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Experience culture and style in the historic city of Madrid and the Iberian Peninsula. Explore the narrow streets and busy restaurants while studying in Spanish. This study abroad program will expose you to much more than European city life through the semester travels to the many other regions of Spain. From Galicia to Granada, Seville to Barcelona it is a semester filled with fun and learning.

With its rich blend of influences from Europe , the Mediterranean, and North Africa, Spain represents a variety of cultures unique to Europe. Together these cultures have created a modern society which is rapidly emerging as a force in the European Union while strengthening its ties with the Americas.

At the geographic center of this varied country lies the capital, Madrid. With its elegant architecture dating back to the 16th century, world famous art museums and handsome parks, Madrid is a welcoming environment. Stroll through the lovely Retiro Park on a Sunday morning and enjoy the jugglers and mimes. Treat yourself to "tapas" while taking in the exquisite design of the old Plaza Mayor. Or view the paintings of Goya, Velasquez, and El Greco at the Prado Museum .

The Iberian Experience program offers you a broad range of opportunities to learn about this cultural metropolis and the rest of the country as you will be living, studying and interning in Madrid and traveling to other regions. Through the program's academic curriculum, field trips, internships and other activities, you will be able to immerse yourself in Spain's politics, history, culture and society, an experience that fosters international consciousness and mutual social recognition and assimilation.

Meet the Spain Program Director

After years of study and teaching in the United States, Dr. MariCarmen Caballero returned to her native Spain to lead AU's abroad programs in Madrid in 1996. Dr. Caballero earned her doctorate at the City University of New York with her research in the "Theory and Praxis of the Classical discourse applied to the Renaissance narrative." Dr. Caballero taught for several years at SUNY before joining AU. Prior to joining academia, Dr. Caballero worked in journalism, as a radio announcer, news reporter and anchor for the Spanish media in New York, a city that she considers magical.

Dr. Caballero says that to work in international education all of these years has been a fabulous experience since she has been able to see, over and over, how the memories of what the students lived and shared together does not only have a profound and lasting effect on them and are cherished for years to come.