3 Country Spanish Immersion Study Abroad

A 3-Country Spanish Immersion Study Abroad Program

Phone: 1 347-329-5506

3 Country Spanish Immersion Study Abroad

For the globally-minded and culturally-compassionate...

2018...Up to 250 adventurous students will "travel their way to Spanish fluency" by following a career-boosting and life-changing "L-shaped journey" through South America

Will you be one of them?

Clockwise from left: using Spanish at a Peruvian artisans' market, learning to make empanada, group class with Profesor Antonio, Stephanie (Belgium) at Machu Picchu, the excursion from Cusco

Upon return from the escape to Latin America you will...

speak vastly better, even fluent, Spanish (even if you don't study at all)
leapfrog past competitors on job and grad school applications
get college credit for 3-5 courses, yet in a "nothing like college" environment
possess the self-confidence of a "travel savvy" citizen of the world
have developed Latino cultural empathy through firsthand life experience
gained exposure in your career path (medicine, psychology / social work, law, education, etc)

and of course...

possess a treasure chest full of travel stories you'll still be telling at cocktail parties 15 years from now

Students choose a pre-professional track: Healthcare, Counseling, Law, Education, Volunteer

The "3 act" study abroad program...

Begins in "the Paris of Latin America" - a city that "combines faded European grandeur with Latin passion." (Lonely Planet)
Pivots in "South America's most modern capital" - "a growing economy, renovated arts scene, and plenty of eccentricity to spare" (LP)
Ends in the "capital of the ancient Incan Empire" - "the undisputed archaeological capital of the Americas, as well as the continent’s oldest continuously inhabited city" (LP)

Weeks 1-3

Buenos Aires (Argentina)

"The Paris of Latin America"

Weeks 4-6

Santiago (Chile)

"#1 Travel Spot" by NY Times

Weeks 7-9

Cusco (Peru)

"Gateway to Machu Picchu"

Attention Future Doctors, Counselors, Lawyers, Teachers, and Other Service Professionals...

An unfortunate problem with most study abroad programs is that students receive little, if any, language training and practical experience.

That's why your Spanish improvement is our top priority and why we have pre-professional tracks (Health, Counseling, Law, Education, Volunteer) so you can get field exposure.

This way you return home prepared to help more people and better positioned for your career and/or graduate school, instead of just having "a college experience in an exotic location."

We are committed to our mission of confronting America's language gap crisis by getting future service providers fluent in Spanish. Choose any of the following tracks:

Health (future doctors, dentists, nurses and other healthcare workers) Medical shadowing
Counseling (social work, psychology, anthropology, etc.) Field exposure and site visits
Legal (future lawyers and legal aids) Field exposure and role-playing
Education (teachers, administrators) Classroom shadowing and role-playing
Volunteer (fields not listed above) Volunteer placement with local organization

2018 Program Dates & Prices

Program Fees Include:

Intensive Spanish course
Homestay, private room, with breakfast & dinner
Academic transcript
(9 and 15 week options) Travel from Argentina to Chile to Peru
Cultural activities
Professional Track Supplements: One of Medical, Counseling, Legal, Education, Volunteer
1 weekend excursion (3 week option), 3 weekend excursions (9 and 15 week options)

Not Included:

Flight to South America
Additional travel for wildcard weeks (15 week option)
Lunch (students usually buy lunch near the school)

3-Week Program $3,400 (Jan Term or Maymester)

3 weeks at any Ecela in Argentina, Chile, or Peru.

Jan Term: Dec 30 (2017) - Jan 19

Maymester: May 6 - May 26

9-Week Program $9,900 (Summer or Quarter)

3 weeks in each of Argentina, Chile, or Peru

Winter Quarter: Jan 21 - Mar 24

Summer 1: May 27 - July 28

Summer 2: June 17 - Aug 18

Summer 3: July 8 - Sep 8

Fall Quarter: Oct 1 - Dec 2

15-Week Program $14,900 (Semester or Gap Year)

3 weeks in each of Argentina, Chile, or Peru - plus 6 wildcard weeks of your choice.

Spring Semester: Jan 21 - May 5

Fall Semester: Sep 9 - Dec 23

WARNING: DO NOT APPLY Before Reading

The Ecela Spanish Immersion experience is not like most study abroad programs. Here are three things some students consider "drawbacks"...

Busy Schedule Between the field exposure, the Spanish classes, and cultural activities, you don't have as much free time as some other programs, which are "glorified vacations" by comparison
Class Attendance The Spanish classes are deliberately kept very small so you get lots of practice and feel comfortable participating. Skipping them is not an option.
Unpredictable Changes In general the Latin American culture does not value punctuality and organization as highly as Americans do. If you cannot handle occassional last minute schedule changes, you will be frustrated.

Begin Application

Questions? abroad@ecelaspanish.com or (347) 329-5506

Did You Know the USA Has More Spanish Speakers Than Spain?

In fact, only Mexico has more.

Today's college students are not prepared for America's demographic reality. That's why our 3-country study abroad program accelerates your language skills and develops your Latino cultural empathy.

After joining us you can gain a powerful tiebreaker on job and grad school applications. You will no longer fear rejection just because you can't check off "fluent in Spanish"

Source: Washington Post

There is a Chronic Shortage of US Professionals that Speak Spanish

- IMDiversity

If you don't learn Spanish now...

...will you hate yourself later?

Many immigrants lack the time (and resources) to get fluent in English

Some studies predict that within two generations the USA will have the world's largest Spanish-speaking population, surpassing Mexico
“But THEY came here, THEY should learn English, right?' Regardless of which side of that debate you take, the reality is that most immigrants don't have the time (or resources) to learn English.
While college courses can help you acquire technical Spanish skills, the large class sizes and lack of conversation practice, and over-emphasis on grammar, limit real world effectiveness
Other modern solutions, like smartphone apps and DVD sets, while convenient and inexpensive, suffer the drawbacks of isolation and lack of feedback
Most study abroad programs don't provide language development, expecting you to arrive already fluent (or set aside in an English side program)

Who Should (and Who Should Not) Participate?

This program is designed for any student who plans to use their Spanish to make a positive impact:

Future doctors and other healthcare professionals who want to communicate with their Spanish-speaking patients, safely and compassionately, in their own language.
Tomorrow's social workers and psychologists who want their clients to bond with them – not with their interpreters.
Prelaw students who want to build bridges, not walls, and join the frontlines of the civil rights struggles facing immigrants from south of the border.
Future teachers who want to connect with their Spanish-speaking students...and their concerned parents.
Aspiring business leaders who want to participate in the wide open opportunities of Latin American trade.
Engineers and scientists who want to collaborate with up-and-coming technology hotspots outside the USA.
Students of any field of study who want to develop cultural empathy with Latino cultures and approach Spanish fluency (and all the social and career benefits that come with it).

On the other hand, you might be a "less than ideal fit" if:

You don't have a genuine desire to serve Spanish-speakers and just want to do the program to "pad your resume and applications"
You have a hard time adapting to people from cultures different than your own
You get homesick very easily and will have a hard time being away from family and friends
You are already fluent in Spanish and don't need to improve your language skills
You want an educational experience that is "just like college (or high school)"

“For the first time in my life I woke up looking forward to class...and dreaded days off”

- Heather Krane, Michigan

A study abroad program carefully designed for your success:

Practice Spanish they same day you learn it.

Classes include mini-group conversation classes, so you develop real world skills that you can practice the very same day in the “Spanish everywhere” environment
By studying in three unique countries you develop wider Latino cultural awareness as well as a “flexible ear” for adapting to varied accents
The language schools are singularly focused on improving your Spanish, removing the frustrations of juggling multiple subjects
The program schedule is carefully designed to accommodate semester or quarter system, so you don't need to rearrange your whole life just to join us
The comfortably affordable tuition is comparable to typical in-state public tuition, yet with much smaller classes and many extra activities

Ecela 3-Part Fluency Acceleration System

How your Spanish skills will improve faster than you probably think is possible, yet your effort will be less than you expect

The 3-Part Fluency Acceleration System is simple but very effective.

You won't need to study much as classes are small enough so you get to "learn by doing" (in this case speaking) rather than studying on your own after class.

You will notice that most college and high school classes focus mainly on Fundamentals - often leading to disappointing results...

...students that can pass grammar tests but can't converse in the real world.

Fundamentals This is the portion of the class that resembles a traditional language class, with an emphasis on proper grammar and structure so you develop an "educated" way of communicating.
Conversation Many students consider this part of class the main driver for fast fluency. In small groups (4 students and a teacher) you practice speaking and listening to prepare your skills for real-world interactions.
Real-world practice "Take your training wheels off" and speak to locals in your"360 degrees of Spanish" environment. This not only gives you a gauge of how much you are advancing, but also gives you incentive to go to class, since you get to really use your Spanish the very same day you learn it.

Matthew thanks his teachers after the program.

"You don't just learn Spanish...

You also get a

'magical golden key'

to a better life”

Spanish is so much more than just a language skill. It helps you:

Serve More People By getting fluent you are able to serve an often otherwise left behind segment of the population, not limited to just the privileged English speakers
Powerful Tie-Breaker You gain an “unfair advantage” over other job and grad school applicants and don't lose out on opportunities you are otherwise qualified for
More Social Life Beyond school and work advantages, you have an open door to the world's 400 million plus Spanish speakers, for cross-cultural friendships and even romances
Seem "Smarter" Bilingual people are often perceived as more intelligent and sophisticated, raising your status over others that have limited themselves to one language
Better Neighbor As a Spanish-speaker with Latino cultural empathy, you will demonstrate a welcoming attitude toward immigrants, rather than the “learn English or leave” message they often hear

Meet some of our students...

Clockwise from left: Outside Ecela Buenos Aires, Spanish & Medicine students before shadowing, Brittnay (California) in Peru, Argentina host family

Clockwise from upper left: Dom (Scotland) studied at all 6 Ecelas, Marianne (Norway) in Cusco, Keisha (Barbado) in Buenos Aires, Heather (Michigan) in Viña del Mar, Nils (Sweden) in Mendoza

Clockwise from left: Matthew (Illionois) at a wildlife rescue center, volunteering at a local elementary after-school program, an Ecela teacher reviews fundamentals, group class in Chile

Clockwise from upper left: Streets of Cusco, group class in Santiago, horseback riding in Ica (Peru), extra private Spanish help, between classes in Mendoza

Clockwise from upper left: Spanish class in Mendoza, boarding train to Machu Picchu, extra one-to-one help, La Boca (Buenos Aires), surf lessons near Viña del Mar (Chile)

Clockwise from left: Machu Picchu near Cusco, nature reserve in Chile, Peruvian festival, Argentina Carnaval