It’s hard to
avoid the headlines these days about the turmoil and unrest in Southern Europe , namely in Greece Portugal Spain
With the
burst of Spain’s own housing bubble in 2008, international factors like the
imminent recessions in the U.S. and Eurozone only contributed to a rapid downward
spiral that has essentially lasted until today.
Spanish banks, once noted for their trustworthy, conservative practices,
loosed restrictions during the housing bubble to encourage more home-ownership;
therefore a financial crisis accompanied a recession in 2008 (very
similar to what we experienced here in the U.S.). The announcement of a European
bail-out plan this past summer calmed some fears that this important European
economy would fall further into crisis. Of course, austerity measures are part
of the plan, and this threatens to slow the recovery with sharp reductions in
government spending or “stimulus.” Some forecasts say that there won’t be any
improvement in Spain until at least 2014.
Spain has
been noted, and often criticized, for its very liberal immigration policies
compared to its European neighbors. Typically a large recipient of
mass-immigration, especially in the early 2000s from South American nations,
Spain today is experiencing net emigration, with residents seeking
opportunities and employment abroad. According
to estimates by the Spanish National Statistics Institute (INE), approximately 178,021
immigrants came to Spain in the first 6 months of 2012, and approximately
269,515 emigrants left the country, seeking opportunities abroad during that
same period. Foreign workers from
Ecuador, Venezuela, Argentina, and Colombia are returning home to find more
opportunities in their growing South American economies.
How will this
affect student exchange from Spain? One
might think that a weakened economy might lead to families tightening
discretionary spending and opting not to send their students abroad. However,
Quest International is seeing noticeable signs that high school student exchange is
following emigration patterns: that is, the number of students seeking exchange
experiences is seemingly increasing!
According to one of our trusted partner agencies, Spanish residents are
considering every and any opportunity to advance their education and employment
prospects. This means that learning and
perfecting English language-abilities and immersing themselves in a new culture
are overt goals of more and more Spanish residents. They see abroad experiences
as the key to a successful future both for themselves and for Spain on a whole.
QuestInternational is currently developing a short-term academic program, whereby
students will come during the academic year for programs that last 1 to 3
months. The idea is that younger
students can have an American experience without committing to studying for a
full year or a semester overseas. They
can enjoy a flavor of life in the US, practice their English skills, and engage
with an American family. Initial
responses from Spain are quite positive, and in fact, there are already
organized groups of students ready to come to the US as soon as we give them
the go ahead!
Quest
International values our partnerships in Spain as well as our vibrant Spanish
students that we receive yearly into our F1 program. While we certainly empathize with the dire
economic conditions that Spain faces today, we are encouraged and inspired to
learn that Spanish residents are looking to the future and investing in their
own education and cultural experiences. We agree that this will pave the way
for better individual career opportunities and a better Spain on the whole. We
are excited and honored to help develop affordable and enriching programs for
both children and adults seeking experiences in the U.S. Please contact us at info@questexchange.org if you would like to play a role in
developing an exchange program for Spanish students in your community!
Shayna Ferullo
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