Nazareth Students

• Students of any major may apply to this program. Intermediate level Spanish recommended.
• Spanish majors at Nazareth are expected to have a GPA of 3.0 (non-majors a minimum of 2.5). Exceptions may be made in some cases, based on a student's overall capabilities.

Subject specific classes are held at the Universidad Católica de Valencia (UCV). Participants take classes with students from all over the world. Most classes are offered in Spanish, while some are offered in English.

Students typically take 6 credits of Spanish at International House, and 6-9 credits in other academic fields at UCV. Nazareth students can take courses to fulfill their major/minor requirements as well as core curriculum requirements. Students will prearrange their course schedules together with the director of the Valencia Program and need approval from their academic advisor and the Chair of their department for courses in their major.

All courses taken in Spanish will also receive Spanish credit regardless of the subject.

Visit the UCV "Our Courses" page to view course offerings in English and Spanish.

Students may choose to attend either the entire academic year or the one-semester program. The fall academic calendar roughly follows the Nazareth academic semester calendar while the spring academic calendar runs through June.

The program fee includes:

• Tuition
• Room and 2/3 board. Students live with host families who provide a private room, breakfast and dinner, and weekly laundry services.
• Cultural programming provided by International House.

Out-of-pocket costs include:

• Round trip airfare (to and from Valencia)
• Health and travel insurance, as required by the Spanish consulate
• City transportation
• Lunches
• Personal travel
• Visa application fees

Financial Aid:

Students pay room and board to Nazareth for the Valencia Program and continue to use their financial aid package and payment plan. Matriculated students are eligible for all financial resources for which they would qualify if they were studying on the Nazareth University campus (including federally subsidized loans). Students are also encouraged to apply for outside scholarships and grants to supplement their support resources.

Students live with host families in private homes in Valencia. The rooms, as well as the families, are carefully selected and coordinated by the International House. The families regularly receive foreign students as boarders in their homes. Most families live in apartments or flats, not individual houses. Breakfast and dinner are provided. Host families are located in different areas of the city with a maximum distance of 30 minutes by public transport (bus or metro) from International House.

Families in Valencia hosting international students agree:

• To support the student in their daily social life and activities
• To share meals with the student
• To encourage the student to learn Spanish
• To ensure a mutual respect of cultural differences

Founded during the Roman Empire in 138 A.D., Valencia is one of Spain's oldest and largest cities. Today, the city of 790,000 people is a vibrant European metropolis and the capital city of the state called Comunidad Valenciana. Valencia lies on the eastern cost of the Iberian Peninsula, directly on the Mediterranean Sea, ensuring warm weather year-round and providing miles of beaches just 15 minutes from downtown. Valencia has both a major train station and an airport, allowing access to the rest of Spain and Europe. Madrid, Barcelona, and Malaga, among other destinations, are each about two hours away by train. Additionally, there are daily ferries to Mallorca, the large island off the coast that is one of Europe's hottest tourist spots.

Valencia has a colorful, interesting history. The most famous event was the recapture of the city by El Cid, a Spanish general in the 11th century. The Poema de Mio Cid, a medieval epic poem, tells of his adventures. Valencia's literary connection doesn't end there. Blasco Ibanez, one of Spain's most famous playwrights, was born and spent his entire life in Valencia, and his house is a major tourist attraction. The city is also home to numerous museums, including the Museo de las Ciencias in an ultra-modern building with interactive exhibits. International House is located in the heart of the historic district of El Carmen. Most students live within a 30-minute bus ride of the school. The Valencian bus system is very efficient, and most major lines come every five minutes. Calle Colon, one of Valencia's main streets, is easily accessible from International House. Many shops are located here, in the tradition of many large European cities. Not far away, CF Valencia, a top European soccer club, has its stadium.

The most important festival in Valencia is Las Fallas, celebrated for a week every March when the streets fill with gigantic paper mache statues that are satires on the problems facing modern society. The last night of the festival, March 19, the statues are lit on fire in symbolic destruction of life's difficulties during the year.

For questions related to studying and living in Valencia, contact the Program Director.

The Universidad Católica de Valencia is a private, Catholic university that was founded by the Church in Valencia in December 2003. The primary goal of the university is to provide students with an academically rigorous and personally enriching education in the humanities and sciences as well as within their major. Seen as a center of creativity and knowledge, the university emphasizes the importance of preparing students for their future careers and lives by providing a state of the art learning environment.

In order to ensure that each student who applies has plenty of time to get a visa to study in Spain, it is recommended that students submit the application materials roughly three weeks from the start of the semester. The earlier you express interest and apply to the program the better!