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Study v Abroad: How I’m balancing university and travelling
by Emma Colson, University of Auckland, New Zealand If you’re anything like me, the main motivation to studying abroad is to travel and explore another country. Studying abroad is an amazing opportunity to do this, but being a student, the commitment to studying means we can’t run around the country free rein as much as we’d love to. It goes without saying that university has to take priority, but that doesn’t mean you can’t free some time to appreciate the country you’re in without falling behind. So, I thought I’d share my experience so far of how I’ve balanced the two, and some tips on how to get the best…
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Touching down in Oz: first things first
By Georgi Fogarty (University of Queensland, Australia) It’s obvious that when you move to the other side of the world, there are going to be some big changes. Jetlag, time differences, climatic, academic and cultural disparities had all been weighing heavily on my mind in the last few weeks approaching my 25-hour flight from Manchester to Brisbane. But strangely, what took me by surprise the most upon landing was the amount of time it took for me to adjust to the fact I was in Australia and no longer in England.
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Sydney: The Final Sunsets
Bethan Rowsby, Geography, University of Sydney. As I am about to fly to Asia, for a final trip before heading home, I have been reflecting on my year away from home and in my opinion there is no greater opportunity for reflecting than at sunset.
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Mid Semester break on Fraser Island!
by Jude Wiggins, University of Queensland, Australia, Geography Over the Mid-Semester break I was lucky enough to go to Fraser Island with my friends, Sophie and David. Fraser Island is the World’s Largest Sand Dune. The island is a massive collection of sand that gets dragged in by the Pacific Ocean currents and stretches about 120 km long but only about 24 kms wide. Fraser is a World Heritage site so there are no roads, only sand tracks that can be accessed by 4WD. Whilst we were on Fraser our tour guide told us that if the island did not exist, all the sand that gathers there would have traveled…
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Summer Holidays Down Under
By Serena Graham (University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia) P.S. … This blog post is about my summer holidays in Oz (December 2014 – March 2015). I’ve been extremely busy in the past couple of months so I haven’t had the chance to upload it until now! As the semesters in Australia start in March and July, I’ve had to do semester 2 first and then semester 1, which means I had a three month gap in between semesters. During this time, it was really hot and at times got to around 40 degrees. I seriously regretted choosing a house without air conditioning! Over the holidays I did a bit of…
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My ten do’s and don’ts of studying abroad
By Jamie Chapman (The University of Sydney, Australia) Now that my time over here in Sydney is coming to an end, I thought it would be a good idea to reflect on what I think the most important aspects of the study abroad experience are. I’ve made a little list of ten do’s and don’ts, based off of some of the experiences I’ve had during my time in Australia. If you’re in a position like I was, and still deliberating about whether studying abroad is a good idea/nervous about going, hopefully this’ll help! DON’T Plan too much It’s so easy with something like studying abroad to dive right into planning…
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5. Reflection on my time at Australian National University (ANU)
By Jellaby Lai (Australian National University, Canberra, Australia) Ummm, I have no idea where to start. It has been a crazy, joyful and adventurous six months. So much has been learnt and so many bonds have been made. From the moment I landed in this wonderful, sunny land to the time I had to start packing and say farewell to my friends and the animals (spiders not included) around my hall, not even one second did I halt and think. Now, sitting in front of my laptop (equivalent to a smartwatch in this generation), memories start to sink in and I can’t help but giggle. Reflecting on my study abroad…
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4. End of Semester Trip
By Jellaby Lai (Australian National University, Canberra, Australia) Together with another five exchange students, we went camping along the Great Ocean Road and the outback. Looking at the photos, I can’t help but start planning my next camping trip!
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3. Academic Difference (ANU vs. UoM)
By Jellaby Lai (Australian National University, Canberra, Australia) Studying abroad is all about LEARNING: new culture, new knowledge, new skills, new people and new stories. Today let’s talk about the academic differences between Australian National University in Canberra and The University of Manchester. Talking from experience, I found it extremely helpful to know the differences before starting my semester abroad. (For those who haven’t read my introduction, I did Actuarial Science and Mathematics so the differences I am about to talk about may vary from other courses.) Academic Differences The University of Manchester(UoM) Australian National University (ANU) Course units per semester(Full credit) 6 4 Lecture style In lecture hall or…
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O-Week and first week of lectures
By Tom Collins (Australian National University, Canberra, Australia). On my first morning at Burton and Garran Hall, I’m not gonna lie, I was scared to leave my room. It was the first time I realised I was actually on the other side of the world and had no one. When I finally did leave my room, I went over to the main block and we were all divided into groups of about fifteen and were taken on a tour of the city centre, which they call ‘civic’ in the same way we’d call it ‘town’. Each group bought food and cooked together and everyone shared the food. It’s a really…
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My time abroad so far!
By Grace Griffiths (Australian National University, Canberra, Australia) So as well as my video blog (which is my main blog so check that out if you haven’t!) I just wanted to write a little something something – mainly because it gives me a further reason to procrastinate from work, but also because I forgot to mention some stuff in the video. Firstly, the name of the tour guide to the Blue Mountains was Rod. He was great – your stereotypical outgoing, sarcastic, says-it-as-it-is Ozzie. I’ve noticed that a lot since being here. Australians keep it real, their humour tends to be quite honest and deadpan and I love it. Also,…
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Grace Griffiths (Australian National University)
A study abroad journal by students, for students.
