Suffolk University, Madrid Campus

The euro exchange rate!!! Cell phones are outrageous, even if you are calling someone on the same block! Housing in the city was expensive about $1000/month/student. Travel- really a lot more, I don't travel to other coutries on the weekends when I am in the US :) Nightlife- there are way more hours in the night that they party in Madrid which = more hours to spend $$ and the drinks are pretty expensive. The nightlife scene can really drain your bank account. I went out a lot when I first got there, would get home at 9/10am from the night before with empty pockets, sleep until 6pm that night, and do it all over. This was a great time, but after awhile i realized how much $$ it was costing. So I changed it up, instead of going out at night I went to bed early and hopped on a random city bus early (get unlimited metro pass) in the morning and went to explore the city alone. I ran into the coolest places and bought the greatest stuff. The money I spent on drinks now went to buy clothes and other souveniers.

Make sure that you plan you schedule according to how active you plan on being once in Spain i.e. how much you are going to travel and go out. It may sound silly and I was someone who said "I can do it all" but traveling to different coutntries for 3 day weekends and partying into the morning hours in Madrid made things more stressful than necessary. just be realistic, you are not going to be home and there are SO many things to do

The attendance policy was really strict and while I was there they would not let you get up to use the restroom if you were in class, not reasonable.

The school is VERY small and there are a lot of americans there, that had its good and bad sides. It gets VERY cold in the winter time (I am from FL:) Bring an IPOD. Watch your weight, Spanish food and all the drinking really adds up!! Exercise!! Embrace everything every minute!!

Suffolk is a small university full of caring people to help you through your stay. What housing you choose is could really shape your experience.

I have participated in 2 other abroad experiences where I lived with families from the host country. I found that living in an apartment gave me the freedom to eat what I want, come and go as I please, and really have to provide for myself, which got me out in the community more.