FAQs ???????????? (FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS)

Q.	How do I get more information about the program? Whom do I contact with questions?

A.	The entire program brochure is available online at the main NW C?diz Program web page, as is the application form, the housing form, current program fees, etc. Hardcopy is also available at UW in PDL C-104, [Box 354360 Div. of Spanish & Port. UW, Seattle 98195] and from the IPE office at WWU and by request. Please read through the brochure before seeking answers to questions from program or UW staff. The general director of the program (identified on home page) will be happy to respond to your questions and direct you to those who can provide the answers you need. Several semesters of student evaluations of all aspects of the program are on file at the IPE office and in PDL C-104.

Q.	By when will we be told whether or not we have been accepted into the program?

A.	We formally admit qualified students within five days after the deadline for applying (March 20 for fall semester; Oct. 20 for spring semester).? Your file will be reviewed as soon as it is complete, but admission is delayed until after the application deadline. A very few [4-5] students with exceptional academic merit may be granted early admission. These students need to alert the General Director of their interest in early admission.

Q.	Does the program operate in the summer?

A.	No. This is a two semester program. Students can enroll for fall or spring semesters or both.

Q:	How and where do I sign on for and pay for the group flight ticket?

A.	We no longer offer a group flight to Spain as students can now find better fares online. Each semester the on-site director or assistant will take a program bus to the Jerez airport on the specified arrival time and date to transport to Cadiz all those arriving from Madrid and others who choose to rendezvous there. Currently the bus meets the incoming Iberia flight that lands about 5pm. It departs around 5:30 for Cadiz, arriving there to meet up with all host families around 6:30-7:00. If at all possible, check luggage ALL THE WAY to JEREZ.

Q.	If I don't get in for fall, do I get my application fee back?

A.	Yes. The other option, if you so choose, is to leave it on deposit for the spring program, with a statement of your desire to have the application kept active for spring.

Q.	Can I pay my program fees by credit card?

A.	Unfortunately, no. We accept checks only, to be sent or delivered to the Dept. of Spanish & Port. Year-long and financial aid students commonly solve the problem of paying fees by leaving post-dated checks on deposit with the program (Padelford, C-104). Remember, checks for program tuition/fees are NOT to be deposited to your UW account with the registrar. Students receiving scholarships or others whose money is put into their UW account must make arrangements for transferring funds from that account to a personal checking account that can be used for paying program fees.

Q.	I'm on financial aid and I'm concerned about deadlines for paying program fees. I'm also a little worried about managing on the amount I'll have at my disposal.

A.	For students receiving financial aid, normally we can wait for payment until the scheduled distribution dates for financial aid (that is, delayed payments of the program fee). However, you must consult with Prof. Petersen (petersen@u.washington.edu) about setting up a payment plan and we ask that you arrange to have the financial aid office send her some kind of official confirmation of your eligibility, as well as an indication of when the funds will be released. In any event, before leaving the country ALL STUDENTS must make arrangements for payments of all program fees (by check, not credit card) to be sent directly to the program. (NW Cadiz Program -- Box 354360). Students on financial aid at UW should contact the IPE staff person who works with the Financial Aid office to inquire whether their financial aid might be increased for the duration of your stay in Spain due to the higher cost of living and increased expenses while abroad.

Q.	Where and when do I send the concurrent enrollment form and the medical form?

A.	For UW and WWU students your concurrent enrollment and medical forms should go to your Office of International Programs and Exchanges (for UW: Box 355815 UW, Seattle 98195-5815), but before turning it in ALL STUDENTS are requested to make and send a copy of only the medical portion in a (sealed) envelope labeled with name and "med. form" to the Division of Spanish & Portuguese: NW Cádiz Program, Box 354360 UW Seattle WA 98195. This information will be stored in the Resident Director's home in Cadiz and will be opened only in the case of a medical emergency.

Q:	What about medical insurance?

A.	The program provides comprehensive medical coverage for all students on the program. You will be covered from about 2 days after arrival in Cádiz until the last day of the program (between Dec.16-21 for fall semester only students; between May 25-June 5 for spring and year-long students. Yearlong students will be covered over semester break unless they return to the US for the holidays. The insurance covers everything except for medications (prescription or otherwise). All students must purchase an ISIC card (also required by most student travel agencies). This provides a substantial amount for emergency medical evacuation - well worth it for the peace of mind. Most students carry no other insurance nor need any. Full hospitalization, visits to emergency ward, specialists, etc. are all covered in full. No deductible.

I’m unclear about the student visa. Do I need one? How do I get it?

Yes, all students who will be staying in Spain (or any of the Schengen countries) for longer than 90 days must have a student visa. This means all of you except those holding a European Union Passport. All Washington residents and students attending college in Washington state apply to the Consulate of Spain in San Francisco. See the link on the Cádiz home page for specific instructions. The application process will be reviewed carefully at the 1^st orientation meeting for students accepted into the program. If you will be in Spain for longer than 90 days but less than 6 months, you will be issued a 6 mo. visa. If you will be in Spain for longer than 6 months, you will be issued a 3 mo. visa and will apply for a student residence card after you arrive in Spain (during our Orientation program). Once you have applied for the residence card (and even before you get it), your visa is in fact extended beyond the date printed on it. Be sure to complete all questions on the downloadable student visa application form, including date of departure and return to US, airline and flight number, etc. Your orientation packet, handed out at the first orientation meeting, includes a sheet of "Detailed instructions" for filling out the many questions on the application. See also the Spanish Consulate's instruction sheet and "How to order your documents", also in your orientation packet. It is critical that you check “multiple entries” on this form so that you can travel freely in and out of the Schengen countries while abroad. Yearlong students must take care that the medical clearance letter (on Dr's letterhead and signed by an MD, not an RN), use the exact wording suggested by the Consulate (parag. 11). Yearlong students are also required to get a notarized letter from their local police station (parag. 10, Criminal history clearance) and a set of fingerprints. These documents must then be sent to Olympia (Dept. of State) for an Apostille stamp. See the instructions in your information packet or on the Sec. of State's page about Apostilles.

As of June. 2008 one good site for downloading the visa application form is

http://www.spainconsul-ny.org/Boston/english/visastub.htm. Fill out both sides, make 2 photocopies of the application (back to front copying required) and THEN sign all 3 copies.

Q.	How much of the Spanish major or minor can I do in Cádiz.

A.	For UW students, credit can be earned for everything beyond 203. The UW core courses 321,322 are offered fall quarter and 323, 322 and 321 are offered spring quarter. Students earn course credits for the level at which they are working. The same rules apply as at the UW: 300-level credits must be finished before undertaking 400-level coursework. However, because ours is a semester program, we provide extra leaway at the transition between levels. The last 300’s and first 400’s can be undertaken simultaneously, although students must have completed 303 before they are allowed to earn credit for 406. (All courses count towards the minor, as well.)

CREDITS: I know I can get 45 UW quarter credits for 2 semesters of study on the Cadiz program, but I'm thinking of going only for the spring semester. Will I be able to earn the 30 UW quarter credits I would get if I stayed on campus for Winter and Spring quarters?

Fall semester students normally take 4-5 classes (20-25 cr). Five courses (25 cr) is the norm in spring (i.e. 45-50 cr for the full year). Exceptionally, and on a case by case basis, the Res. Director may approve a six course load in spring semester when the individual's circumstances and linguistic ability recommend this course of action. In these instances, the Res. Director may well recommend an independent study involving interaction with the local community rather than a sixth course involving more in-class time. A better alternative for more advanced students looking for a challenge is to enroll in one or two regular Univ. of Cadiz (UCA) courses. In fact, Program directors encourage all linguistically qualified students, especially yearlong students, to undertake an appropriate UCA spring semester course and will assist them in selecting and arranging for such a course.

Remember too that all students can earn 2 General Ed. credits each for up to two approved extra-curricular activities taken for two consecutive months each (dance, classical guitar, ceramics, etc.). This option is especially useful to financial aid students who need a minimum of 24 cr for the spring semester (12+12), but who don't wish to take five regular courses.

All students are encouraged to consult with the Program Executive Director and the Spanish Advisor prior to leaving for Spain to sketch out a program of study that best meets their academic and personal goals (see below).

When / where / how do I register for classes?

All students should have worked up an approved, tentative schedule of classes with their advisor before leaving for Cádiz (at UW, Suzanna Martinez for Spanish). The UW IPE office will automatically enroll you for 12 foreign study credits each quarter of your projected stay, but only if you have completed the Concurrent Enrollment form and paid the CE fee before departing for Spain. Until your transcript and grades from Cadiz have been sent to UW, reviewed, forwarded to IPE and entered into the database at the end of the semester, your MyUW page will display only "12 credits foreign study" regardless of the courses and credits you are actually pursuing.

Financial Aid recipients must register for 5 courses in spring quarter to remain eligible or avail themselves of two extra curricular 2-credit courses (Gym is not elegible for GenEd credit..

You do not actually register for Cadiz classes at UW; rather, you register in Cádiz with the Resident Director (during orientation week, finalizing your selection of classes at the conclusion of the 1st week school.

When and where do we meet up with others in the group or with our host families?

We discuss travel options extensively at the orientation sessions; the options are many, but your program web page will tell you the day, hour and place where your host family will be expecting to meet you unless you have arranged otherwise with the program director and housing coordinator (for years now we have met at 6-6:30 in the Plaza de de la Hispanidad (essentially, Pza de España, in front of the Comes bus station on the pre-established arrival date). All students make their own arrangements for travelling to and from Cadiz, thus it is very important that you inform the Res. Director of how, when and through what airports/train stations you will travel and your expected arrival time. They will make every attempt to alert your host family of any last minute changes or delays in your travel plan.

Despite the variety of travel itineraries, we invite students to meet up with one another and at the Barajas airport in Madrid (the most common first destination in Spain) the morning of "arrival day" in time to take an Iberia flight to Jerez de la Frontera. To allow time for the vast majority of students to arrive from the US, we currently schedule arrival into Jerez on the inbound flight that lands about 5pm. There will be a bus at the Jerez airport which will depart around 6 (after loading bags, etc.) and arrive in Cadiz at the appointed spot as close to 3pm as possible The Jerez-Cadiz bus is the only portion of the trip that we arrange. Students may join others in Madrid, meet up at the Jerez airport or get to Cádiz on their own by plane and train from Barcelona, Sevilla, Jerez, Málaga, etc. We ask only that you make sure we know when/how you plan to reach Cadiz.

Is there an address we can use to send things on ahead so we don't have to carry so much on the flight?

Yes. For students who need to send things ahead by mail, if you do not yet have the name and address of your host family, the program address is:
NW Cádiz Program

Facultad de Filosofía y Letras (Despacho C)
Gómez Ulla s/n
11003 Cádiz SPAIN

Q.	Addresses and phone numbers in Cádiz?

A.	See the appropriate link from the home page for each year.

Q:	Is there any change in the courses available since the brochure was published?

A.	The online brochure is updated annually. The basic lineup of fall and spring courses is constant, with a class added or supressed occasionally in response to enrollment figures.

Q.	Will we have access to email in Cadiz? ?Should I take a laptop? ?

A.	We highly recommend you take a laptop (take, not send). Having your own computer vastly simplifies preparing course work, papers, etc. (which can be printed out in the office). A flash drive for the purpose is very handy. In and around Filosofía y Letras (campus) WIFI is readily available, as it is here and there around town. A small but growing number of students will have internet access through their host family.

Return to NW C?diz Program home page

How and where do I sign on for and pay for the group flight ticket?

If I don't get in for fall, do I get my application fee back?

Can I pay my program fees by credit card?

When / where / how do I register for classes?

Will we have access to email in Cadiz? ?Should I take a laptop? ?