Universidad Politècnica de Madrid: Sabrina Korthaus

Preparation (planning, organization and application at the host university)

I decided to spend a semester abroad in Spain in the summer of 2011. As I was studying to become a teacher in L3 with the subjects biology and sports science, I decided to study sports science as I didn't speak Spanish very well at the time. I asked Mr. Kibele whether it was possible to do a semester abroad in Spain, as there was no cooperation agreement with a Spanish university at the time. Mr. Kibele said that it was basically possible, I should find out at which universities you can study sports science and at the same time ask the international office whether it was possible to conclude a cooperation agreement. After a long search on the Internet, I found 2 universities in Madrid where you can study sports science and contacted the International Office with this information. After a few weeks, I received an e-mail informing me that there was a cooperation agreement with 2 universities in Madrid and that I could now apply. I chose the Universidad Politècnica de Madrid and completed my online application (which can be found on the homepage of the Institute of Sport and Sport Sciences). I also attended the information event of the Institute of Sport and Sport Sciences, which takes place every year in November. At the same time, I applied for the LLP-Erasmus program (online application can be found on the homepage, as well as a checklist of which documents are required and which deadlines must be met). Normally you are informed at the beginning of February whether you have been offered a place at the partner university, but as the summer semester in Madrid starts at the end of January, I was informed at the beginning of January. Now I had to choose courses at the partner university and discuss with the respective lecturers in Germany whether the requirements of the partner university were the same as those of the University of Kassel in order to have them recognized. I also contacted the international office at the partner university to discuss how I could enrol in the courses there. Finally, I booked my flight. Overall, I planned my semester abroad from July to the beginning of December and I applied online from December onwards. I also needed health insurance for my semester abroad, which is offered by many health insurance companies especially for semesters abroad.

Accommodation

Fortunately, it was relatively easy to find accommodation, as a German student in Madrid moved out of an apartment at the end of January and the Spanish flatmate (whose mother owned the apartment) was looking for a new tenant and informed the International Office in Madrid. If you are not so lucky, there are several ways to find apartments on the Internet. On the one hand, there is the website www.idealista.com, but you can also often find apartments in groups on Facebook. The groups are called: Germans in Madrid, Erasmus Madrid, ESN Complutense Madrid and also on the homepage of Germans in Madrid new flatmates are often sought. As life outside the university is mostly in the city center, I would advise you to look for an apartment near Sol. I initially lived a bit outside and had to travel 40 minutes by metro to the center. That's why I moved after 3 months. I lived in Lavapiès, which is a cheaper residential area because of the high proportion of foreigners. Lavapiès is only a 5-minute walk from the center and I loved the atmosphere there. I lived right on the Plaza de Lavapiès, where there's something going on every day and every night.
But other places around Sol are also popular with students, but I would always advise looking at the apartment beforehand, because the pictures and descriptions on the internet were nowhere near comparable to the real situation when I was looking for an apartment for the second time. In Madrid, it is common for rooms to be furnished and have a maximum size of 8 to ^10m2. Often there are also rooms without windows (I had one of these), which is unbearable in summer because you sleep at around 35°C.

Studying at the host university

Normally there are introductory days for international students at the Politecnica de Madrid where everything is explained and shown. However, as I still had to write exams at that time, I arrived in Madrid a week late. I got in touch with Mr. Carlos Monedero Pérez, who took me on a one-to-one tour of the university the next day and explained everything else to me (fortunately in English). I was given cards for the courses I had chosen, which I had to hand in to the lecturers with a photo.
At university in Madrid, you don't normally enrol in courses as you would in Germany, but there are 'year groups' that take certain courses each semester. However, as I wanted to take courses from different semesters, I got to know the students from the first to the last semester (very funny but also difficult to remember all the names at first). In addition, all courses take place twice a week. Some are divided into A-F courses due to the high number of students. For example, the A basketball course takes place on Monday and Thursday. If you have to attend 2 different courses due to overlaps, you can always discuss this with the respective lecturer on site. The list of courses can be found at the university or on the following page.
The courses are all in Spanish, some lecturers explain the most important things again in English, but most are only taught in Spanish.
As the university starts at the end of January, the lectures and courses end at the end of May, after which the examination phase begins.
In addition to sport, I also took a language course offered by the university, information about which can be found on this page.

Everyday life and free time

Madrid is a city where you can do and experience things 24 hours a day. If you want to see the sights and most beautiful places in the city first, you can join a free tour. You can find the meeting point and everything else here.
The cost of living in Spain is the same as in Germany, food and drink costs the same, cosmetics are much more expensive, but you can store cheaper and twice a year there are rebajas (discounts).
As Madrid is unfortunately not by the sea, I always went to the Parque del Retiro.
There is actually no official time difference when you fly to Spain, but you should adjust to the Spanish way of life. I never had breakfast in the six months I was there, lunch is only served from 2-4 and when I went out for dinner with Spaniards it was usually at 11. Afterwards, depending on the weather, people usually meet at the Templo de Debod for a botellon (pre-drinking). Normally, drinking alcohol in public is forbidden in Spain, but almost nobody pays attention to this, they even sell canned beer for 1 euro from Chinese people in plastic bags. As everything takes place a little later, entry to the disco is free until 1.30am, you won't meet anyone before then anyway. Most Spaniards go partying from 3am. During the week there is an Erasmus party every Wednesday at Cafè Orange or Club Gabana, and on Thursdays we always went to Disco Kapital or Joy. Before you go partying, you have to register for the event; there are countless groups on Facebook that post new events every day. If you're not into house, reggae and hip hop, there are a thousand other ways to party. Around Sol, you are always invited to small clubs or discos for a free shot at the weekend, so a bar tour is also worthwhile. On the other hand, you should stay away from the police, my experience was that the police don't ask what's going on first, as they do here, but hit you with a rubber truncheon to quiet you down. Even if you need help because your hand or money has been stolen, you have to allow at least 3 hours at the police station. Fortunately, I never had anything stolen, but 80% of my friends no longer had an iPhone after Madrid.
I also had to get used to the baguette in Madrid, Spaniards eat baguettes in the morning, at lunchtime and in the evening, and after six months I was endlessly looking forward to normal bread.

Conclusion (best and worst experience)

My best experience in Madrid was the hospitality and joie de vivre of the Spanish people. Thanks to the Erasmus parties, we were a group of people from all over the world and one evening we met up in a small bar a bit away from the center. A friend of mine ordered the best schnapps he had from the waiter (there was only one waiter and one bartender) and toasted the great evening with us and the waiter. Two days later, I went back to the same bar with her and the waiter recognized us immediately and waved the bottle of Bilbao at us. He sat down with us at the table and celebrated with us for the rest of the evening. The barman also joined us later. I often experienced moments like this in Madrid, you could sit down anywhere in the middle of the city and within 10 minutes I was talking to complete strangers, some of whom became my friends.

My worst experience was with one of my flatmates. In my second apartment, I lived with a Spanish man, a Moroccan woman and a Lebanese woman for the last 10 days. The Spaniard had a housewarming party with his friends, which was quite fun. BUT: the big problem was that 20 people in a 60 square meter apartment leave a lot of dirt behind after a party. The party was on Sunday and my departure day was Wednesday, between these days the Spaniard had locked himself in his room and let the rest of the flatmates live in his filth. We no longer had a clean plate, cup or pot. Our bathroom looked worse than the dirtiest toilet you could find in a flophouse and the fridge just screamed disgust. I had my compartments under his and the only thing in his compartment was a moldy melon, its moldy juice dripping on my things. So my worst experience was the state of hygiene in my apartment.