University of British Columbia
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Academic Differences at UBC
Melisa Karasu, University of British Columbia, Canada I thought I’d dedicate this post to the academic differences in the arts department here at UBC from Manchester, as there are definitely a fair few! Although I study English Language with Screen Studies back home, I am only taking English classes here, with one free choice still within the arts faculty, so this post could be helpful for any English students (or anyone in the arts) considering UBC.
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I made it to UBC!
Melisa Karasu, University of British Columbia, Canada Well here I am, finally in Canada and settled (just about) in UBC! It felt like the time would never come and then suddenly it was thrust upon me. Having had a really busy December trying to fit in alternative assessments, packing and Christmas and New Years, I feel like in the last few weeks before my departure I hadn’t really given much thought to the reality of what was about to happen, and it didn’t really feel real.
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Adjusting to life back in Manchester
By Joe Gaskin (UBC, Canada) It seems slightly weird being back in Manchester after a year away. You quickly get back into the same old routines and after a few weeks it feels as if you were never away. But of course, the feeling of nostalgia is always there, which is both good and bad.
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Reflection on Study Abroad
By Joe Gaskin (UBC, Canada) I thought it would be good to write a post that just sums up my year and shows just how much fun I have had. It’s been a life-changing year and something that I wouldn’t change at all even if I could. But it is so hard to sum up my experiences in words so I created this photo slideshow, which I thought might get my message across a bit better. Enjoy! https://vimeo.com/176495948
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Summer Travels
By Joe Gaskin (UBC, Canada) The biggest and best trip of my time abroad came right at the end of term. UBC was weird in that university finished for the year at the end of April. This means you’ve got just under 5 months’ summer holiday. Of course, I had some sensible aims for this time off, such as work experience and earning money, but I could not ignore how good an opportunity this was to go further afield from Vancouver and travel.
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Reading Week Rockies Roadtrip
By Joe Gaskin (UBC, Canada) In February, at UBC, you get a reading week which I guess is meant for studying but if you’re a study abroad student there are probably better ways to spend it (i.e. travelling). During my reading week, I rented a car with 3 friends and we went on a road trip around British Columbia and neighbouring Alberta.
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Weekend in Seattle
By Joe Gaskin (UBC, Canada) Something I thought most about when choosing where to study abroad was where could I travel to from where I’ll be living. I believe that Vancouver is in a great location as pretty much anywhere in North America is accessible from the city. This led to me going on few awesome trips beyond the city.
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What to do outside the city?
By Joe Gaskin (UBC, Canada) Without a doubt the best part of going to live in Vancouver was its location, particularly the mountains on the city’s doorstep. Just a half hour drive from UBC and you can be in the Rocky Mountains. No matter what time of year it is there is always a range of things to get up to in the mountains. In the summer, there are some great hiking trails – I hiked up Grouse Mountain (overlooking Vancouver) and completed the Stawamus Chief hike in nearby Squamish. The hikes are tough but they are worth it for the views you get at the top. There are plenty…
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Things to do in Vancouver
By Joe Gaskin (UBC, Canada) Vancouver isn’t even Canada’s biggest city but I was so surprised at the sheer amount of things to do in the city. All you needed was a spare few hours and you could go explore and experience a new thing in the city. The annoying thing is that in this blog I can only describe the things that I did, but there was so much to do in the city that I naturally wasn’t able to do them all (even with 9 months spent in the city).
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Differences in academic assessment between Manchester and UBC
By Joe Gaskin (UBC, Canada) Before study abroad I probably worried most about settling into life in a new country, far away from my family. But my second worry was how I’d do academically. I was motivated to not let my grades drop over the year – even though I only had to pass the year. This post explains the academic assessment at UBC and the differences to what I’m used to at Manchester.
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Intellectual life and learning environment at UBC
By Joe Gaskin (UBC, Canada) Although it might not be the main reason why you’d choose to study abroad, the actual studying aspect is still very important. So, I thought I would write this entry just to explain what it’s like studying at a completely new university and to show that the ‘studying’ aspect of ‘study abroad’ isn’t all that bad!
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First Impressions of UBC
By Joe Gaskin (University of British Columbia, Canada) First impressions It has been a long time coming but I am finally in Vancouver at UBC (and have been now for over three weeks now). It was a long journey getting here that included fourteen hours of travelling and a two-hour wait for my study permit at Canadian immigration. Due to the time difference of eight hours between Vancouver and the UK I was unbelievably tired by the time I got into downtown Vancouver but it was only late afternoon, so I powered through to night time trying my best to stay awake despite the demands of my body clock. I…
