The academics here
in Spain are both startlingly different and alarmingly similar. I
think that the biggest difference that exists lies in how students
are expected to select a major. Espana has their students take an
aptitude test and based on that score, they are able to select from a
list of majors they are eligible for. This is different compared to
schools in America but similar to the way one enlists in the armed
forces. The test for that is named the ASVAB. As for the standard
workload, the professor will assign a large amount of homework and
have them due all at separate times throughout the semester or all
due at the end of the course. This of course differs from American
schools where the teacher/professor will assign a homework assignment
and expect it the next class period.
On average for Spain, it takes
four to five years to graduate just like American school systems.
Also similar to America on some cases, the student will only take
classes directly correlated to their major. This can be compared to
trade schools and some colleges. Students also like to participate in
sports in their downtime, also very similar to the US but in this
case, the popular sport is futbol while the popular sport in America
is football. Similar and different. I always thought it was funny
that the most popular sports from the two countries share the same
phonetic name but are two different sports, neither one inspired by
the other.
The students here also elect to either live at home with
their parents while going to school(US Commuter Students) or a group
of students will get a house together will performing their
studies(US Dormitories). The school schedule is slightly different
here though, the classes are just like ours but they have a scheduled
mandatory siesta period. This is where the entire school system,
along with shops will shut down so that people may have lunch with
their families. While this can be achieved in America by scheduling
your classes around this time, it is not a standard like it is here
in Spain. This is by far my favorite custom here but I don't think I
would exchange it for what it's like in America; just because I enjoy
being productive during the sunlight and I want my classes to be done
as early in the day as possible.
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