Studying in Europe: Spain
Many young people dream of studying in Europe. And Spain’s colleges and universities are favorites among young people from the world over. Why is that? DW reporter Diana Piñeros investigates.
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00:00 Spain is one of the most attractive European countries for international students.
00:04 But why? Here's what you need to know if you want to study in this country.
00:08 Spain has more than 135,000 international students and it is in the top 10 of European
00:16 countries to study. I came to Madrid, the city with the most international students in Spain,
00:22 to find out more.
00:25 45% of the international students in Spain come from the European Union,
00:30 from countries like France and Italy.
00:32 30% come from Latin America, mostly from Ecuador and Colombia, which is my home country.
00:40 It actually makes sense for many Latinos to come here to study because of the language.
00:47 I went to uni in Germany and I have to say, studying in another language was a bit challenging.
00:53 And if you don't speak Spanish, no worries, there are also a number of courses in English here.
00:58 An important thing that you need to know is that the prices to study in Spain vary,
01:05 depending on the autonomous community and the programs.
01:09 An academic year in a public university can cost between 500 and 1400 euros.
01:20 Ok, but wait, hold on. Do all international students pay the same?
01:25 I'm meeting María del Rosario Cristóbal from Universidad Complutense to learn more about it.
01:33 Tuition fees are public. A credit can cost between 20 and 50 euros for national students.
01:44 For non-EU students, the fees are higher, about four times more.
01:49 Guys, we've discussed prices and numbers, but what about prestige?
01:57 Spain has dozens of top-ranked universities and it offers many degree programs in about
02:04 80 institutions. Business administration, engineering and law careers are very popular.
02:11 Not bad, but there is also another reason why internationals choose this country.
02:17 Let's see what students have to say.
02:23 I really like student life here. The campus is huge and people are always outside and
02:30 spend a lot of time there, drinking coffee together all day.
02:32 I love it. There's more quality of life, the weather, the people and in general the way of living.
02:40 Time to talk about life in Madrid. Let's see what students get up to.
02:46 Well, is it easy to find a place to live here? And also, how are the prices?
02:50 As for housing, I think it's one of the issues that people complain about the most,
02:55 especially Latinos.
02:57 Only Latin people complain? I asked a student from China for her opinion.
03:05 I think it's one of the most, most hard thing for the foreigners. It's like you have to find
03:13 information in web or even in streets and to find a flat. And I think the price is also a little
03:21 higher than I think in my country. The cheapest can be 400 euros per month for a room without
03:29 major amenities. Is it easy to find a job here as a student?
03:34 The good thing here is that students can work up to 30 hours a week. And there are many places that
03:42 hire students for work on weekends or evenings. It's really, really difficult to find a job here,
03:48 even if it's just a part-time job, because I can't speak very good Spanish.
03:54 Let's say you made it and you finish your degree. What are the options after that?
04:05 Alumni can change their status to a working visa if they get a work contract of minimum
04:11 six months. Since 2022, students can now search for a job as soon as they graduate.
04:18 Before that, it wasn't possible until they completed three years of residence in Spain.
04:23 That's all for now. Where shall we go to next?