Tag Archives: Aarhus

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

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

The Danes certainly like to Party

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University of Reading student studying abroad in Denmark for a Semester

Mona is currently studying abroad at Aarhus University in Denmark with her Psychology degree at Reading! Find out how she is settling into Danish life a few weeks into her study abroad semester.

So I’ve been in Aarhus for roughly 3 weeks now and I can tell you that by the end of the first week, I knew this was going to be the best semester, and experience of my life so far. When I arrived at Aarhus bus station, I was kindly met by my mentor who helped carry my luggage and showed me how to get the bus to my accommodation. A little while before arriving in Aarhus I was emailed and told that I had to be put into temporary accommodation as my permanent residence had water damage! But my mentor was so helpful and sorted everything out and collected my keys for me. I can safely say that the stereotype the Danes hold of being very organised, is definitely true.

After a couple of days of settling down and exploring the city, welcome week began. This week was packed full of informative lectures telling us about practical aspects of our stay, applying for my CPR number and residence certificate, meeting lots and lots of new people, some of which are now my closest friends, and several free breakfasts and lunches provided by the very generous psychology canteen. I can’t say I was particularly nervous for welcome week, more just very excited to meet some new people, learn a little more about how everything at the university worked and get stuck in! I met so many amazing people in this week and I can’t imagine it having gone any better.

University of Reading student studying abroad in Denmark for a Semester

To say that the university atmosphere is different from Reading is a massive understatement. While the university is one of the best in the world and the focus is very heavily on independent study and academia, the Danes certainly like to party, and they like to party in the university buildings… The psychology committee regularly arranges parties and events that are held in the psychology building, with portable bars and DJ decks being brought in, chairs and desks being cleared and bouncers on the door, it couldn’t have been more different to life in Reading!

The week after welcome week, classes began and I got a vague routine back, which really helped me settle down even more. As a master’s student, my classes seem very sparse, having only got 2-3 hour seminars a week however the focus is much heavier on independent study, reading before each seminar, class discussion, presentations and active participation. Although this seemed pretty daunting at first, I am finding that I am enjoying classes a lot more and learning more than I would in a one-hour seminar at home, but everyone’s different.

This past week I have moved into my permanent residence at Skejbyparken and am loving my stay in Aarhus so much so that I already don’t want to go home! I’m looking forward to exploring the city a lot more with my new found love for cycling, meeting many more people and generally making the most of my time here!

Mona