Malaca Instituto

Placement organization

Name of organization: Malaca Instituto
Town/city: Malaga
Country: Spanje
Website: http://malacainstituto.com

Student

Name of student: Regina van der Laan

Specialist area: ITMC
Placement period: 2015-2016

Information about placement organization

Type of organization: language school
Organization’s activities: Malaca Instituto is one of the best Spanish language schools in Spain. They provide Spanish courses in all different levels to all different ages. Also special courses are provides such as “Spanish & Dance”, “Spanish & Cooking”, 50+ programs and summer programs for teenagers.

The marketing team is very active attracting international students and has connections all over the world
Target group of the organization: all
Company culture: There is a hierarchical system, yet everybody is very open and helpful and after a while you become part of team.
Number of employees: 80-100
Dress code: casual
Did the organization meet the agreements you made beforehand? yes

Information about your placement

In which department(s) are you working? Marketing Department
Brief description of your daily activities: With another intern from NHTV I have been responsible for making the new promotional video for the target group 18-30 years old. Since we had no prior knowledge about this we started with doing research and pre-testing. Then writing the script, filming and video editing. (https://vimeo.com/169908420)

We were also responsible for Instagram and taking photos/making videos on excursions for other social media channels.
Brief description of your company assignment: The promotional video as described above
Comment briefly on your supervision by the organization: Our supervisor was often extremely busy so we had to work very independent. The staff is very helpful though and is more than happy to help with any questions.

Requirements for students on placement

What kind of personal skills are required for this placement? Independent, pro-active, self-motivated, teamplayer, social and friendly
Additional company requirements for this placement? For us it was good to know how to work with a video editing program and to have writing skills, but that completely depends on what the company wants you to do
English: Advanced
Spanish: Basic
French:
German:
Italian:
Other languages:

The trip

Mode of transport to reach your destination: airplane

Accommodation

How did you arrange your accommodation? internet
How did you go to work every day? I bought a secondhand bicycle online

Visa / work permit / vaccinations

Do you need a visa? no
Do you need a work permit? no
How did you arrange the necessary documents: n/a
How much time did it take to arrange the necessary documents? n/a
Did you need certain vaccinations? No
How long in advance? n/a

Language course

Did you take a language course before you started your placement? No
Would you recommend to have a language course prior to this placement? It would be a lot easier to communicate with others (in and outside the company) if your Spanish level is intermediate

The costs in euros

Travelling expenses (e.g. return ticket): € 150
Accommodation (monthly): € 225
Local transport (monthly): € I always used my bike, but the public transport is very cheap (one ride with the bus is €1.30)
General costs of living (monthly): € 100 (the city is very cheap and you can get almost everything you wish for)
Costs of visa: € n/a
Costs of work permit: € n/a
What did the company pay for/to you? We were offered free Spanish classes in the morning, which was very good. In only a short time I improved my Spanish extremely. Besides this, you can join excursions for free (you have to take pictures for social media during this time). Moreover, meals in the restaurant are for half price and you get two hot drinks a day for free.

Culture

How did you prepare for the country’s culture?
I just read about Málaga and what kind of lifestyle they have there
Did the culture of the country influence your performance during the placement in any way? I was a less stressed, everything is more relaxed

Future students on placement

Future students are free to contact me for further information: Yes
My e-mail address: 143898@nhtv.nl

Other information

Recommendations on what to do and what not to do: If you do your internship at Malaca Instituto you have to be able to work independent very well and you have to be pro-active. Besides this, it is important that you are willing to learn Spanish, mainly for the reason that the people on the streets do not speak very well English. They try, but it makes life a lot easier and fun if you can just speak Spanish with them.
Leisure possibilities in the city/surroundings of where the placement took place: There is so much to do in and around Málaga! The city centre is old and cultural with many bars, restaurants and nightlife opportunities which provide a pleasant atmosphere. Close to the city centre you have several beaches and in the hinterland you have many mountains which are good for hiking.

A must do is going to the cities/villages: Sevilla, Granada, Cordoba, Ronda and Nerja.

The hikes ” Caminito del Rey” (El Chorro) and “Rio Chillar” (Nerja) are also beautiful

Media

Youtube link Youtube placement video link