English is still the leader among global foreign languages, and the indisputable #1 choice among second-language learners. However, Spanish is also gradually gaining momentum, projected to take the lead by 2020 with the number of students and speakers of Spanish exceeding that of English. What are the reasons behind its growing popularity?

- The population of Latin America mostly speaks Spanish (and the Latin American population of the USA as well)

- Spanish is the language of literature, art, and design with many prominent artists coming from Spain or Latin America 

- It is a very beautiful, vibrant language speaking which is a pleasure

- Numerous educational establishments in Spain welcome foreign students, so teenagers and young people embark on Spanish studies and take online Spanish classes to prepare for studies in those institutions.

So, as you see, there are many reasons to learn Spanish, and one of the areas of its application is art and design.  

Spanish educational institutions offer numerous educational programs for students from all corners of the world, so anyone interested in art and design may come to study here. The U.S. study program Study Abroad at Art Schools in Spain has a wide range of options to consider:

- This may be the CEA’s Study Abroad in Barcelona, Spain (the program offers four different educational settings with integrated activities and excursions to ensure a rich educational experience for foreign students).

- The American Institute for Foreign Study offers the program in Barcelona as well, offering students to spend a summer semester in this wonderful Spanish city.

- The Forum-Nexus Study Abroad program provides a multi-country study program for students wishing to attend Europe and Asia within a two-month art education tour.

Besides these programs, you may conduct an independent search and find a realm of art and design study programs from a huge number of Spanish educational institutions. Besides teaching the rich, authentic Spanish art and design, these programs involve interesting explorations of art at the international scale, which will definitely be a great educational experience for any student.

Spain is often regarded to be a country of art; here, every city is abundant in samples of architecture and fine art, and students who come to Spain praise this friendly, welcoming country for the spirit of artistic creativity. Moreover, the range of educational institutions to select from is truly amazing. The best colleges to study art in Spain include:

- The Faculty of Fine Arts of the Barcelona University

- Barcelona Academy of Art

- IED Barcelona Estudio 

- Nomada Barcelona

- BAU Design College of Barcelona

This is only a short list of academic institutions in Barcelona, while other Spanish cities also welcome art students. Here, you will find a truly wide choice of academic programs and a fertile creative soil for nurturing a young artistic talent.

So, after the decision to travel to Spain is made and you realize that English is not enough to feel comfortable in the foreign country, it may be wise to take some initial Spanish language training. How can you learn a language quickly at the conversational level to interact with locals and not to get lost? Here is a couple of workable tips:

- Start with the basics; learn some vocabulary to greet people, to ask basic questions like asking for a direction, inquiring about the price, the time, and introducing yourself. Place stickers with Spanish names of objects around your apartment to expand the vocabulary quickly.

- Once you get some initial knowledge of the language, it’s high time to start watching some TV series with subtitles. This will give you a natural feel of the language and will show how the Spanish communicate. 

- Install some Spanish learning app on your gadget. Perform a couple of exercises every time you have a spare minute. It will not take too much time, while you will be progressing slowly. 

- Find some new Spanish friends online in social media. Tell them that you will relocate to Spain soon, ask them questions about Spanish language, clarify some issues that trouble you or you cannot grasp in terms of grammar or spelling. It will be a great way to establish some relationships in a country to which you will go soon and combine that with language studies.

Follow these simple tips and get the fundamental command of Spanish to feel more comfortable in a host country. Art schools and the spirit of old masters’ artistic creativity in every wall of ancient buildings of Barcelona are waiting for you!