🌍 SAIIE Alumni Spotlight: Emily is a Fall 2025 SAIIE alumna from the University of Wisconsin–La Crosse
Emily (Far left) is a Fall 2025 SAIIE alumna from the University of Wisconsin–La Crosse, where she studies Biology and Spanish. She recently returned from her semester abroad in Seville, Spain, and shared her experience living and studying with SAIIE.
Hear about her time there below:
My name is Emily, and I am studying Biology and Spanish here at UWL. I recently just got back from studying abroad in Seville, Spain during the Fall of 2025 semester. I went with the program SAIIE. I took a lot of fun classes including, Spanish cuisine, Spanish cinema and literature, world art, and a medical international relations class. Half of my classes were in Spanish and the other half were in English. During my time there, I stayed in a homestay with another UWL student. I got to know my host mom very well and would definitely say that staying in a homestay was a positive part of my trip. We had lots of free time to explore the city and see everything that it has to offer. For example, the Cathedral, the Alcazar, the bullfighting ring, Plaza de España, the many ceramic shops in Triana, and more. I can confidently say that you will never get board in Seville. Something that surprised me was how kind and welcoming the locals were. I met a few locals while abroad and they were so excited to have us try their traditional foods or to see some of their favorite spots around the city. But I would also say that if you are wanting to go to Spain because you want to get better at the language, you are going to have to make an effort because most of the people there speak English as well. That is another reason why being in a homestay is a highlight of this program because I was able to practice my Spanish with my host mom everyday. I would also say that Spain is a great place to study abroad because you are so close to other countries and there is even so many amazing cities within Spain itself that are affordable to travel to. Don’t be afraid to study abroad, just do it because trust me, you won’t regret it!