Written By: Jenna Tamburino
Picture credit: Spain's Official Tourism Website
Hello! My name is Jenna Tamburino and I wanted to introduce myself a little bit before diving into talking about Madrid! I am originally from Minneapolis, MN, but went to the University of North Dakota and graduated with a BA in Spanish, International Studies, and Honors. I studied abroad the Fall semester of my Junior year in Barcelona, Spain. When I got back from Spain I joined Student Leaders International. I enjoyed my time with that group and the International Office so much that I was so excited to become an intern for the office in the Summer of 2017. I continued to work with the International Office as a social media adviser until I graduated in May 2018. I am so blessed to have worked with such amazing people at the office and help other students fall in love with studying abroad just like I did.
From the second I got back to the United States from Barcelona after that few months abroad, I knew I needed to go back to Spain, Europe, and living abroad. Ever since then, I researched and talked to many people who knew about teaching abroad, working abroad, etc., and landed on the “Auxiliares de Comunidad de Madrid” information. This program is one in which the Community of Madrid pays Americans to come and help teach English in Madrid and the surrounding towns. We are language assistants that work with the teachers and help teach new cultural and American English customs and norms to the students here in Madrid. It is a year program which was perfect for me when I was looking at my options to live abroad because I knew I wanted to live in Spain for longer than a few months. I also decided on Madrid rather than Barcelona again because in Catalonia and Barcelona the locals usually only speak Catalan. I really wanted to fine tune my Spanish skills, which meant living somewhere the locals primarily speak Spanish.
Fast forward a few months… I am now officially settled in my new life here in Madrid, Spain. I arrived here in the middle of September 2018 and will be living here until July 2019 (or maybe even longer if I decide to stay another year). I live in a very local and fun neighborhood near the city center and I have enjoyed my time here in Madrid so far – exploring new coffee shops, bars, museums, everything! I have met some really good friends and practice my Spanish more and more each day. I have also traveled around Spain a bit, going to Granada, Valencia, Toledo, and of course back to Barcelona!
I work four days a week at a local secondary and bachillerato school here in the center of Madrid. The ages I teach are approximately 6th grade to 12th grade (12 – 19 years old). I do everything from translating, interpreting, defining, and teaching English to the students here. Half of my school is bilingual which means they learn subjects such as Math, Science, Geography, etc., in English. With these students I am typically in the Geography and History classrooms helping to translate and teach those subjects. With the students who do not participate in the bilingual part of this school I am only in their English classes helping to guide them and learn more English and the culture here in America. I absolutely love what I do and the people who I work with. I became very good friends with some of my co-workers and they help me speak better Spanish and learn more of the language and culture here in Spain. The students here are very hard working and really want to know English and the American culture so that one day they can go to America.
There is definitely a lot of differences between studying and working abroad. The first is obviously I am in a whole different part of the country than before. There are a lot of differences between Madrid and Barcelona but I think the main one is the languages. I very rarely will hear Catalan being spoken here in Madrid and I heard it constantly in Barcelona. I cannot say I prefer one or the other because they are so very different… however I will say that I am enjoying my time here in Madrid a lot. Another big difference is that this time I am getting a paycheck. With all the accessible traveling that I like to do throughout Europe, I am very glad that I get a source of income here rather than in Barcelona I was going to school so I didn’t work. Professionally, working in a different country is very beneficial. It has helped me make so many connections and meet people from all over the world, and of course it will look good on my resume for future job applications!
I would have never moved to Madrid if it was not for my study abroad experience and the guidance of the International Office there at UND. I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to study abroad and that now I have the opportunity to live and teach abroad. Some people think what I do is crazy or unattainable, but it is a very capable goal to achieve and it would be the greatest decision anyone could make.
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