My experience living in Barcelona

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For my Erasmus exchange, I studied at the Universitat de Barcelona for my first semester of second year (September-December 2017). My Erasmus experience was very different to what I initially expected. I assumed that, apart from the obvious cultural differences, I would have a completely normal university life similar to my experience at my home university. However, for a variety of reasons, this was not the case. Regardless of this, my experience was one that taught me many things about myself, and how to adapt to other cultures.

To begin with, I will outline the process of arriving in Barcelona and beginning to attend the university. Although being registered as a student was a long process, and at times it proved difficult as certain aspects of our registration were not well explained, it was eventually sorted out. Although I was told to arrive in Barcelona as early in September as possible, my classes did not start for another 2-3 weeks. This allowed me to settle in and get used to the area, which proved to be useful when beginning to study at the university.

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One prominent aspect of my Erasmus experience was the political disruption that took place in Spain at the time I was studying in Barcelona. The Catalan independence vote, which took place on October 1st, permeated my entire Erasmus experience. It affected essentially every aspect of my life. Roads were shut to accommodate Catalan protests, which cause difficulty in getting to certain places. There was a lot of political tension, that stayed constant throughout the semester. Most importantly, however, it affected my university experience. The university would be closed on certain days, to stand in solidarity with the Catalan peoples. Although I respect these values, we would not be told if class was on or not often until the night before, or even when we turned up to attend class and found out that the teacher was not coming. Although this was not too worrying at the beginning of the semester, as it progressed, I began to worry about whether this would affect my grades, and therefore impact my degree. I kept in regular contact with my home university for this reason. Eventually, when it transpired that this political disruption would be ongoing, both universities had to begin to make allowances for me and other students. The Universitat changed their module outlines to accommodate the lesser time they now had to teach each subject, and certain allowances were given to us students, who were not able to attend class due to the strikes. My home university also gave allowances to me, telling me not to worry about the political disruptions as they were out of my control and that these extenuating circumstances would be considered when my grades would be transferred over from the Universitat to Queen’s. This helped my worries as I no longer felt concerned about the possible implications these circumstances would have on my degree. Eventually, this all worked out, and I am very happy with the grades I got while on my Erasmus exchange.

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Aside from the political tensions, my Erasmus experience was incredible. The classes that I took at the University were very interesting, and many of them were classes that I would not have been able to take at my home university. For this reason, I am glad I decided to partake in Erasmus as the range of classes allowed me to further my education. Furthermore, the content of the classes was engaging. Similar to my home university, there was a mix of exam, class participation, and written assignments. As someone who finds this mix of grading styles less stressful than, for example, modules that are 100% exam based, this mix boded well for me and allowed me to perform to the best of my ability. Additionally, I was able to take classes that were suited to my favourite aspects of English literature- for example, I was able to take a class that focused on Shakespeare, which is something that I love. This allowed me to partake in the class effectively and feel engaged.

Aside from my university duties, which were the main aspect of my Erasmus experience, I also had time to make many international friends. Because the Universitat did not offer any events that encouraged socialising amongst international students, I had to find Facebook groups and attend events of my own accord. I ended up making friends from France, Poland, Canada, Mexico, Sweden, Turkey, other parts of Spain, and even friends that had come from Queen’s University like me, but were studying different subjects. Creating international links with other students was an invaluable experience, and played such a large part in my overall Erasmus experience. However, these friends all attended different universities in Barcelona, so I was not able to share the educational experience with them. In spite of this, I also made acquaintances in my classes at the Universitat, where we worked on group projects and presentations. Although having international friends that I spent social time with was important, it was also important to have friends in my educational environment who could share that experience with me.

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Overall, I had a fantastic experience attending the Universitat de Barcelona. Although it was partially disrupted, the allowances made meant that the grades I earned- all first class- were given to me fairly, and the extenuating political circumstances were not used to my disadvantage. Additionally to my studying, I was also able to travel, and visited Salou, Costa Brava, Milan, and Budapest. Travelling only added to my experience, and allowed me to exercise independence and see parts of the world I had not visited before. When I think about the new culture I have experienced, the friends I have made, the independence I have shown, and the joy I felt throughout my four months in Spain, I can conclude that it was an absolutely worthwhile experience, and something that I have recommended to others, and will continue to do.

Thinking about studying in Barcelona as well? For a run-down of the cost of Spanish public universities, explore this article.