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A day in my life as a Shanghai student
Eva Tollett – Fudan University – Shanghai, China Of course, every day is slightly different due to my timetable and social schedule but I will introduce what an average day living in Shanghai looks like for me. I have 4 hours of class a day, all Chinese language but covering different aspects like grammar, spoken and written Chinese. An normal day will be from 10-3 with a break for lunch. This does make it feel a bit like school as you are in the same classroom with the same people every day. I quite like this though as it can mean you form really close bonds with your classmates. My…
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Life at UTokyo: A Guide to Komaba Campus
by YiPin Wu, University of Tokyo, Japan If you’ve ever wanted to study at the University of Tokyo, let me take you on a tour of Komaba Campus — the main hub for exchange students. Nestled just two stops from Shibuya on the Keio Inokashira Line (about 20 minutes on foot), it’s also within walking distance of Nakameguro — known for its cafés and cherry blossoms — and Shimokitazawa, famous for vintage shops and curry. It’s hard to believe this calm, tree-lined campus exists in the heart of central Tokyo. Campus Life In my first semester, I had six classes a week — the minimum recommended. One thing that really…
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Travelling Hungary: Day Trips to Escape the Capital
By Nadine, Eotvos Lorand University, Budapest, Hungary Existing as one of Europe’s most vibrant capitals, Budapest is often remembered for its prosecco cruises and ruin bars. What if I told you however, some of Hungary’s most memorable experiences lie just beyond it. From historic cities to hidden gorges, these day trips offer an ideal escape from what can be an intense capital-centric lifestyle. Esztergom: perfect for history lovers Once the old capital of Hungary, Esztergom is a beautiful city located approximately 46km north of Budapest. Taking the direct Z72 train from Budapest’s Nyugati train station, the hour-long journey passes through towns including Pilisjászfalu and Piliscsaba. I was lucky enough…
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If I Could Start My Exchange Year Again: Lessons from Calgary
Deborah Oshidero, University of Calgary, Canada Spending a year abroad at the University of Calgary has been one of the most exciting, challenging, and eye-opening experiences of my life. Looking back now I feel like there was a lot of things I would do differently if I had the chance to start it all over again. So this last blog from me is essentially me telling you what to consider and do when on your own year abroad experience! While I wouldn’t change the friendships, the memories, or even most of the mistakes, there are definitely a few practical things I wish I had known from the beginning. First and…
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All about Melbourne accommodation: where to live whilst studying on exchange
By Amelie Duroux, University of Melbourne, Australia It can be so tricky to know the best place to live at university, especially when you are moving across the world to study abroad. I personally had no idea which accommodation to choose when I was preparing to move over to Melbourne, and ended up choosing the accommodation that the majority of the other University of Manchester students chose. The student living culture at the University of Melbourne is so different to the UK universities, because the majority of Australian students do not move away from home – they continue living at home and commute into university, sometimes with journeys which are…
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Choose your timings
Scarlett Gilligan, Universidad de las americas Puebla, Mexico One thing to consider about your year abroad is how you choose to divide it. For me personally, I believed the most suitable thing for me was to stay for the entire year, something I don’t regret at all. However, I have friends that have moved to South America for semester 2, friends that have moved to work in CDMX for semester two, and some who are spending their first semester in Mexico after Christmas. I have loved both semesters dearly but without a doubt, they are starkly different, each with their advantages and disadvantages. Here I will try to stay as…
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spreek je nederlands ? (do you speak dutch?)
a blog by Chiamaka 🎀 (Universiteit van Amsterdam in the Netherlands) In this blog, I will hopefully clear up your language concerns. You don’t need to speak Dutch. That’s the simple answer. I only know a little. Since every internet source I consulted said that everyone speaks English, I assumed that everything (street signs, ingredients etc) would have small print in English too. Imagine my surprise on my first trip to Lidl when NOTHING was in English. Obviously this makes sense – it’s a foreign country duh – but hopefully I’ll save you some shock. Some ingredient lists have it in French too (Belgian influence), which was my saving grace…
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Discovering Melbourne coffee and brunch culture and working in a café
By Amelie Duroux, University of Melbourne, Australia One of the most exciting things about moving to Melbourne has been realising you can never get a bad coffee. Good baristas and coffee culture is so distinguished here that every cup you have is of such high quality. Part of the reason I wanted to come to Melbourne was for the brunch culture – I had worked for a couple of years in an Antipodean brunch café in London, which made me want to experience Australian coffee and brunch, and I had said this in my application for my exchange year abroad. Melbourne have claimed to have invented the flat white, which…
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Rainy Days and Dealing with FOMO: The Art of Solo Dates
By Isabelle Henaghan, University of Toronto Mississauga, Canada Choosing to do a year abroad can be daunting for many reasons. You might end up reeling pros and cons lists on your notes app on the 142 as you reach closer to the acceptance or referral deadline with My Placement. But whether you had premeditated the concern of feeling alone or not, I am confident that it is a feeling that almost everyone experiences during the exchange. Doing a year abroad is one of the best decisions I have made for myself. I have absolutely loved meeting so many new people from all over the world, and I have found the…
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Why Kensington Market Is Still One of Toronto’s Best Places to Explore
By Isabelle Henaghan, University of Toronto Mississauga, Canada Kensington Market quickly became one of my favourite spots in the city. It’s a neighbourhood that feels completely different from downtown Toronto with so much colour, creativity, and character. The streets are lined with vintage stores, independent cafés, tiny bakeries, and food spots from all over the world. Every time I go, I notice something new: a mural I hadn’t seen before, a second-hand shop hidden down a side street, or a live band playing outside a café. One afternoon, while browsing through a vintage shop, I started chatting with an elderly leatherworker who had been working in the area for decades.…
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Keeping Warm in the Cold
By Katie Dolan, McGill University, Canada After a few months of only seeing minus numbers on the weather app, I am finally beginning to defrost, and now I can safely say that I have survived my first Canadian winter! If you take anything away from this, the most important tip I have in dealing with temperatures like -20 degrees is to face it and enjoy it. I know that sounds a little crazy, but I truly mean it. Whether that involves actually spending time outside or embracing alternative options like joining an indoor sports team, it is the best way to stay surrounded by friends and avoid feeling isolated and…
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Navigating Academic Life at McGill
By Katie Dolan, McGill University, Canada McGill isn’t nicknamed the ‘Harvard of Canada’ for nothing! If I am being honest, there is a pretty hefty workload at McGill. This might not be what some of you want to hear, but as someone who hasn’t said no to many (or any for that matter) social activities during my exchange, I have been able to manage my workload just fine. In all seriousness, yes, there can be a lot of work, but it is more than doable, and McGill students really live up to their ‘work hard, play hard’ reputation. Class Size and Schedule As a business student, I have been studying…
A study abroad journal by students, for students.
