Introducing Clara Miles!

Currently based in Barcelona, Clara was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina in a bilingual family (her father is from an English family and her mother is Spanish) but moved to Barcelona with her family when she was five. After finishing school, she studied Hotel Management and Tourism at CETT University. Soon after, she studied Public Relations and Advertising at ESRP University. Clara recently received a Master’s degree in Public Relations, Protocol and Event Coordination at the Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF). Clara has traveled to many countries in Europe as well as to the U.S., the Caribbean and South America. Her father’s family lives in Canada so she has spent many summers there and even worked near Toronto a few months.

What’s an OPC? 

As part of your customized faculty-led program abroad, you will be led and supported by a CISabroad On-Site Program Coordinator (OPC). OPCs are experienced and well trained staff members, there to ensure the schedule goes according to plan. Each OPC attends an extensive training program that involves a range of modules – risk management, emergency response, safety, logistics’, cultural awareness, communication, culture shock, budgeting, social media, La Vida Local and customer service.

The primary role of the OPC is to facilitate the in-country implementation of the assigned customized program, by providing safety / emergency response and logistical support. During the program, the OPC is responsible for managing the day-to-day logistics of the assigned customized program and providing in-country support to both the faculty and students. Using personal travel experience, professional work experience (and where possible language knowledge), the OPC will help create a program environment that is safe and culturally engaging. The CISabroad OPC may or may not be an in country local. The majority of CISabroad OPCs are expats from the US, who have travelled, lived, volunteered, or worked abroad in the program destination.

The OPC is not a registered tour guide nor expected to provide tours of sites visited during the program. If the program is one that requires specific guided tours of various sites, these will be provided separately. The OPC provides a general neighborhood walking tour to help the group identify the nearest bank/ATM, pharmacy, laundry-mat, grocery store and other similar conveniences.

The OPC’s role allows Faculty to focus on the academic objectives and the students to make the most of their time overseas!