Hello,

I have just made an Expat account and I am looking for advice.  I am an American college student about to graduate in May with a B.S. in biology and a double major in Spanish.  I studied abroad in Valencia from Jan-May 2006.  After graduation (around Sept 2007) I would like to go back to Valencia for at least a year.  I have been looking into taking language classes or something like that because I really want to improve my Spanish skills.  Even though I’ve been studying Spanish for about 8 years now (4 in high school and 4 in college) my speaking skills are not that advanced.

A friend of mine who was from my study abroad program also wants to go back to Valencia with me.  We have been looking into sharing an apt or renting a room with Spaniards in Valencia (getting ideas from sites such as loquo, etc).  Ideally we would like to get a student visa however the one language school we were looking into (Centro de Idiomas de la Universidad de Valencia) only offers courses that total 4 semester hours a week, which doesnt qualify us as full time students.

I’ve been researching a lot and I realize getting a work visa (or any visa really) is pretty difficult.  Even though I do have a significant background in Spanish, my speaking skills are not at a level where I can even attempt to get a more professional level job.  This is the main reason why I want to go back to Spain and continue studying the language. 

I have enough money saved that could cover housing (around 300 euros a month), basic living expenses and classes for at least a year.  However, I would like to work on the side if it was at all possible.

What are the risks involved if we were to just go to Valencia and rent a room without having student visas?  Would we be able to enroll in language classes without one?

Basically I am looking for any advice that would make going back to Spain a reality given my situation.  Any information would be greatly appreciated.  😊

Jess