By Nicola Hodson, MSc Marketing Management Practice
One of the things that attracted me most to the masters courses at the University of Sheffield was the option to attend an International Summer School. I have just returned from studying at ESADE Business School in Barcelona for two weeks, which was the most incredible experience, both academically and personally.
During my time at ESADE, I took classes in Global Entrepreneurship and Design Thinking, which proved extremely interesting, particularly as an aspiring entrepreneur! It gave me the opportunity to learn about things I would never normally have the chance to learn about, and the lectures were really fun and engaging. I learnt a huge amount and I’m excited to be able to apply it all in both the remainder of my studies and in a work-place setting. After studying for the day, we would sometimes have company visits- A highlight has to be visiting Barcelona Tech City and learning about all of the amazing innovative solutions they are developing there! During the Summer School, we also had time to explore Barcelona, including looking around the famous La Sagrada Familia, 
watching the Magic Fountain show, visiting Park Guell, and spending many hours on the beach! There were also excursions during the weekends- I was able to visit Tarragona, a beautiful Roman town, and learn about the history there, as well as visit the old amphitheatre.
One of the most invaluable things I took away from my time at the Summer School was the lifelong friends I made during the trip. I met people from all over the world and was able to learn about so many other cultures, which was honestly one of my favorite things about the Summer School. I now have friends in Estonia, New York, Brazil and many other places, and we have all been excitedly making plans to visit each other at some point in the future!
