Student Reviews

" I have to say that my summer break in Isla was surely the most fun I've had in a long time. Initially I was a little anxious about how I'd fit in being an older student, and yes, most everyone was a lot younger than me in my class but what can I say? The whole set up of the school is about learning through mixing in and having fun and not about being 15 or 40 and it really wasn't a problem in the end, at all.
Right from the start I felt welcome with a wonderful and hugh group paella being made in one class room - quite spectacular! Because every evening had something organised it helped me get to know lot's of people in the school, like the tapas tour (messy!), films nights (sort the chairs out sooo uncomfortable), and general nights on the town eating ice cream or drinking beer plus much more besides after a few days I felt as though I lived in Salamanca rather than was just passing through. The morning break with strong coffee and bocadillos became a tradition each day for my class, was we swopped our tails and stories from the night before and clutched our heads out of tiredness (Spain is a late night kind of place).
All this was helped by having a really lovely host family to live with Rosa and Domingo were nothing but generous and kind for my two weeks. They both took a genuine interest in my learning, helping me with homework and talking incessantly at me so that silence simply wasn't an option. Neither was laying in if I had come in too late the night before. Rosa was there knocking on my door and getting me out of bed to make sure I was on time for school - no rest for the wicked! To top it off, on the day I was due to leave and come home to the UK, they got up at 5am and insisted on driving me to the train station. That's care and consideration for you. My teachers Rosa and Alberto, had infinite patience with everyone coming up with a plethora of ways to get people to open their mouths and not worry about being perfect. Everyone laughed together at the mistakes being made and helped each other out when someone was stuck, which made for some hilarious and memorable moments. They worked really hard to make each class interesting and relevant to the students, somehow managing to find the right balance between us all. What was particularly nice was that they remembered me from a brief earlier visit from a few months before which added to my sense of belonging. Hopefully it won't be too long before I return for my visit."

I'd always wanted to learn Spanish, and for those purposes I tried several self study programs earlier, unfortunately they didn't work for me.
Then I decided to get Spanish classes in a Spanish speaking country. After a long researching progress, I decided to go to Salamanca. The main reasons for me to decide on Salamanca were being a safe, inexpensive, being said good spoken Spanish city.
I focused on Spanish schools in Salamanca, I contacted to former students of each school and asked some details.  The answers from students were helped me to reduce the list to mainly two schools in Salamanca, ISLA was clearly offering better prices. At that point, I couldn't make my mind immediately. Because I had concerns whether the school was too small which would may end up with less socializing atmosphere or education quality. I started to get more information about ISLA, the more info I got  the more I loved and finally made my decision.
I started as complete beginner and I didn't know anything to say except some crucial words I learnt from self study books prior to my visit. My Spanish improved very quickly at Isla. My ex flat mate in London who lives in Madrid at the moment visited me in Salamanca at the end of my 3rd week, she and one of her friend were impressed by the Spanish I was speaking.
At the end of the 4 weeks, I was able to speak about future, past as well as I was able to express my feelings in certain way. That was much more than I expected to learn. I had classmates from different nationalities and ages with a very well balanced level.
I wish I would have 4 months time which will definitely help to cover most of the things in Spanish and being at intermediate level. I absolutely recommend ISLA. Smaller classes, very skilful teachers, good management, friendly environment and the books and program followed to teach Spanish are excellent. Daily homework and weekly levelling exams are very good to motive to study and keep the level as it is supposed to be.
 Salamanca is very good decision for learning Spanish, because it is a small, cheap and safe city, there are lots of attractions (a fantastic night life !) which suits everyone. Most Spanish people in Salamanca don't know English but they are extremely helpful and friendly which makes it perfect. It is so easy to make friends from all over the world in Salamanca. 

I first came to Isla just before I did my Alevels, wanting some last minute practice for the exams. It's amazing how much Asun and Carlos can teach you in one week without you even noticing.

But I never thought I'd fall in love with the place and return three times and counting!  Since then, my visits to Isla have been as much a holiday as a study trip.  In a city as spectacular as Salamanca, and thanks to Isla, I found it impossible to have a dull moment. That is unless I was recovering from one of the proverbial Tapas Tours... You're in seriously good hands with Amanda and Dieter. I went to places that I would never have found my myself. The wine, the razor clams, the porrones etc. will all take some beating. I mean, when was the last time you ate shark meat?  Or churros at 6 in the morning while watching the sunrise?

It's this community spirit that I really love about Isla, because it's quite a small school. No problem is too small for Amanda and Dieter and Sara, I felt just like part of one big family. I met all sorts of people and always felt I had something in common with them, even if it was only loving all things Spanish.

Most importantly, that is after all the purpose of the place, my Spanish has improved no end. Tu madre... now takes pride of place in my vocab. But seriously, Jose Maria, Carlos, Asun, Rebe - and these are just the teachers that had to put up with me - are so dedicated y tan amables. ¡¡Gracias por todo, Isla!!

Hello, my names Toby, I was a student and runner for ISLA during 2008/9. I arrived in Salamanca in September 08, almost by accident with no previous knowledge of the city and even less of a grasp of the language. I knew no one, understood nothing and had no idea where to start. To put it bluntly when I left, I left with everything, friends, language and culture. ISLA didn't just teach me. It gave me the opportunity to see so much more. The Tapas tours with Dieter for starters. Absolutely epic!! The salsa classes, haha, so much fun. The social life was incredible, the nightlife fantastic but even more so the atmosphere inside the school. The students shouldn't feel separate from the organization and in ISLA you certainly do
not, your part of the school therefore part of the running. For example, every second Friday Dieter, myself and assorted other students would put together some kind of morning surprise. Whether it be a fruit salad and drinks to a whole Pigs leg (Jamon), maybe even a cheeky mulled
wine during the Christmas period. This is all reflected in the friends I made there. From all over the world, all ages and walks of life. Germany, Brasil, Switzerland, Belgium.the list goes on. For all of this I have two people to thank, and that's Amanda and Dieter. If you have visited ISLA I am sure you could never forget them, especially not Amanda's dress sense. God I miss your green jumper with the bobbles Mands, and I still have the hat you bought me from Morocco.
Thanks for everything, Gracias para todo. Sois fenomenales.

Salamanca is paradise for anyone young and up for fun. I came to Isla from the UK for the first time in 2008 not really knowing what to expect. I was there for two weeks on an AS revision course and loved it so much that I decided to come back during my gap year for 4 months. During my first visit to Salamanca I stayed with a host family. Although to begin with it was rather daunting; my host mum only spoke Spanish, Maria´s hospitality and amazing cooking meant I settled in extremely fast. There were two other Isla students living with Maria at the time, one German and one Swiss. Despite the temptation to speak English we refrained out of politeness, Maria wouldn´t have understood a word of what we were saying and it would have seemed extremely rude, especially considering how generous she´d been with us. Having to speak Spanish "en casa" as well as in the classroom, meant that my Spanish improved enormously as well as fast. I returned to England with a fresh outlook on Spanish, what had previously been my worst subject was now my favourite and I decided to pursue it as a University career. To the utter delight and surprise of my Spanish teacher in England I ultimately got an A in my Spanish A level and now have a place to study Hispanic studies at UCL which I´ll begin in September 2010. The Isla experience for me is the perfect mix of social fun vs studying. Outside the classroom it´s non- stop partying with your class mates, which you would think would make lessons a drag. However at Isla I found the classes almost as entertaining as the nightlife(even with a hangover.) The teachers are such great fun and the relationship you share with them isn´t the traditional one of distance that I was used to England but more one of good friendship. This means that you learn loads but at the same time don´t really realize how much you´re taking in, it seems that with little effort your Spanish improves enormously (ideal for any lazy teenager like myself.) As for being in Spain, the weather, culture and Dieter´s tapas tours make it seem more like a holiday, than a language course. I would recommend Isla to anyone wanting to improve their Spanish whilst having a ball socially.

It all started back in July 2005 when I came with the St.Aidan's gang at the sweet age of 15. The memories of this trip involve a walk through the stunning sierra de francia, with a water fight, in a lagoon. A tapas tour, a fantastic host mum and an improvement in Spanish! The next adventure was Feb 2007, again a school trip but staying with the same host mum, this trip increased my confidence in spanish, thanks to Jose Maria and Maria Jose. However the welcome party in camelot had to be a highlight along with one of Amanda's tapas tours. Then another trip back in summer of 2007 this time on my own with a friend. This trip made me decide where I want to go with my life as I was sat in the plaza watching the world go by, added onto the fact that there were some nice english girls in our class making my time there more enjoyable. In Feb 2008 I once again returned for what I thought would be my last time in Salamanca. As there were only 4 year 13's on the trip we had a laugh, again an amazing host mum and intensive but fun lessons with jose maria! A trip to segovia this time was one of the highlights. In feb of this year (2009) I returned to Salamanca but as a member of staff. This was strange but again I had a great time, Staying in student Halls of residence, I saw the students grow in confidence during the week thanks once again to the fantastic teaching of the teachers of ISLA salamanca. Now I think the best memory is of summer 2009, Spending five weeks in Salamanca was incredible. The very first day I was petrified, I knew no one other than you guys. However by break I had made a friend. The welcome party introduced me to more friends, people who I hope will be friends for life. In December we are having a reunion in London (Yvonne, Martina, Dan, Nick and I). Memories of Summer 2009, Laughter, Sangria, Beer pong, Tapas tours with Dieter, The ferria, Irish Rover, karaoke and of course the lessons with Jimmy, Carlos, Asun, Alberto and Jose Maria. ISLA Salamanca is truly an amazing place, and holds lots of memories for me!

Hola, Jimmy, yes, Jimmy and nicknames no, but I wish that man from Extremadura would say that word 'joder'. Always with a minor irritation or annoyance it would be 'jo...' Que pasa, hombre, esta palabra es joder. Dice joder. It is the same as dammit and no need to be coy. But all the lecturers loved their work and obviously enjoyed teaching their favourite subject, Spanish, and fortunately could only speak Spanish. Dieter's tapas tours, no Dieter's Tapas Tours. Amazing, is it the drink, is it the food or is it the most amazing characters you meet in the most unlikely of places? You start the evening with these amazing dishes (I have done tapas in Sevilla, Madrid and Santiago de Compostella), Salamanca is the best. Trust Dieter. But you end (normalmente a las tres o quatro) eating 'comida basura' in the High Street. Es mejor and the ultimate hangover cure, es verdad. Next morning in class, clear eyed and bushy tailed, me. May I add I was not alone in the class, so there. la marcha in Salamanca is also the best. And by the way my host lady, beat me, I came home before she did. I wonder what time of the morning she came home? I know her sons met me on my way to my first class of the morning. They came in and I went out. My Spanish was way to poor to find out what they did in the evening. Luckily siesta was longer than most. But the night life; safe, friendly, a tad overindulge, but never too much. And this comes from a man who is much much younger than Dieter (tengo solamente 53 años). I will send my daughters to ISLA if they want to learn and immerse in Spanish and Spanish culture. I miss Salamanca, and I miss ISLA. Had a wonderful time, and it really was total immersion and I learnt more in two weeks than in a class of three years. Maybe el próxima año, por favor, Amanda

Hi, my name is Lucy, I am 18 years old and I am from London.I first came to Isla when I was 13. I came with a large group of students from my school and the trip is still one of my favourite school memories. It would be hard to forget the churros, the teachers that made me laugh, the salsa classes, the tapas tours, the look on my Spanish mama's face when I told her I didn't eat red meat… After I left school, it didn't take me very long to decide that a trip to Salamanca would be an excellent way to practice my Spanish before continuing my studies at university, and also a wonderful way to enjoy my year off; not to mention the tan I was hoping to show off to all of my friends when I got home! And I can say with all honesty that the trip has definitely lived up to all my expectations. Coming from London, I almost fainted when I discovered that I could buy a glass of Sangria in a bar for 1 euro, it took me less than 10 minutes to walk to the beautiful plaza mayor and I had an incredible view of the cathedral from the balcony of my flat. In my opinion, Salamanca has a perfect combination of the relaxed Spanish attitude and the buzzing student night-life of a university town. Amongst the beautiful sandstone buildings, churches and monuments, there are hundreds of bars and cafés. There is always something to see or do, especially in a school like Isla where they plan activities almost every day, from film nights to paella nights, free tours of the city to a free trip to the tennis courts. The only thing you can't find here is a reason to be bored.

I have been to ISLA three times as a student. First with group lessons and then with individual ones to prepare for a job. I'd had a friend who had studied there and told me about how good the teachers were and the atmosphere was... and it really was. Dieter arranged a Spanish guitar lesson for me on my first time and I made good friends with my teacher, the magnificent Nano. This made a big difference to me. We are still in contact. Obviously Salamanca is the most amazing location... no one can really believe that there is such s fun place in the middle of the desert. The school tapas tours are great fun, especially if Dieter goes. It's nice they still make an effort as they don't really need to as there is so much on offer in Salamanca. There are quite a lot of school kids at Easter time but they try and keep them in the afternoons so they aren't too noisy. Also, do tell them if you don't like smoking... a lot of host families smoke. I had to change my family once, but Sara was really quick to find me a new place and Amanda moved me in her car. I really recommend it. Wish there was an ISLA-like operation in France so if anyone knows please facebook me! This is a picture Amanda took of me and a guy called Sasha from the States (I'm the one with the orange t-shirt).

Hi, I am Laura I am 18 years young and I come from Holland. Last year I was in Spain for about 8 months, I went to Spain because I had a free year and I loved the Spanish culture.. I started in Salamanca where I lived for 5 months, I was learning Spanish at ISLA on the normal course. There was nobody from Holland over here...at the beginning I was a bit uncertain about this... . But after a few days I found a lot of Dutch people here in Salamanca..and at that point I realised that I was verry lucky that I was the only Dutch one at my school! This was my chance to meet new people from all over the world.
In these 5 months I lived with 2 great boys from Great Britain (Hamish and Justin in the photo with me). We went out together in Salamanca at night! and that was great. I was the only girl in a class with 7 other boys and we all used to meet up every night... After a few weeks we calmed down a bit and started to do our best with our Spanish and it wasn´t even that difficult.
A few months later I went to Great Britain to see my roommates from Salamanca and yes we are still in touch...
It was a great experience, I was verry young when I left my country but still I look back at it with great fun. And I can´t wait to hit Salamanca again!!

sMy name is Evelyn and I am from Germany. This year, 2010, I spent my first time in Spain here in Salamanca. In Germany I study German and Spanish and now it was time to improve not only my writing skills but as well my speaking. A good friend recommended ISLA. He already had been to ISLA two times. So I decided to come here to do an internship and a language course for two month. Now there are just two more weeks left for me and I already look back on an amazing, interesting, funny but as well exhausting time. To go to classes in the morning and go to work in the afternoon is often tiring. But predominant was always the fun! My time here started with an absolutely awesome Tapas-Tour with Dieter, a trip to the Sierra de Francia with Amanda and Dieter and interesting and funny language-courses with Asun. Work started immediately with preparing the "Fiesta de Bienvenida" which normally takes place every or every second Monday. Work is (most of the time) interesting because, especially in the beginning, everything is new and the work varies a lot. Sometimes I just work with the computer (database, emailing etc.). On other days I have some things to do around Salamanca and I am running around the whole town (as the name said: Runner ). What I really enjoy is meeting new people from all over the world and at Isla it is possible. Here are people from every continent. For me it is so interesting to talk with other young people about their cultures and their countries, their languages and their way of life. I also got to know the life of a Spanish family in which I used to live and where I enjoyed Spanish food. I learned a lot about the culture and the people in Spain. Most of them are really friendly, generous and open. As well I had the possibility of learning Salsa which was a lot of fun! All in all I had a great time here in the beautiful town Salamanca, which has charm and a wonderful atmosphere with its Plaza Mayor and the old centre! I made a lot of interesting and important (work-) experiences, I found new friends from all over the world AND I improved my Spanish! As well the atmosphere at the school is very good! All the teachers are very nice, funny but as well serious in what they are teaching! I recommend ISLA to everyone!

When I first came to ISLA last year (September 2009) I wanted to gain ample amount Spanish in order to travel to South America for my gap year. With the hope of starting the language I had not studied since GCSE´s. I knew it would be best to start again. Embarking on the year of a lifetime I imagined Salamanca as Sun, Sea and Sangria….It was (no sea included). Within my first three weeks as an ISLA student it was becoming increasingly harder to leave, the relaxed friendly working environment in a great city with great people. Seven and a half months later I was still there, not only had my Spanish improved monumentally I had made lifelong friends not only with students but the whole ISLA community. While the end was near I had one more thing to conquer at my stay at ISLA the dreaded Dele exam!!! Not being a natural linguist I had nothing to lose. Salamanca and ISLA had truly made my gap year South America is not going anywhere !. Thank you ISLA And I passed the Dele.

Life can be so random. Thanks to the wonderful efficiency of some country’s bureaucracy I had to wait 4 weeks before I would get my visa before I could start my internship abroad. Out of the blue and without any specific motive I decided to pack my bag and leave to Spain to study some Spanish. I could have easily gone to another city or picked another school, but I happened to end up at Isla Salamanca, something I have never really regretted.
I am trying to think about what exactly it is that made me come back for the third year in row now. First of all there is of course Salamanca itself: the city centre is absolutely gorgeous, its nightlife is no less than legendary and in summer the swimming pools are absolutely irresistible. More importantly however, I think it is Isla’s atmosphere that I keep coming back to. All my life I háted studying languages more than anything, whereas at Isla I discovered that learning a foreign language doesn’t need to be a complete bore.
I believe the difference between studying Spanish at a regular school and studying Spanish at Isla lies for a great deal in Isla’s teachers. I don’t really know how they do it, but I have never really had the feeling that I was studying Spanish. I remember for example how José María, my first teacher at Isla, made maximum use of his fantasy to help us telling things we didn’t have the vocabulary for yet, and how every time we had no other option than to assent, slightly giggling, with something like “si, mas o menos”. Yés, I might have looked a little sleepy in a class, but nó I hadn’t tried 25 chupitos at once the night before, neither did I need to be carried back home by two extremely handsome Spaniards who courteously left me their number on my bedside table, but yés, it was a wonderful evening, thank you very much”. Knowing we were rather defenceless José María knew quite well how he could stretch the meaning of the phrase “mas o menos” (more or less) to the maximum extent possible, and I suppose you never get too old to shyly giggle like a teenager.
Later, when my Spanish had significantly improved, I really enjoyed the discussions we had in class, as well as the fact that I was now able to poke fun at the teachers myself. The thing I like so much about studying at Isla is that everybody is welcomed to study at their own pace. Whereas some like to pursue an in-depth study about Salamanca's nightlife while grabbing some Spanish along the way, others consider studying Spanish more like something that enables them to learn more about the Spanish culture, and some way or another all this mixes pretty well together. I don’t know. What started as a bit of a haphazard project has turned out to be a nice and interesting chapter in my life. I had a lot of fun learning Spanish – which is something that has never occurred to me with any language I have studied before – and I attribute a great deal of this to Isla.
I like to compare it with a little child who is discovering the world. In the beginning you need a lot of confidence from the teacher to take your first steps, but the more you are gaining confidence, the better life gets, and the more you want more and more and more. Already after a couple of weeks I found myself capable to hang out with some of my Spanish CouchSurfing friends, which was an experience that gave me such a boost that ‘studying’ Spanish never really felt like studying. So here I am – there you are. If you are about to make a random choice just like I did 3 years ago, then I hope that my experience may inspire you. I remember that back then when I was comparing language schools that I didn't really pay attention to these student testimonials because I didn't think they be real or sincere. And yet, they are. They are so real that I don't mind putting my e-mail address below so that you can contact me in person. Please do so. Un besito, Lie. lh83post@gmail.com

If you ever wake up one morning and think, I really need to learn Spanish, pronto, don´t think twice, just come to Salamanca. While I was living in France during my gap year, a whim possessed me to start learning Spanish, which was always one of the languages I had planned to learn one day, though I had assumed it would be after university, where I´m going to read French and Arabic. So I was recommended an Isla course, booked it, had a horrendous 12 hour bus journey to Spain, and since then it´s been crazy. I headed straight here to a new lifestyle of 5 hours Spanish lessons, siesta, fiesta. Time is flying by far too fast in a blur of an ever-changing student body at school and after-party exhaustion. Although as someone who is staying more permanently it´s sad to see people come and friends go, I love how international an experience ISLA offers, as it attracts everyone from everywhere. Your facebook friends count will explode, if that gets you going. But I know these are not only cyber friends but people I will fly to another country to see when I next can! Because you see a lot of people from school when you´re out in the evening (Salamanca´s on the small side- watch out, it´s very likely you´ll see people you´d rather not see from the night before around during the day!), so when you´ve shared experiences in some of the unforgettably cheesy clubs Salamanca throws at you ( you won´t find another ´Camelot´ anywhere in the world) you can party anywhere together!! Or rather, Salamanca will send you looking for a real party…

My time here is far from over, but I can already tell you how worthwhile it is, in terms of the global networking you´ll be doing, the Spanish you´ll be learning, and the experiences you´ll have- eating vast amounts of tapas on tapas tours, seeing more of an amazingly rich country on trips to nearby cities, or exploring Salamanca by night on night walks, all organised through the school. The teachers are all good-humoured and will broach ANY subject to get you talking Spanish, which I really appreciate, especially when you´re getting excellent speaking practice and matchmaking advice in one go… So, like the others, my review also finishes with one recommendation: get yourself to ISLA. All that´s left for you to do is get on a plane. Or boat. Or just walk.

Review Anna Kirik (Moscow) ISLA - это настоящий островок приключений, замечательных эмоций и первоклассного испанского языка в самом известном студенческом городе Испании. Наверно первое предложение звучит очень стандартно, но на мой взгляд это действительно так. Три раза я возвращалась в Саламанку и два раза в школу Исла и теперь понимаю, что это место всегда будет мне вспоминаться как каникулы полные приключений, новых открытий и теплых друзей. Персонал и учителя этой школы всегда рады помочь какие бы проблемы у тебя не были: от ушибленного пальца, до всемозможной информации о городе или целой Испании. Руководство школы всегда заботится о том, чтобы обучение не было скучным: на стенде полно activities, экскурсий, выставок, уроков по сальсе, еженедельных кинопросмотров, выбирайте по своему вкусу! Ну и о главном - испанском. Скажу честно, что за один месяц я выучила столько, сколько не выучила бы за год в России, секрет этого в том, что 24 часа в сутки слышится испанский и от него никуда не денешься, но в английском тоже удастся попрактиковаться. Мечтаю снова приехать в этот город и окунуться в его атмосферу и вам советую попробовать ;)

English Version.

ISLA is a real island of adventures, strong emotions and first class Spanish in Spain's most famous university city. Maybe that first phrase sounds a bit of a cliché but for me it really was like this. I've been to Salamanca three times, twice with ISLA and I always remember these holidays as being full of new experiences, discoveries and good friends. The staff and the teachers at the school are always so nice and help you with everything from a sprained thumb to information about Salamanca and the rest of Spain. ISLA's team organizes lots of activities: day trips, visits to exhibitions, salsa, movies - just take your pick. And the most important thing is your Spanish. I swear that I learned more in one month than after a whole year in Russia. The secret is that you have 24 hour Spanish which you can't really get away from. And I practised my English too! I dream about going back again and immersing myself in the atmosphere. Try it yourself!