CEA CAPA Education Abroad in Dublin, Ireland

I was so nervous before studying abroad, as I had never been overseas for three months before. Now, I would go again in a heart beat!! CAPA organized an amazing program for all students, with wonderful representatives to help Americans feel comfortable and confident in their abilities while in Dublin.
I was able to meet so many incredible people while abroad, from all corners of the world. As Griffith College was a diverse community of international students, it allowed for a great academic opposition, where my ideas and perspectives were challenged by other students. The 20 other students in the CAPA program were a great deal of fun as well. I lived with 3 other students in the program, and we all got along so well and often spent evenings cooking together and spending our weekends abroad. I personally did not do an internship abroad, which made for some extra free time. Due to this, I travelled a great deal while in Ireland to mainland Europe. This was incredibly doable thanks to the accessibility of Dublin's airport.
Overall, this semester was one full of challenges, growth, and FUN! My semester abroad was easily the best three months of my life, and I would redo the program if I could. CAPA organizes a terrific program for students, and ensures that everyone feels confident, comfortable, and able to take chances while in Ireland. Whether you are branching out and meeting new people, travelling on your own, or taking classes outside of your major, this semester proposes challenges of all kinds that enable students to grow and develop faster than any US University campus. If you have the opportunity to study abroad, choose CAPA Dublin. Most amazing experience of my life.

Studying in Dublin, Ireland was the best decision I have ever made. Now, most people would probably say that after spending a month in another country exploring and learning about the local culture. However, this program is special because it was with CEA. The staff from CEA was willing to help me more than my own university! My program visited Galway for a weekend with a trip to the Cliffs of Moher and we also visited Belfast on a day trip to learn about the Troubles. Without CEA planning some trips, it would have been much more expensive to travel to all of the big attractions that Ireland offers. It was nice to be picked up outside of our housing, hop on a bus and be taken to our destination!
By studying through my home university and partnering with CEA, I was eligible for a scholarship from CEA which helped lower the overall costs. There are many scholarships available making your dream to study abroad possible and CEA is willing to help you!
If you have ever considered studying abroad, talk to CEA and your home university study abroad office and it can happen!

I studied abroad through CAPA’s Dublin program for an entire semester.My two favorite things about CAPA’s program is their opportunity to do an internship and the attention they put towards making you feel like you’re truly apart of a community. There was only about 22 people in the program so we all bonded very quickly. CAPA organized so many events so that everybody could become a second family. From walking tours around Dublin on our first day to weekly lunches, movie and game nights, to thanksgiving dinner to side trips to places like Galway and Belfast. CAPA really put effort into making Dublin feel like a second home. Our three advisors were always there 24/7 to make us feel comfortable and safe our group always called them our Irish mom, dad, and big sister. When I think back to why I loved all of my experiences abroad it’s because of the people I was with.

By far the best part of being in Dublin was my internship. Before going abroad students send their resume and a general cover letter to CAPA and they set you up with a skype interview with an internship.I interned for a non profit organization called Fighting Words which was founded by popular Irish author Roddy Doyle. Fighting Words holds daily creative workshops for primary and secondary students. Students come to Fighting Words on a field trip.
In the morning we had a class of primary school children and I took turns with the other interns to teach the workshop where I would go through the basics and foundations of what a story needs such as a main character, title, plot. The kids worked together to come up with the story and they came up with the funniest things like a main character who is a french fry who’s greatest wish is to get a pet unicorn and is afraid of being dunked in ketchup and then they would break off into tables of 3 to 4 where an intern would sit with them and help them finish writing the story and create illustrations.
In the afternoon the secondary school students came and we’d give them a situation such as you’re both in trouble in the principal’s office but only one of you actually did it and then we’d have them improv a scene. We’d type out their dialogue and then we’d get the class to fill in the gaps and create a story and then they’d also break up into groups with an intern to finish writing their own stories. There was honestly no better feeling than getting a hug from a kid or to hear them walking out saying they wanna come back here everyday. It solidify my future career goals to be in education and work with students.
For doing this internship I got 6 credits and I worked 20 hours a week. Once a week CAPA held a night class where we discussed our internship. We learned how to “sell” our internship during interviews and we had to write reflections on our internship and what we learned about the culture. At the end of the semester we had to do a mock interview where we talked about abroad experience. These assignments and the class were where we earned our 6 credits from.

CAPA requires you to take a minimum of 12 credits so I had to take two classes along with my internship. I actually loved my internship so much that I wished I could’ve done it full time but I really enjoyed my classes as well. The first class I took was called Irish History & Culture. We met once a week for three hours. Each class was a 40 minute lecture about Irish history followed by a 2 hour field trip with in Dublin. These field trips included walking tours, visits to Trinity College, ChristChurch Cathedral, Dublin Castle, the Dublina museum, and the Irish Emigration museum. We were graded on our weekly reflection that were 800 words where we had to tie in the lecture from class to our experience on the field trip. The second class I took was a film studies class that also met once a week for 3 hours. We had an hour long lecture and then used the rest of the class for screening of that week’s film. We went through different units of various film genres such as Italian neorealism, French new wave, and road movies at the end of each unit we were assigned a paper where we picked a film to focus on and show how it exemplified that genre.

Being in Dublin was a memorable, life-changing and magical experience.

I studied abroad in Dublin through the UF in Dublin program through the CAPA Program. I would recommend this program to anyone. I got the opportunity to have an internship abroad, take classes at UF and in Dublin, and got to be immersed in the culture. This program lets you have the opportunity to see the everyday life of a local, partake in weekly festivals, and travel Europe at such an affordable cost. CAPA had an amazing amount of workers abroad that were so friendly and there for me at all times. They gave us weekly newsletters letting us know what was going on around the city while also having us get the chance to see the Gaelic football stadium of Dublin. Our entire program went to a game and it was an amazing experience. I would 100% recommend this program to anyone.

I really enjoyed my time with CAPA in Dublin. During the application process, they were really hands on and worked one on one with me to make sure I was not confused. The only issue I had was that it took a long time for my internship placement. I did not have my placement until the week that I left for Ireland. Other than that, it was all good. I ended up loving my internship at a water-sports company doing social media and marketing. I loved the Global Cities class and loved learning the history of Dublin while exploring it as well. I feel confident that my experience interning will give me that little extra on my resume. They took us to Belfast which was amazing. I also had plenty of time to travel all over Ireland and Scotland as well. I would recommend this program to someone who wants to both study and intern abroad.

My experience in Dublin while studying abroad with CAPA was decent. I enjoyed the city of Dublin and I enjoyed the environment. However, there was no anything special about the class that went along with the CAPA program. I will say that the professor who taught the course was very knowledgeable and kind, but I didn't learn anything I can use in my profession. The internship placement could have also been better for a lot of students including myself did not have a productive time interning. Some days I felt like I could have had just as great of an experience if I had gone to Ireland without participating in the CAPA program. However, the things that were great were really great (housing, transportation cards, newsletters, etc.) and those reasons made the trip worth it.

This country is beautiful no matter where you go! The people are brilliant and the program is fantastic! CAPA comes with the benefit of safety and fun education. Everything from travelling and exploring to learning and EVEN EXAMS are enjoyable! Their lifestyle is one worth witnessing and learning from :) The tour guides are hilarious and there are cuisines from all over the world. The reason CAPA stands out to me is how much they want their students to have a great time. They put in the effort to find the internship right for you and in my program a majority of the students got what they asked for. They accommodated us all in apartment style hotels that was in the city center. We could easily walk everywhere and were also provided with transport cards in case we wanted to take the train! They really do want their students to learn and grow!

Choosing to study and intern abroad with CAPA in Dublin was one of the best decisions I have made. The entire CAPA Dublin staff are incredible people who helped make my experience what it was. They truly care about the professional and personal development of students, as well as ensuring that each student gets the most of their time abroad.

Dublin as a city itself could not have been a more perfect fit. Dublin has all the charm of a small town feel, but all the amenities of a large, international city. Beyond this, the Irish culture is one that is very easy to dive into, and the people in Ireland are truly some of the nicest and kindest you will find anywhere.

The size of Griffith College was also a great benefit for me. Coming from a large public university in the states, I was very excited to trade that in for a semester and experience a smaller campus and student body size. This made the community feel much closer-knit.

I made some of my best, life-long friends during my time with CAPA in Dublin, and this is an opportunity that I hope everyone gets to experience!