{"id":3020,"date":"2023-09-14T11:24:00","date_gmt":"2023-09-14T15:24:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.temple.edu\/owltopia\/?p=3020"},"modified":"2023-11-06T11:25:54","modified_gmt":"2023-11-06T16:25:54","slug":"celebrating-20-years-of-temple-in-spain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.temple.edu\/owltopia\/2023\/09\/14\/celebrating-20-years-of-temple-in-spain\/","title":{"rendered":"Celebrating 20 years of Temple in Spain"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Temple University’s Spain program is celebrating its 20th anniversary and is stronger than ever, as it is launching new programs this semester for business, computer science, economics, engineering and English literature students.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

For 20 years, the Temple in Spain program has offered students the opportunity to study the Spanish language at the University of Oviedo during the spring and summer terms. While there, they stay with host families, soaking up the medieval architecture and the rich history and culture of the city. Now the program has expanded by offering Temple students the ability to attend courses in the fall semester with the option to choose either program-arranged apartments or program-arranged homestay. The fall semester program is for business, computer science, economics, engineering and English literature students with courses taught in English.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Temple courses are taught by faculty of the University of Oviedo and by Jaime Dur\u00e1n, director of the Temple in Spain program and associate professor of instruction in the Department of Spanish and Portuguese in Temple\u2019s College of Liberal Arts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis fall program opens up the possibility for studying abroad in Spain to STEM students who weren\u2019t able to in the past because they could only fulfill their major requirements within their home institution,\u201d Dur\u00e1n said. \u201cBut now our program offers these very same class requirements to students in Spain, and no Spanish background is required.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mathematics and Spanish major Nora Melican, Class of 2026, is one of the first students participating in the new program this fall. She was excited to hear that the program now offers her majors\u2019 required courses at the University of Oviedo for the fall semester.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen I first applied to Temple, I thought their Spain program was really cool because you could take courses in Spain while being immersed in its culture and language,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAnd now that the program is offered in the fall, it fits in better with my majors and it gives me a lot more flexibility with trying to pick courses applicable to my degree,\u201d Melican added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Founded in 1574, the University of Oviedo is one of the top universities in Spain. It offers courses in 38 departments with more than 21,000 students and an estimated 800 international students. About 35\u201360 Temple students attend the program each year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition to the new fall classes offered in English, the program also provides an immersive Spanish course for credit in an accelerated format that participants can take upon arrival.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe learning process when immersed into the real language is dramatically faster. In other words, something that may take a long time to learn in a classroom setting is put into practice here within the first five days,\u201d Dur\u00e1n said. \u201cThis helps ensure students won\u2019t face as many obstacles when communicating with locals.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During Orientation, students visited the Royal Palace of Madrid, towns like Segovia and other nearby cities before they met with their host families in northern Oviedo.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Students can register to take courses for the Temple in Spain program in the fall semester of 2024. English and Spanish language courses are also offered.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Oviedo is not a popular tourist area because the expanse of surrounding mountains make it difficult to reach. Dur\u00e1n said this makes the program even more beneficial to students. \u201cIt\u2019s a small town in the mountains near the sea that has a very picturesque dramatic scenery known as \u2018Spain\u2019s natural paradise,\u2019\u201d he said. \u201cStudents gain exposure to a local environment through immersion, so it just adds to the authenticity of the experience.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On a walk through the town, students can enjoy an array of architectural styles. Everything from Pre-Romanesque to Gothic to Baroque is present. Each cohort of students goes out to dinner as a group to experience different Spanish cuisines at least once a month. The Oviedo campus also offers easy access to nearby beaches and cities like Gijon and Aviles. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The University of Oviedo offers group hikes through hiking trails and mountains. Students can take cable cars up to the mountains and gaze from the sky at the most historic parts of Oviedo. Outdoor activities like canoeing and attending sports events are also available. At the end of the program, the students visit the Picos de Europa, which is the highest height closest to the sea in Europe.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s the perfect location for campers, hikers, surfers, mountain lovers and people interested in other outdoor activities to combine academics and personal growth,\u201d he added. \u201cThe options of activities are pretty much endless.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n

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The Aqueduct of Segovia is a Roman aqueduct in Segovia, Spain. Its above-ground portion consists of 167 arches and is one of the best-preserved Roman aqueduct bridges that remains a prominent symbol of Segovia.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

The future is bright for Temple in Spain, and Dur\u00e1n said the best possible scenario is that the program becomes Temple\u2019s third major study abroad destination along with Temple Rome and Temple Japan. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cClose to a thousand Temple students have come through our program. Many students from our program travel back to Oviedo and become Fulbright scholars<\/a>,\u201d he said. \u201cMy hope for the future is to keep providing experiences that will stay with our students forever. I would love to see the fall program expand as much as the spring program already has.\u201d   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Temple in Spain\u2019s 20th anniversary will be celebrated as a joint venture between the Education Abroad and Overseas Campuses Office and the College of Liberal Arts early in the spring semester of 2024. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Visit Temple\u2019s study abroad website to learn more about how to get involved in the Temple in Spain program<\/a>.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This article originally appeared on Temple Now<\/a>
Written by Brent Baum
Photos courtesy of the Temple in Spain program<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Temple University’s Spain program is celebrating its 20th anniversary and is stronger than ever, as it is launching new programs this semester for business, computer science, economics, engineering and English literature students.<\/p>\n

4 MIN READ<\/p>\n

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