Hola! My name is Veronica, the Program Manager for all our internships in Seville, Spain. I recently visited this amazing destination, wanting to experience for myself the life of an intern there. I had the opportunity to visit our internship placements, stay with a lovely host family for my time there, connect with our local team, and even partake in the guided tours that are included with all our internships in Seville. If you are considering interning there, please continue reading; I’m thrilled to be able to share my experience with you!
Arriving and settling in
I arrived in Seville on a Sunday. Belen, from the local team in Seville, picked me up and we drove to my internship homestay accommodation, where my host mom was waiting for me with a delicious lunch of Gazpacho already made. I felt welcome from my very first moment there, which is no surprise, as Spaniards are known for their hospitality. After meeting her and being introduced to my private room and another intern who was also staying in the same homestay, I made my way to the center of the city to explore.
Getting around Seville
The Seville metro is one of the most cost-effective and fastest ways to get around: there is only one line, but most interns are accommodated a short walk away from one of the stations. Mine was only a 10-minute walk, and after only four minutes on the metro, I was smackdab in the center, where the city’s magic truly shines.
Luckily for me, my brother happened to also be in Spain at the same time, so we took the opportunity to meet in Seville after a year of not seeing each other. We met at a nice little cafe, where we were able to sit for a few hours and catch up, have some delicious tapas, and enjoy the people watching.
My favorite thing about the city was how walkable it is: I spent all my afternoons, after finishing the visits to the placements, walking around its beautiful streets, admiring the architecture, and just enjoying one of the many cafes on the side of the road, which are open well into the night.
Schedule and “A Day in the Life” of an intern in Seville
If New York City never sleeps, Seville has to be a close second! Spaniards don’t like early starts, so my visits to the internship placements in Seville all started around 9 or 10am, and finished around 3 or 4pm. This is approximately the same schedule you can expect to have when you intern here. There is so much to see and do! Every street in the center is full of little restaurants and cafes, with music coming from every corner, and they stay open until well past 11pm.
So what is a day in the life like, for internships in Seville?
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Well, your typical day will start around 8am - probably with a delicious typical breakfast of toasted bread, jamon serrano (prosciutto), tomato and olive oil.
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You will then get ready and make your way to your internship placement, where you will be expected around 10am. To get there, you can choose to walk, take the metro, an uber or the tram, all of which are affordable and quick options to get around Seville, and easily accessible.
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You can expect to be at your internship placement for around 4 to 6 hours. Gain practical experience in your field and the chance to learn from experienced staff.
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Lunch is the main meal of the day in Spain. Many interns choose to bring their own lunch from home, but it is also very common in Spain to take a long lunch break from 2 until 4pm. Many Spaniards also enjoy having a little “siesta” or nap at this time. You can determine what works best for you, when you chat with your internship supervisor in-country. It will also depend on the organization’s needs. There is a chance that by this time, you could be finished with your internship duties for the day.
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When you finish for the day, around 2pm or 3pm, you have free time to explore everything Seville has to offer, interact with the other interns and students you’ll meet there, and take advantage of Spanish language lessons included with your internship!
Included tours
One of my favorite things about our internship programs in Seville, Spain, is that they all include guided tours to the main attractions of the city.
Royal Alcazar of Seville
My first tour was on Monday, my first full day there. In the evening, my brother and I, together with a group of about 10 other students and interns who were there at the same time, met at the Royal Alcazar of Seville. This is a historic royal palace, situated right in the heart of the city, and right in front of a metro station. Gloria, from our local team, conducted the tour. She was full of interesting information and fun facts about this stunning palace, and I really enjoyed exploring the lush gardens and the many rooms with incredibly interesting history.
Plaza de España
The next tour was a few days later, and the same group of students and I headed to the Plaza de España. This was by far my favorite place in all of Seville: it is a stunning, massive square, with a large fountain in the middle, and it is simply impossible not to feel incredibly relaxed there.
Around the plaza, you will find tiled alcoves depicting all of Spain’s 50 provinces; street musicians; people on little boats all along the moat; and horse carriages. It truly feels like stepping back in time into the 1920s. The plaza is adjacent to the Maria Luisa park, a large public park stretching along the Guadalquivir river, so ensure you spend some time there too.
Seville Cathedral and the Giralda
The last two tours were to the Seville Cathedral and the Giralda, which are adjoined. The Giralda used to be the minaret for a mosque, but was later converted into the bell tower of the Cathedral, and it remains so today. We all walked up to the top of the tower, which offered incredible views of the entire city.
After this, we went down to the Cathedral, which is an undeniably magnificent building, both inside and out. It is the largest Gothic cathedral in the world, and the third largest overall. It was a really humbling experience to be in a place filled with so much history and culture.
Intern abroad placements in Seville, Spain
As mentioned before, a key aspect of my trip was to ensure the placements that host our interns are up to our high standards, and provide professional value to our interns. The placements I had the opportunity to visit in Seville included:
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A museum in the center of the city: Interns interested in art, history, design, and culture will certainly gain valuable experience by learning about the artifacts and pieces within the museum, guiding visitors, and supporting curation, conservation and preservation tasks. Check out our Art & Culture Internships: Intern abroad in Seville, Spain.
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An eco-agriculture farm: Conveniently situated right in front of a metro station and less than a 20-minute ride from the center of Seville, it was incredibly easy to get here. I was very impressed with the set-up of this farm and its focus on sustainability. I left convinced of the value it provides for our Ecoagriculture interns. Check out our Ecological Agriculture Internships: Intern abroad in Seville, Spain.
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A fashion designer house: It was so fun and interesting to visit a designer, specializing in Flamenco attire. It was a true homage to this culture, so ingrained in Seville. This placement is a great option for Business, Marketing, and Design interns, as there are many ways to be involved, get hands-on experience, and learn here. Check out our Digital Media & Marketing Internships: Intern abroad in Seville, Spain.
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A hospital: This hospital was very conveniently located only a couple of blocks from the local team’s offices. Medical and Nursing interns have the chance here to experience different departments or focus on a specific one, depending on availability. It was clear to me how much the doctors and nurses are passionate about teaching and mentoring young interns. Check out our Medical Internships: Intern abroad in Seville, Spain.
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A language school that has been operating for over 40 years! Language & Early Childhood interns bring their skills, and in return get invaluable experience for their career development. Check out our Early Childhood Education Internships: Intern abroad in Seville, Spain.
Meals
Internships in Seville, Spain include three meals per day provided by the host family (breakfast, lunch and dinner). If there are special snacks you like to have, please budget for them, so you can supplement the meals that are included with your own preferences for snacks and treats. As in all of Spain, when it comes to food there is no shortage of amazing dishes to try in Seville! Make sure you try the world-famous paellas, a good assortment of tapas, and some of their mouthwatering jamon serrano (prosciutto).
Breakfast was delicious, consisting mainly of toasted bread, jamon serrano, tomato and olive oil. What a treat to have before heading out! Lunch is usually the main meal in Spain, and is typically served between 2 and 4pm. A typical lunch can include ingredients like noodles, pasta, seafood, rice, and vegetables.
Keep in mind that Spaniards love their late meals, and they only start getting ready for dinner at around 9pm!
Free time in Seville
I spent most of my free time walking around the center, as there was so much to see. Make sure to spend some time walking by the Guadalquivir river: you can start at the imposing Torre del Oro, only 3 minutes from the metro station, and then make your way up. Another must-visit in Seville is the Setas de Sevilla structure: entirely made of wood, and resembling a mushroom in shape, it provides some of the best vistas of the entire city and amazing photo opportunities from the top.
And, as mentioned before, you will not regret visiting the Plaza de España and Maria Luisa park multiple times: you are sure to find something new to see, listen to, and do every time, and might even get to watch a free Flamenco show! I can think of no better place to spend an evening with a good book and even better company.
If you are looking for day or weekend trips, Seville is incredibly well located: Portugal is only a few hours by car; Morocco is only an hour away by plane; and many important tourist destinations in Spain are also only a few hours away, including Cadiz, Granada, Madrid, and Barcelona, so there is no shortage of places to visit during your time in Spain.
My final insights and recommendations
Seville is an excellent choice for your internship, but it is also important to keep the following recommendations in mind before you start your experience there:
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As stunning as the city is, it can also get very, very hot. Please be mindful of this if you are sensitive to the heat, as temperatures in the summer can get very high most days. Even in mid-September, when I was there, it was still pretty warm (around 90 - 95°F or 30 - 35°C). If you are coming during these months, please ensure that you bring clothes in light, cool fabrics with you.
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If you don’t speak Spanish, don’t worry! Most of our internships do not require any Spanish language skills for you to do them, as you will be matched with a supervisor who speaks English. However, you do have to be mindful that there might be a language barrier, and that making an effort to learn the basics of the language will certainly help you make the most of this experience. In order to help interns with their language, all of our internships in Seville also include 10 complimentary hours of Spanish language lessons. The only internships where interns do need a beginner to intermediate level of Spanish are: Medical, Nursing, and Engineering.
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In terms of safety, Seville is incredibly safe! Of course, this does not mean that you should stop taking usual safety precautions, such as not walking by yourself in very lonely areas, keeping your valuables within sight, etc.
Before I knew it, it was time to leave Spain and head back to our RISEWAYoffice. I left Seville feeling so excited about the quality of the internship opportunities we offer. I am certain that interns will not only gain incredibly valuable experience for their professional life, but will also fall in love with the city, the Spanish culture, and its people. It is definitely a city I know I will come back to, again and again.
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