Category Archives: Study Abroad

Hello Aarhus Denmark!

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University of Reading student studying abroad in Denmark for a Full Academic Year
Gracia is currently studying abroad at Aarhus University with Chemistry degree at Reading. Already coming to the end of her first semester in Denmark, read on to find out how she settled into the social and academic side of her year abroad. 

So it’s now been 15 weeks since I moved to Denmark and it’s typically me writing a welcome to my study abroad experience so late, but better late than never! So what can I say I’ve enjoyed about my trip so far.

Let’s start from the beginning, I arrived on August 24th 2016. I flew straight to Aarhus from London, which was surprisingly not long at all. Here’s me thinking I would have time on the plane to cry, reflect, get excited and prepare myself for the year to come. But no! The flight was 1 hour and 40 minutes and in a blink of an eye. Hello, Aarhus Denmark.

University of Reading student studying abroad in Denmark for a Full Academic Year

So the next few days were the intro days and I used these days to explore the town, meet new other exchange students and get familiar with the University. Each international student were assigned a mentor to help them settle in which was great help because I had a ton of questions. Luckily for me the weather was beautiful which was shocking because prior to coming everyone had warned me about how cold it was going to be but for the first few months it was sunny everyday so I saw Aarhus in its true form. I managed to buy a bike during my first few weeks because it’s definitely the most practical way of travelling around Denmark and the great thing was that we were able to go to the beach practically every day and also visit some amazing Danish landscapes. All the houses are brightly coloured (at one point I felt like I was in an episode of Balamory), but I loved how unique and quirky the houses were. Everyone that I met were super nice and friendly they don’t lie when the say Denmark is the happiest country in the world. Which made me comfortable and excited for this new chapter in my life.

University of Reading student studying abroad in Denmark for a Full Academic Year

 

It wasn’t long before I was introduced to the famous concept of “Friday bars”. Each Friday from afternoon to late evening each academic departments set up bars in a big room, canteen or even classroom in the building and sell beer, soft drinks and a never ending game of beer pong (I never realised how competitive this game was until saw Danes play against each other). They are really cool bars because both students and lecturers from that department are able to socialise, the prices are inexpensive, thanks to the student volunteers. But on the 9th of September, Denmark’s largest Friday bar was held in the University Park, with special themed bars, activities and 2 massive stages with popular Danish music artist it was definitely one of my highlights so far.

University of Reading student studying abroad in Denmark for a Full Academic Year

Regarding my education, I am now well into my Chemistry Project in the Group of Prof. Troels Skrydstrup working on synthesising metal-salen derivatives. At first I was a bit overwhelmed but I am now so happy and comfortable working in the lab and learning a lot from the other students around me.

Finally, so far I have met some amazing people and have had such an good time in Aarhus and I am excited to do more exploring and see what the next few months has in store for me!

Gracia

From Perth to Bali to Melbourne and Back

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University of Reading student studying abroad in Taiwan for a Semester

Cameron is currently studying abroad at the Curtin University in Australia as part of his Film and Theatre degree at Reading. It’s been a month or so since Cameron’s last blog – read on to see what’s he’s got up to since!

My, oh my! It’s fair to say the past two months have been pretty spectacular. A lot has happened since I wrote my last blog; including 3 trips, my twentieth birthday, and a little bit of work – it’ll be pretty hard to condense all the events down to such concise descriptions. However, I will try my best to detail all of the amazing experiences I have gone through since the start of August.

Firstly, I was able to see some of the beautiful scenery on display in Western Australia, going on a 3-day tour of the south-west. On this trip, we visited numerous beaches and coves, hiked up hills and walked amongst the tree tops, as well as having the chance to visit Margaret River and one of its famous wineries. A highlight of this trip had to be climbing the Dave Evans Bicentennial Tree, a towering green giant, with a platform positioned at its 75-metre tip, which was once used as a lookout for forest fires. Despite being absolutely terrifying, the climb to the top was absolutely worth it one of the best views imaginable.

University of Reading student studying abroad in Taiwan for a Semester

The travelling continued as during my first study break a group of us foreign exchange students took a holiday to the sun-drenched island of Bali. Going to Bali gave us a brief escape from university work, as well as providing a refreshing change of scenery with its beautiful beaches and coastlines, being especially relevant when we got to watch the sunset from a bar built into the side of a cliff. Bali was an incredible place to visit and somewhere I didn’t expect to be venturing to while studying abroad in Australia but I am so glad that I go to go there. I’m sure I will revisit in the future if I get the chance.

My adventures did not end here. Far from it!  In my next study break I jetted off to Melbourne to meet my fellow study abroad-er, at La Trobe University, Ellie. Melbourne was an amazing city that radiated culture with its vast ethnic diversity (the largest Greek population outside of Greece as the historic 35 tram told me), huge food scene, as well as the numerous amount of museums and galleries. While there, Ellie treated me to a swift but packed tour of some of Melbourne’s best attractions to visit. If I had to just name a few I’d have to go for; The National Gallery of Victoria, Hozier Lane, Brighton Beach Huts, watching penguins go to their nests at a St. Kilda beach, ACMI (Australian Centre for Moving Image – could technically count it as revision). This is just a quick highlight of some of the locations from my brief visit to Melbourne and doesn’t even include all of the excellent restaurants. Melbourne is definitely a city that I can’t wait to return to, only having scratched the surface of what it has to offer.

During the moments when I have been at Curtin University, my work has been going well. Through my most recent assignments I have been able to explore an aspect of film that I am strongly interested in, this being screenwriting. One of my assignments saw us creating the concept and synopsis for a TV Drama, then writing a pitch for it, which was a lot of fun, giving me the chance to let my creative juices flow. Another intriguing aspect of my education at Curtin so far has been the unit Experimental Screens. This unit has really progressed my definition of what cinema can be and has opened my eyes to a new idea of filmmaking that I will hopefully implement into my future projects.

I can fairly say that so far I have been thoroughly spoilt by my trip down-under, being blessed with opportunities to explore not just Australia but also Bali. However, even though I have done and seen so much already that’s not going to stop me from adventuring out and seeing all that Oz has to offer. I just have to see what the future has in store for me.

Till then, have a good one.

Cameron

 

The Myth of German Efficiency

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University of Reading student studying abroad in Switzerland for a Full Academic Year

Josef is currently studying abroad at the University of Tubingen with his Henley Business School degree at Reading. Read on to find out how he settled into German life for his third year abroad.

Around one month ago now, I packed my case and woke up at 3.30am for my flight. Once on the flight, in between attempting to catch up on some much needed sleep, I was full of mixed emotions from excited to straight up scared. Then after a long day of travelling, I finally arrived at my flat… only to be greeted by nobody. Unlike Uni at home students don’t have to move out of their rooms at the end of each year, this means that many stay in the same rooms for their full degree. This also means that there is no specific moving in date like at home.

A few very unhelpful emails with the accommodation team here in Tübingen followed where I was told most students would be arriving from the start of September to the middle of October. I decided to arrive bang in the middle of those dates. Big mistake. Over a third of the population of Tübingen are students, so when those students aren’t here the place turns into a bit of a ghost town.

However, I thought I’d make the most of the quietness and enrol at the university and open a bank account. But this leads me on to the second thing they don’t tell you about moving to Germany and that is that German efficiency is largely a myth. Where as in Reading, you receive your university card within 5 minutes of arrival on moving in day; here it required going to 6 or 7 different buildings and to make that even more complicated it has to be done in a specific order and most of those buildings are only open between 9 and 11.30am.

My first three weeks here could be described as unremarkable, dull and very lonely as I only had one flat mate who would occasionally be in Tübingen to do something with and get some much needed social contact.

Then it all changed. The students arrived. On the first official day of university in October, I attended a Meet and Greet for other internationals and a few German students too. An awkward event to begin with, but the awkwardness soon left and the event ended with a group of us going out for drinks afterwards. Since that day, study abroad has genuinely lived up to all expectations.

University of Reading student studying abroad in Germany for a Full Academic Year

 

A lot of fun has followed with the most diverse, if not random, friendship group I have ever been part of, including Germans, Australians, New Zealanders, Russians, Danes and Americans. Since meeting we have explored this beautiful university town by day, but mainly by night. Thanks to all the students, Tübingen has the youngest average age of anywhere in Germany and so it’s fair to say we aren’t short of bars or clubs. The second bonus to going out here is that most regular bars have prices more similar to that of the Union at home and the uni-owned bars here are usually about half that price. So win win all round.

When it comes to the academic side of things, it’s more difficult to say what it’s going to be like as lectures only started last week. Although I have noticed a few things they do differently here already. After my first lecture last week I began packing my things away, only to be given the fright of my life when all the other students started bashing on their desk. I later found out they do this as a way of showing their appreciation to the lecturer; but when you’re not expecting it, it sure does make you jump! Another thing is if you find 9am lectures too early at home, try an 8am start where you sit in class and watch the sunrise.

All in all, after a difficult first 3 weeks here, the last 2 weeks have made up for it. The main things I’ve taken from the experience so far is to take the rough with the smooth as any negative experiences are soon outweighed by the many positive ones.

Joe

My Advice – Sign up to the Buddy Scheme!

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University of Reading student studying abroad in Switzerland for a Full Academic Year

Tom is currently studying abroad at the University of Geneva with his French and Economics degree at Reading. Read on to find out how he’s settling in to his new life in Switzerland for the next academic year. 

The end of summer came about rapidly, and before I knew it I was boarding my one-way flight to Switzerland. Having only secured accommodation a couple days prior to my departure (despite the months of frantic searching coupled with an unsuccessful trip to find somewhere) it was safe to say that I was relieved in the comfort of knowing that I had a bed to sleep in. I felt a perfect balance of anxiety and excitement – the thrill of diving into the unknown paralleled with the insecurity of a completely different lifestyle made me feel like I was truly about to embark on a journey that would define who I am as an individual.

I attended the welcome session – an event that was supposed to be an introduction to the university, but it felt more like a social day whereby the exchange students could unite. On this day I was fortunate enough to meet a wide range of people from all across Europe. I was soon reassured that I would not find myself lonely over the course of the upcoming year. A committee known as “ESN Genève” (Erasmus Social Network) invited us to sign up to their group so that we may participate in their events, and I couldn’t be more satisfied. Along with regular day trips, every Wednesday we meet for a pub night which is a great opportunity to socialise and catch-up with those not on our course, as well as to show off the true British spirit of getting absolutely hammered.

University of Reading student studying abroad in Switzerland for a Full Academic Year

Getting myself established within the University was somewhat of a bureaucratic nightmare and I was soon convinced that administration staff are very reluctant help. With an array of documents that needed signing by different individuals, along with complex office hours that each member of staff pertained it took a little over 2 weeks of pestering before I could get everything organised. My advice to future students in my position would be to sign up to the ‘buddy’ programme offered by ESN and to ask your buddy (a non-exchange student) for advice.

Outside of lectures my life consists of similar activities that I would do back in the UK, before temperatures drop too low we’ve been profiting in spending afternoons outdoors walking around the lake, grabbing coffee in Geneva’s niche cafés, and finding bargains at the numerous flea markets that appear across the city. With the cost of living being so expensive I often cycle to France in order to do my grocery shopping as it’s far cheaper, however this often leads me to overspend as the attractive prices cause me to disregard my budget.

Adjusting to life here has been relatively easy as most people are friendly and outgoing, seeming to have a similar ‘can-do’ attitude to the cliché American one. The city streets are clean and I generally feel very safe. This is not to say that I don’t miss British culture and at the moment I am still finding myself with thoughts along the lines of: “that’s not what we do in the UK”. But in conclusion, I am having a great time and I’m certain that in the upcoming months my love for this city will grow even more!

Tom

 

Living in the World’s Most Liveable City

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University of Reading student studying abroad in Australia for a Semester

Not so long ago we caught up with Sarah who’s studying abroad at La Trobe University with her Art and History of Art degree at Reading. Read on to find out what else she has been up to half way through her semester abroad. 

So, I’m halfway through my time studying here in Aus and time has flown by! My courses and tutors have been great and really understanding in helping with my dissertation work and general studies. Although the modules haven’t linked directly to my course they have been broadening my knowledge about Australia, helping me gain awareness I wouldn’t get back home. An important aspect of studying abroad is to embrace a change of information flow and how to use new information to explore a wider outlook.

Australia has been amazing in giving me a different perspective of how art can be used as a learning tool for history and how our modern social and cultural lives can be impacted by the past. I have been looking at how art can give undocumented history a voice and Australia’s turbulent past is incredible to learn from. I have been studying Aboriginal art and also the display of art in galleries around Melbourne. I visited the Gold Coast and Byron Bay a few weeks back and stayed in an Airbnb whose host is an Aboriginal artist! Apart from having an amazing time surfing, seeing live bands, and getting a tan, I also got to interview Anthony as part of my dissertation and artwork. I have had so many experiences from study abroad that would not have been possible otherwise and greatly benefited my degree already.

University of Reading student studying abroad in Australia for a Semester

For the rest of the time of not soaking up the sun on the East Coast I’ve explored Melbourne, falling for its many exemplary coffee shops, rooftop bars, and beautiful architecture that combines British colonial times with the skyscrapers of our modern cities. For a city that is half the size of London you can still easily get lost in its streets and take a day of simply exploring it’s many markets. I’ve been amazed at the price of transport and taken advantage of the £2.50 day fair that lets you go around the whole city! For me personally a city experience was something I really wanted to gain from Study Abroad. London is great and so close to Reading but the minimum cost of at least £20 anytime I want to go in means it’s less of a regular occurrence than I’d like. Living on the outskirts of Melbourne has meant I’ve got to explore city life more than once a week and still have money left for my travel plans when Uni finishes!

University of Reading student studying abroad in Australia for a Semester

Living in the world’s most liveable city is pretty great, I must admit! At the halfway point of my studies I already feel as though 1 semester is not nearly enough. It was easy to get homesick for England in the first few weeks but it feels as though this is another home now and will be just as hard to leave. I’ll blog on again in the next month to let you know just how hard it is to say goodbye! But for now I’m off to the CBD[i] to catch up with a few friends over some good food and a pot[ii]!

Sarah

[i] Melbourne Central Business District (city centre)
[ii] Half pint

It’s all about the Hygge

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University of Reading student studying abroad in Denmark for a Semester

Simon is  studying abroad at Aarhus University in Denmark as part of his Psychology degree at Reading. Find out how he foundDanish life just a few weeks into his semester studying abroad. 

On the evening of the 18th of August I arrived in Aarhus for my exchange semester. My extremely helpful mentor picked me up from the bus station and took me to my apartment…then the non-stop action began. I dropped my stuff off, had a shower and went out to a party at my mentors’ house. It felt like a bit of a blur, but everyone was very welcoming and friendly. It was great to meet lots of Danish people on my first night, be able to ask them questions about their culture and what I must do during my time here. I didn’t know then and I’m not sure I do now, but I think that was my first experience of Hygge.

The next day came and with it brought more names, more faces and more exciting opportunities. The only difficulties I were having involved remembering people’s names and being unsure if I was spending lots of money or not much at all, it being Denmark I figured a lot. Each day seemed to bring with it a new event, always with more great people and more names to remember. I assumed that this would settle down after the first week but if anything it continued even more so. The Aarhus festival began, this happens every year and it was an amazing time to be in the city, as all over there are events happening. Music, art, dance, food… in all different venues, that could be easily located using the festival app. You downloaded this and all the English events could be searched for easily along with their location and price. Most of the events were free and it created an incredible atmosphere in the city as there were so many people out and about having a great time.

University of Reading student studying abroad in Denmark for a Semester

By my third week, I had properly learnt some names, classes had begun and I thought that maybe things would be settling down a bit. I was wrong again, yet more events followed, the equivalent of our Reading Student fair in Aarhus turned out to be the equivalent of a small music festival. There were stages set up with music going on (lots of Danish rap) and an extremely organised tournament of beer bowling took place. In Aarhus they take their drinking games seriously, the tournament was even streamed onto a big screen. A lot of practice goes into preparing for them and they had umpires! Overall, it was a remarkable event completely run by students on the University grounds.

Finally, I could catch a breath, four weeks in and I felt like I was here. This was when I fully appreciated what a city Aarhus is, full of life and interesting architecture. I visited Aros, the Moesgaard museum and the deer park during this week, each unique and wonderful. I had begun to find my way around Aarhus now, but I still couldn’t remember everyone’s name!

Simon

Canada’s Natural Wonders

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University of Reading student studying abroad in Canada for a Semester

Natasha is studying abroad at the University of Ottawa in Canada for a semester as part of her Geography degree at Reading. Read her blog entry about covering her first 3 months in North America. 

After being in Canada for just over three months, I have experienced so much during my time here. From whale watching in Quebec, to hiking the Rocky Mountains in Alberta, and making friends from all over the world. There was no problem with settling into life in Canada, as everyone is so friendly and welcoming.

During my first few days in Canada, there was a vast array of activities that had been organised by the international office, such as trip to Parliament. This meant that I got the chance to meet other international students, whilst touring the city of Ottawa.

University of Reading student studying abroad in Canada for a Semester

There is an abundance of lakes, with canoeing and kayaking a very popular past time in Canada, so naturally my friends and I went kayaking for the day! My first Gee-Gees football game was exhilarating, and the annual ‘Panda Game’ against the rival Carleton University in Ottawa was something that I have never experienced before. The tailgate (pre-party) leading up to the football game was the best part, with some parties at 8am!

University of Reading student studying abroad in Canada for a Semester

Within two weeks of being at OttawaU, I had taken part on a trip to Tadoussac in Quebec and Quebec City. This was arranged by the university and was relatively cheap. The trip also took place over a weekend, ensuring that we didn’t miss any classes. This trip allowed us to see the cultural diversity of Canada as an English and French speaking country, being educated about the history of Canada and Quebec, and seeing the second largest whale in world in the wild! As you can see in the picture, it was already so cold in Canada!

University of Reading student studying abroad in Canada for a Semester

Academically, OttawaU is definitely more demanding in terms of deadliness, classes and midterms and final exams. However, it’s nice to know how well you are doing throughout the semester, and the help from the professors is appreciated. The choice of modules offered here is vast, with many modules not offered at Reading. Some the of modules that I have taken include: geographies of tourism, geographies of globalisation and cities and social change. I have focused more on the human geography modules, as this is my preferred area of study.

During my reading week at OttawaU, my friends and I decided to make the most of being in Canada, and to travel to Banff national park to see the amazing scenery that Canada has to offer. Although travelling within Canada is rather expensive, it is definitely worth seeing the natural wonders that Canada has to offer.This aided with some of my classes as I could understand the transition that has occurred in Banff, around the growth of tourism and how this has affected Banff as society. I have actually used this trip within one of my assignments at OttawaU. Overall, this was trip of a lifetime, whilst also impacting my studies.

University of Reading student studying abroad in Canada for a Semester

I feel like transitioning to the Canadian culture has been much smoother than I had anticipated, although this has definitely been helped by the kindness of Canadians, meeting many other international students in the same position as me and the love of the English accent! I can’t wait to see what else I am yet to experience in my remaining weeks here in Ottawa. So far, I could not emphasise how much my confidence and independence has grown since studying abroad, and I would recommend it to anyone thinking about potentially participating in such an amazing programme.

Natasha

Study Abroad Adventure in Geneva

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University of Reading student studying abroad in Switzerland for a Full Academic Year

Jaime is currently studying abroad at the University of Geneva in Switzerland as part of his French and International Relations degree at Reading. Read his blog entry about settling into his new home in Geneva for the next academic year.

I would like to start off this entry by stating that I never thought I would end up in Geneva. Yes, I did choose Geneva as my study placement option for my year abroad. But I ended up changing my mind and I tried hard to find a work placement. But I couldn’t imagine how hard it would be to find a placement.

In the end, I found myself desperately looking for accommodation in Geneva as my work placement option failed… However, I feel so lucky about not getting a placement. Now that I am in Geneva I can’t imagine myself any happier in a placement. This place is great!

My experience upon arriving was more stressful than pleasant as I just threw myself into the adventure and came here without having any secured place to stay. I got a hotel for 3 nights. 3 nights and 3 days was the amount of time I gave myself to find accommodation. I think it is understandable that I did not enjoy at all my first days in Geneva. After being rejected by a big number of estate agents and private hosts as well as student accommodations tension began to build up inside of me, but in the end things started to turn as it was on my return to the hotel with my aunt that we saw an aparthotel in France, 5 minutes away from the Swiss border. We decided to try luck there. I am currently writing this first blog entry from my apartment here, therefore I guess I don’t have to say that this place was and is still is perfect.

University of Reading student studying abroad in Switzerland for a Full Academic Year

Enjoying Geneva with my very lovely aunt.

My family thought it would be a problem for me to live in France and study in Geneva, and if there are any problems I really can’t see them. Gaillard, which is the village where I currently am living is very well communicated with my university, the only thing I must do is walk 5 minutes to the border and pop into a tram, which will leave me in front of university in little more than 25 minutes. However, when the weather allows me to do so I ride my bicycle to university. Geneva is great for biking, therefore as a bicycle lover I am very comfortable here.

University of Reading student studying abroad in Switzerland for a Full Academic Year

Very nice views from my apartment

So far everything was perfect, I had my own apartment and I was very well communicated with central Geneva. I would also like to mention that having my own apartment in a hotel is by far much cheaper than renting a room in Geneva as I was offered a very decent student discount. So, as I was saying, everything was perfect, but university still worried me a little due to the language and because I didn’t know what to expect. Honestly, this university is great, without taking into account how slow the administration is.

The best thing is that I got to choose what I want to do throughout the year, therefore it is impossible to do something which doesn’t pleases me, on top of that I was given a few weeks to try the lessons in order to be able to choose the best ones for me. Now I find myself having university only 2 days a week, which is quite comfortable, and taking modules in which I am very interested. Have I mentioned how nice my building is? An image is worth more than 1000 words!

 

Having only 2 days a week of university seems amazing as you get plenty of time for yourself, but that time for yourself is not a good thing if you don’t make the most out of it. I wanted to invest the time I had in something I love; sports. My first option was to retake boxing, but I also wanted to start something new. Out of all of the different sports I’ve been offered, I decided to give capoeira a chance. It was a great choice, I love this new sport, the other students are very friendly and the master is amazing. In sports I was also given the option to try some lessons in order to find the one which most suits me, and that was how I realised that boxing did not suit me at all due to the timings of the lessons. So I decided to try another sport, and I found out that the university offered me to take judo lessons. Having done Judo for a long time I thought it would be a great option for me, so I decided to retake Judo.

There is not much else to say about my experience so far. Only that so it is being perfect and I can’t wait to see what awaits for me in the future while being in Geneva!

Jaime

In the Happiest Place in the World

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University of Reading student studying abroad in Denmark for a Semester

Ellis is currently studying abroad at Aarhus University in Denmark as part of his Psychology degree at Reading. Read on to find out how he is settling into his new home in Denmark for his study abroad semester. 

After hearing that Denmark was ranked one of the happiest places to live in the world, my decision to study there for my term abroad became an easy choice; and my experiences so far have not disappointed.

I arrived in the late summer, and was greeted warmly by my mentor and, somewhat surprisingly, the climate – as I was told it was normally a lot colder for the time of year. After being shown to my dorm, I met the Danes I would be living with for the next 4 months and I instantly felt welcomed.

The next week was ‘introductory week’, 5 days filled with an array of activities which would get me to grips with Danes, Danish culture and academic life. During this week I met people from all over the world, and I can now say I have friends from France, Germany, Spain, Belgium, Canada, USA and Australia. I learnt a lot about what it means to be Danish, and their fondness for the term ‘hygge’ (something which roughly translates to ‘cosiness’ or ‘good-times’). Without a doubt my first week involved a lot of ‘hygge’ – celebrations galore, I attended some fabulous parties, held by the university and friends alike. Soon after I became aware of the Danish fondness for beer – you could literally get beer anywhere (even on campus there are beer taps) and at a very affordable price!

University of Reading student studying abroad in Denmark for a Semester

However, my time in Denmark hasn’t solely been partying and drinking beer. The week after introductory week, was festival week – a vibrant event taking over the city centre with art, entertainment, music, food and culture. I attended free concerts in the park, tried some of the finest Scandinavian cuisine and even watched an extravagant African dance show. During the week I also managed to squeeze in a trip to ARoS, Aarhus’ Art Museum, which showcased some famous artists work, and not forgetting the breathtaking rainbow panorama at the top – which had the most spectacular views of the city. It truly was an emotive experience, and I could’ve spent hours staring out of each coloured-glass panel. To sum up the week, there was something for everyone, whatever the interest.

After the excitement of the first couple of weeks, class began to start and I was somewhat dubious about what to expect from an international institution. However, my doubts soon faded away as I noticed the relaxed teaching style: classes involved teacher led-discussions based on set texts, which were broken up by cake-breaks – yep, each week one person was responsible for bringing in cakes for all the class to eat (a strong motivator to attend class to say the least).

So overall, I can confidently say I am having the most amazing time with the most interesting group of friends – and I’m looking forward to what the rest of this experience has in store!

Ellis

Getting Mummified in Melbourne

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University of Reading student studying abroad in Australia for a Full Academic Year.

Tim is currently studying abroad at Monash University in Australia with his Henley Business School degree at Reading. Read on to find out what he got up to in ‘O-Week’ during his first few weeks studying abroad Down Under. 

It now feels like a lifetime ago when I was first introduced to the difference between “yeah nah” and “nah yeah” (the latter being key). Landing on the Tullamarine runway after 24 hours of crying babies and thunderous snoring (not me), is a foggy jet-lagged memory that will remind me forever as the start to my year abroad in Melbourne!

The Clayton campus at Monash University is a lot bigger than I first anticipated. No longer are the days where I could leave 5 minutes before a lecture started and still make it on time. I live in Farrer Hall a 10-20 minute walk to campus depending on where your lecture is situated. Before arriving, I was told that Farrer was by far the most sociable halls on campus and after the first few days of my residency it was already clear that this was 100% true. A common room, 2 games rooms featuring table tennis, a pool table and a cinema style TV, I still remain to never have had a dull moment in Farrer whether it was either participating in the activities of O-week or potting a few balls with friends.

O-week is the equivalent to “freshers” in the UK however, there seemed to be a lot more activities to do during these first two weeks in Australia as well as a lot more free food on campus!

The most notable events during O-week were the scavenger hunts. The first was around the university campus doing an activity (such as mummifying a team member in toilet paper (Me)) or ‘striking a pose’ at each destination. We end up coming second and winning a pack of “TimTams”.

University of Reading student studying abroad in Australia for a Full Academic Year.

Melbourne Central Station

The second scavenger hunt was host in the city of Melbourne. Each team were given an activity sheet and required to perform each task on the list, record it and upload it to the events page online to get points for your team. Some examples include serenading a stranger, forming a conga line on the train and running into the wall at platform 9 ¾.

The typical night out is a trip to “Dooley’s” on a Wednesday and/or “The Nott” on a Thursday. I was introduced to the infamous “goon” before these nights out, the beverage of choice for most students thanks to its price – not the taste.

With money running low, finding a job is very difficult when considering the distance to travel anywhere within Melbourne from the university. A bus, train and tram are usually needed to get anywhere within the city, getting to closer suburbs requires a few bus changes which can easily take up to an hour to get to.

Nevertheless, I’d never have dreamt that I’d have had this much fun already and met so many amazing people. I’m eager to see what the rest of the semester brings as well as explore the rest of activities Melbourne has to offer.

Tim