And So it Begins...

Study abroad in Valldolid, Spain in 2008

Application...check

Copy of passport...check

Letter of recommendation...check

Letter of intent...check

Police record...check

Medical clearance...check

Copy of diploma...check

After 2 months of gathering the above paperwork, tomorrow I will send them all off to the Spanish Consulate in New York, to finish the application process to become a North American Language and Cultural Assistant (Auxilar de conversación) for the 2010-2011 school year in Spain.

Every year, the Spanish government gives out over 1,000 grants for native English speaker to live in Spain and help in the public schools teaching English. Working up to 12 hours a week, living in Spain for 9 months, and getting the opportunity to see more of Europe seems like a great deal...plus, a paycheck this time around. With no immediate job offers after graduation, a degree in Spanish, and a economy that has yet to take a turn for the better, I decided this was a pretty good option for me.

The online application process was a little stressful, but I am officially #526 in line to receive a placement...odds are good, considering last year they took around 1,800 people, from what I can gather from Facebook groups and other various message boards.

It's a pretty big leap of faith, considering I won't know where I will be until mid-April at the earliest. 

My top 3 choices were:

1. Cantabria-up on the Cantabrian Sea, beautiful countryside, right on the coast

2. País Vasco-Some of the best food in Spain, not to mention awesome surfing!

3. Castilla y León-The region I studied in 2008...the purest Spanish in the world, plus close enough to Madrid for all that European traveling I plan on doing

So, all in all, I'm extremely excited about this opportunity and will try to keep this up to date as things progress...hopefully in September I'll be writing this from Spain!

originally published 2.10.2010