AND DEADLINES
FAQ
ACCOMMODATION
PARENTS TESTIMONIALS
STUDENTS TESTIMONIALS
@saiieathletics
Elite Rowing Gap Year Program in Seville, Spain
Spend a semester or year in Seville! Designed for high school grads, this program combines Spanish language courses at SAIIE or courses at the University of Seville (taught in English or Spanish) with high-level rowing training through the Club Nautico Rowing Team.
Program Includes:
- Placement on Spanish rowing team.
- Weekly rowing training sessions throughout the duration of the program
- 5 - 6 water sessions per week mixed with gym work + 3 to 4 dryland training - Coach will plan this.
- Gym membership throughout the duration of the program at the rowing club.
- Access to rowing machines (ergometer) and weight room.
- Option to participate in a regatta. Rowing coach will decide (Only for year long students).
- Open to male and female rowers
Students will have the option to practice six days with the team if they want.
Program requirements:
- High School Graduate or done with Year 13 (UK) / Born in 2007, 2008, or 2009
- Students must have been rowing on their varsity team back at their school or a rowing club before the start of the program.
- Students must have their last head rowing coach complete the Coach form
- In the 2k Concept Rowing Ergometer test female student-athletes cannot exceed 7:30 and male student-athletes 6:30.
If you exceed these times, please contact the Program Manager, Sean Chipres, at seanrc@saiie.com
Daily typical practice:
- Starts with dynamic stretching and warm up.
- Coach will explain practice and athletes will go out to the water.
- Start up with some warm up exercises on the water.
- Continue with steady state, drills, and fartlek intervals
Please note: Only students who study for the year will be able to participate in regattas with the team
Where will you row?
At SAIIE, we work with the well-renowned local rowing club at Club Naútico Sevilla to help student rowers perfect their skills.
SAIIE students on our Rowing program will be surrounded and integrated in a group of roughly 60 Spanish rowers from juniors to professionals and veterans. They form a varied and extensive network of athletes, making every training session and event a new and exciting learning experience. This has been the basis of the Rowing section's successful growth within the Club over the 57 years since it was founded.
In its list of sporting achievements is the distinguished Stadium Cup (Copa Stadium), and the 1985 National Sports Award (Premio Nacional de Deportes), which was awarded to the Club for its special contribution to the development of its club sports.
Many rowers from the Club have participated in the Olympics.
To be eligible for NCAA athletics, you must remain an amateur: As long as you’re rowing with a non-professional club and not being paid, your eligibility is safe. Division What Happens If You Row in a Gap Year Abroad Division I (DI) If you don’t enroll in college within 12 months of high school graduation and you row in organized competitions during that time, you may lose one season of NCAA eligibility. But you can still row in college — just with fewer seasons. Division II (DII) More flexible — you can take more than a year and compete in organized rowing, as long as you stay amateur. You keep all 4 seasons of eligibility. Division III (DIII) No time limit. You can row in club competitions after high school and still keep all eligibility, as long as you remain an amateur. If you're going DI, the key is: enroll in college within 12 months of high school graduation to keep all 4 seasons of eligibility. Club rowing abroad is considered organized competition NCAA won't penalize you for training, but competing (even at the club level) is what matters for eligibility If you are a high school graduate taking a gap year to row abroad: You can row with a club like Club Náutico Sevilla Just don’t accept money, housing, or benefits beyond basic travel/living expenses If you're going Division I, try to enroll within 1 year of graduation to preserve all 4 years of eligibilityWhat does the NCAA Rules say:
1. Amateurism
2. Gap Year Timing Rules by NCAA Division
3. Organized Competition
Bottom Line:
PHOTO GALLERY
academic programs
University of Seville: Liberal Arts, Business, Spanish Lang. & Culture Program
This program is designed for students from beginner to advanced level of Spanish.
Students will take classes at the University of Seville. Classes are offered in Spanish and English.
Students can choose from a variety of subjects, including:
Important:
- To participate in the program through the University of Seville students must be 18 years old before the semester is over.
- Must take between a minimum of 3 and a maximum of 5 courses per semester. Each course consists of 45 class hours.
- Classes are taught from Monday to Thursday, usually on alternating days (Monday-Wednesday or Tuesday-Thursday) and 2 hours per session.
- Classes will be taught at the University of Seville's main building.
At the end of the program the student will receive an official certification from the University of Seville with the courses taken.
SAIIE: Intensive Spanish Language Program
This program takes place at the SAIIE center.
Hours per week: 16hrs
Classes: Monday - Thursday
Language levels: Classes are offered at beginning, intermediate, and advanced levels
Courses: Spanish classes (4 hrs/day)
At the end of the course, the student will receive an official certification from SAIIE acknowledging the hours taken
academic credit
It is the students responsibility to obtain credit for the course taken at SAIIE and the University of Seville.
program activities
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program dates, costs and deadlines
Fall Program Dates: Mid Sept - Mid Dec., 2026
Spring Program Dates: Beg. Jan. - Mid. May, 2027
Program Cost: 11,995€ (Semester) / 23,495€ (Academic year)
Program costs includes:
- SAIIE full-time fees and support services before, during, and after the program.
- Airport reception and transfer to Spanish home on arrival date
- On site orientation.
- On site bilingual staff on call 24/7 throughout the term.
- Accommodation in a Spanish home with most meals (breakfast and mid-day meals Monday through Friday and evening meals Sunday through Thursday) and one load of laundry per week throughout the program.
- Program excursions and activities (Weekend excursion, as well as, Cordoba, Ronda, and Italica day excursion).
- Welcome and Farewell meals.
- Spanish Language program fees that includes classes from Mo-Thur (16hrs per week) or University of Seville program fees.
- Athletic program fees.
- SAIIE Transcript at the end of the course certifying the Spanish language course taken.
University of Seville will issue an official certification with the courses taken if participating in their program.
Fall /Spring Out-of-Pocket Costs Include:
- U.S. Passport ($135).
- Mandatory CISI health and medical evacuation insurance.
- Spanish Visa for U.S. citizens (estimated at $160).
- Return airfare from the USA to Spain (estimated at $1,200 - $1600).
- Meals not included with accommodation (estimated at 600€ per sesmester).
- Mandatory International Student Identification Card (ISIC) ($25).
- Transportation to practice (estimated at 100€ per semester).
- Personal Expenses (estimated at 1000€ per semester)
- Trips not included (estimated at 700€ per semester) / An optional weekend trip to Morocco will be offered, as well as, a weekend trip to Portugal.
- Optional cocurricular activities (estimated at 500€ per semester).
- Any costs due to possible quarantine requirements due to COVID-19
APPLICATION DEADLINES
| TERM ABROAD | APPLICATION CYCLE OPENS | APPLICATION DEADLINE |
| Spring 2026 | April 1 | October 1 |
| Academic year 2026/27 | September 15 | April 1 |
| Fall 2026 | September 15 | April 1 |
Missed the deadline? Please contact Sean Chipres, Program Manager, to enquire about late application options.
fAQ's
If you do not see your question listed here please contact us.
What do I bring/wear to practice? How intense is the training? How is the team at Club Náutico? What boats do you usually row in at Club Náutico? What water sessions do you usually do? What is the coaching like? How often do you do weights? What other training do you do? What is the weather like during May/June? How far are the training facilities from SAIIE? How much money will I spend on transportation to training?
Wear athletic clothes, spandex, running shoes, hat, sunglasses. Bring a full refillable water bottle, and don't forget your sunscreen!
The training is challenging, there are usually two sessions a day, one session on the water and one in the gym. The weights program is challenging and the water sessions include a mixture of tough sessions with hard pieces and more mileage focused sessions. The program will definitely push you and improve your fitness but there is also time for recovery.
The team is very friendly and welcoming. There are a lot of very good athletes in the team who are technically experienced and are very fit.The team is quite big so there is some depth in the squad which makes it easier to fit into.
The team rows in a variety of boats, there are opportunities to sweep in 8s, 4s or pairs, or scull in a single, doubles or a quad, this usually depends on how many athletes there are at the session. However the coach is very accommodating so if you prefer to sweep or scull there is usually the option to do one or the other. It is a good opportunity to gain experience in boats you don’t usually row in at home.
Usually we warm up by doing some mobility exercises on land and then we warm up from arms only on the water and progressively add bodies, legs etc. The sessions typically range in mileage and intensity, there is a training program for each week. Some sessions will be longer paddles with a more technical focus, whereas other sessions will be more intense with short or long pieces.
David is a highly experienced coach who has coached at an Olympic level. He coaches in Spanish but it is quite easy to understand what he is telling you and he can also demonstrate what you are doing, some of the other rowers also speak English so they can help.
Usually there are weights sessions 4 times a week in the program, however this can change depending on the time of the season, for example there could be less weights sessions if there is a regatta coming up. The weights program is challenging and really improves your strength. Usually the exercises are organised in a circuit and the team tries to do this at the same time which means there is a good atmosphere in the gym with Spanish music etc.
There is also a mixture of ergometer training and some recovery x-train sessions, for example there is sometimes an hour long x-train (usually the rowers do this on the bike). There are sometimes days where there will be a hard erg on the program which the rowers usually try to do together.
This time of year is very hot in Seville, in the day the weather averages 90's ºF and sometimes reaches 100's ºF. Bring cool clothing.
What is the weather like during the fall? And the spring?
Temperatures are generally into the mid 80's and than around November they will drop to mid 50's to mid 60's. Finally in December it can drop up to mid 40's but its generally around de mid 50's.
In January the low will be around mid 40's amd the high mid 60's. March and April the lows will be around the low 50's and the highs will be the low 70's but it can get to 80's
The club is quite close to SAIIE, it is about 20 mins on the bus and public transport is very cheap in Seville, or it is around 30 mins walking. There is also the option to join the gym in the SAIIE building for a reduced price, which could be a convenient option to fit in gym sessions during the school day.
In the case you are not in walking distance and you have to cath a bus to trainings you will not spend more than $25 for the entire month. Around the city they are also bikes and motor electric scooters that can be use for a small fee (great to move around the city for students). The city of Seville has a great bike lane.
accommodattion
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parents testimonials
"My son is a recruited collegiate rower who will be attending and rowing for Yale University in the fall. He took a gap year and attended the SAIIE program. The Program was excellent"
a_mirzaian@yahoo.com
Aristotle's son, Christian Mirzaian, studied at SAIIE Spring 2025
"I could not be more pleased with the experience my son had with SAIIE in Sevilla. Sean and Stuart and team were on every detail, and communicated well with us throughout the three months. Even when my son fell ill for a few days, Sean reached out to let me know that he was in touch with him and his host mother, and that he would be looked after in case he needed anything including a trip to the drug store! My son met and socialized with other students in the program that were studying at the University, while he focused on intensive Spanish language learning and rowing with a local club. The combination of high-level sports training and learning Spanish was an amazing fit for us, and very unique. The family homestay was also a great balance for him, with just enough attention from the host family to let him know he had support, without being at all intrusive. Many, many thanks to the Chipres and SAIIE families!"
STUDENT TESTIMONIALS
"My experience with SAIIE was fantastic. I came to Spain without knowing any Spanish and I am now leaving as a very proficient Spanish speaker. I loved my host family and all the food. The rowing team was so much fun and I became good friends with many of my teammates. The coach, David, was very knowledgeable and accommodating. Overall, I couldn't have asked for a better experience!"
Nichols School Graduate Student
Student at SAIIE fall 2024
Georgetown University student fall 2025.
APPLY NOW
To start your application to our program please complete the student form. For more information on the program please contact the Program Manager, Mr. Sean Chipres, at seanrc@saiie.com