Person 1 Basic Information 1. Name Britta Eklöf 2. E-mail address: britta.eklof@hotmail.com 3. Exchange university University of British Columbia 4. City Vancouver 5. Country Canada 6. First semester of your exchange Swedish autumn semester (HT 2015) 7. Academic year 2015/16 8. What subject area/s did you study during your exchange? Sex, Gender, Race and Social Justice Studies, Anthropology and Psychology 9. Level of studies at the exchange university Undergraduate 10. What are you studying at Uppsala University? Psykologprogrammet 11. How many years of study had you completed before going on exchange? 3 Studies 12. Tell us about your studies on your exchange. If you are stuck for ideas you can for exemple write about: The differences between Uppsala University and the exchange. What were the teachers like? What courses would you recommend (or not) for future exchange students? The relationship between teachers and students. The academic level and quality of your courses. Access to computers. Examinations... -Bättre och mer engagerade lärare på UBC jämfört med Uppsala -Ta chansen att läsa kurser inom ämnen som Uppsala inte erbjuder! -UBC s department of Sex, Gender, Race and Social Justice Studies kan jag varmt rekommendera. Kunskap för livet. Lärare som brann för ämnet. -Mycket intensivare studier pga att terminerna är mycket kortare Orientation and reception 13. Tell us about how it was to arrive and settle in. Det var tufft den första tiden pga att jag anlände mycket tidigare än alla andra utbytesstudenter då jag inte hade boende på campus och ville börja leta boende så tidigt som möjligt. Hade dock en bekant i staden som jag träffade, och efter det började jag gilla Vancouver mycket snabbt. Accommodation 14. Describe your accommodation. What type of accommodation did you have, where you satisfied? Do you have any tips for future students? Off-campus, i stadsdelen Point Grey, 15 min från campus med cykel. Om man känner för att uppleva Vancouver snarare än UBC s studentbubbla rekommenderar jag att bo off-campus. UBC är ganska isolerat och långt från intressanta stadsdelar. Off campus-boende kostar lika mycket eller mindre än on campus. Jag bode i en basement suite för mig själv, 5 min från stranden, och betalade 900 CAD. Vetenskapsområdet för medicin och farmaci, Uppsala universitet Sida 1 av 237
Your finances 15. Describe the cost of living. Did you find CSN adequate? How was the rent in comparison to your rent in Uppsala? Did you undertake part-time work in addition to your studies? Dyrare hyra. Likvärdig eller billigare mat. CSN räckte gott och väl för mig men jag reste inte så mycket. Free time 16. What did you do in your free time? Did the university arrange any special activities? Where there any activities specifically for exchange students? Were you happy with what was on offer? UBC anordnar massa aktiviteter och har massa klubbar man kan gå med i för att träffa folk och göra saker. Jag deltog inte i några av dessa. Jag gjorde massa hajker i den vackra naturen omkring Vancouver. Klubbscenen i Vancouver är begränsad men större än Uppsala i alla fall. Massa bra konserter runtom i stan varje vecka. Your exchange on the whole 17. Please sum up your exchange experience. If you have any other tips for future exchange students, or any other comments feel free to include them here. Vancouver är otroligt vackert och unikt. Människorna här är väldigt trevliga. Det finns oändligt med natur och äventyr att upptäcka i British Columbia. Därför har jag förlängt mitt visum och ska stanna ett år till och jobba! Approval 18. Your report will be available for future exchange students in printed form at the International Office and will be sent by email to individual students requesting it. Do you also approve the publishing of your exchange report on Uppsala University s website? No 19. Do you have any photos you would like to upload and include in your exchange report? - 20. Please tell us a little bit about the picture/s. - 21. Publishing of pictures - Thank you for submitting your exchange report! Vetenskapsområdet för medicin och farmaci, Uppsala universitet Sida 2 av 237
Person 2 Basic Information 1. Name Simon Billinger 2. E-mail address: simon.billinger@gmail.com 3. Exchange university University of Colorado 4. City Boulder 5. Country USA 6. First semester of your exchange Swedish autumn semester (HT 2015) 7. Academic year 2015/16 8. What subject area/s did you study during your exchange? Political Science/Economics/Public Speaking 9. Level of studies at the exchange university Undergraduate 10. What are you studying at Uppsala University? Economics 11. How many years of study had you completed before going on exchange? 2 Studies 12. Tell us about your studies on your exchange. If you are stuck for ideas you can for exemple write about: The differences between Uppsala University and the exchange. What were the teachers like? What courses would you recommend (or not) for future exchange students? The relationship between teachers and students. The academic level and quality of your courses. Access to computers. Examinations... I m an economics major but I wanted to take courses that would make me able to transfer them over for Statskunskap A, meaning that I read mostly Political Science classes. This was fun though, especially because of the election, and it really gave a good insight in how many Americans view the political world both within and outside of the US. So if you have an interest, I would really recommend taking at least one course if you can (preferably any course with Ryan Dawkins, just see if you can find whatever he course he does that semester, he is great). I also took a course in Public Speaking which I also really recommend for anyone, whatever your major is. It s a great way to both become more confident standing in front of people (the classes are like 20 people each) and just becoming better at speaking English (I had Sarah Chorley, who I would also recommend). With regards to just the way school is handled in the US, it differs a great deal from back in Uppsala (at least compared to studying business or economics). It is very much like going back to high school with a set schedule that is the same each week, several courses at the same time and several exams and papers throughout the semster. Personally, I liked this way of schooling, there is always something to do but rarely an overwhelming amount. But that s up to taste I guess. Some teachers (most of mine) have some part of the final grade as participation meaning that if you skip too many classes you might miss out on an entire grade (getting a C instead of B for instance). I think that is pretty wierd but after a while, you just get in to a routine and get used to it, just like you did in high school. Vetenskapsområdet för medicin och farmaci, Uppsala universitet Sida 3 av 237
Orientation and reception 13. Tell us about how it was to arrive and settle in. Traveling for at least 16-18 hours (24 in my case), through 8 timezones, with at minimum two different planes and while essentially carrying your life with you packed in a couple of bags will be a tiresome experience. And that s not accounting for the immigration line when you arrive in the US and the fact that you just said goodbye to your friends and familiy for a while. Needless to say, when you first arrive, you won t be at your best. Fortunatley at CU, they do some amount of activites to make you feel like you belong before classes start which also gives you an opportunity to get to know other international students. There is no full on orientation (nollning/välkomstveckor) but there are some informational meetings, and a meet-n-greet which are great (I would probably have wanted some more things like that but oh well). All the people working at the international office at CU are very nice and thus it feels very welcoming and if you just remember that every other exchange student is in the exact same situation as you, and you just try to be social at the start, you should be fine. Accommodation 14. Describe your accommodation. What type of accommodation did you have, where you satisfied? Do you have any tips for future students? Housing in Boulder is EXPENSIVE and make no mistake about that. I was pretty slow with getting housing because while I started to look for housing early in the spring, I simply thought everything was too expensive and I waited for the cheaper places to come on the market. Don t do that. Start looking early and know that 600 dollars a month is probably the cheapest you ll find if you still want to live somewhat near campus and not share a bedroom or anything, which is of course almost double what I paid for a dorm back in Uppsala. It was almost too late when I realized that everything was expensive and via the coordinator for international students in Boulder (Kim, she is great) I was able to secure a 2-bedroom apartment on East Campus (Bear Creek) via the University. The housing was good, a regular apartment shared with a random person (som en dublett), not too far from campus or supermarkets but quite a way from the bars on Pearl Street. I would recommend getting a bike if you are able to live in Bear Creek, because that is really the only main complaint I d have. It is possible to live in an apartment for 1 or 4 people in Bear Creek as well but living alone is of course more expensive and I had friends who lived in the 4-people rooms who thought they were too crowded, thus my recommendation is a 2-bedroom. Your finances 15. Describe the cost of living. Did you find CSN adequate? How was the rent in comparison to your rent in Uppsala? Did you undertake part-time work in addition to your studies? I kind of talked about the rent already in the previous question but I wound up paying about 900 dollars a month (a bit more than most of my friends however since I lived on campus, utilities (water, heating etc.) was included). And since the housing was via the University, I was able to pay my rent at the start of both semesters using my student account which was really convenient. Because of that, I got a fair assessment of much money I had left to spend for the semester and it really helped me plan my expenses. I think I used up exactly the amount of money I recieved from CSN. In some aspects I tried to live cheaper because of the higher rent (eat out less for instance) but also because I wanted to be able to travel. I also had some money saved up so I never felt like I couldn t do something, I just had to prioritize. My plan was to use some of my saved up money to travel but because I was able to travel so cheap it didn t get used (I did not work). In general, there are some differences Vetenskapsområdet för medicin och farmaci, Uppsala universitet Sida 4 av 237
between costs in Boulder and Uppsala; going out is cheaper, eating out is cheaper but buying food at a supermarket is more expensive and gas is waay cheaper. Oh and remember, you are always expected to tip more, and on everything you buy, tax is added AFTER the price you see on the tag (so if something costs 4.99 at a store, a 5 dollar bill will not be enough because after taxes it will cost like 5.24 or something). Free time 16. What did you do in your free time? Did the university arrange any special activities? Where there any activities specifically for exchange students? Were you happy with what was on offer? If you enjoy being out in nature, Boulder is an amazing place to go. Skiing, hiking, climbing, running, you name it, there is probably a club for it at CU. I spent a lot of time during the fall with a running club organized by students and it was a lot of fun. You got to know Americans, you got a guide to take you on nice runs around the city and in the mountains and I even participated in two races which was fun. If running is not your thing, as I said, there are plenty of other clubs available and I had friends who went on trips with the hiking and skiing clubs as well and they usually had a good experience. There is usually a bunch of initial meetings at the start of the semester and I would suggest just going to most of them and see if it interests you. As for activites for international students in particular, there were some (like the international coffee hour every week where people met, ate and hung out) but I didn t really do any of them after the initial meetings at the start of the semester. In general I found getting involved in student associations and such was much harder and less natural compared to Uppsala, but maybe that was just an effect of being an exchange student and not trying/looking hard enough. Your exchange on the whole 17. Please sum up your exchange experience. If you have any other tips for future exchange students, or any other comments feel free to include them here. CU is a great school and Boulder is a great place. It s no accident that so many people try to get there every year and to say that I had anything but a great 9 months there wouldn t be fair. I was able to travel a lot, see and do a lot of different things, but also just live a regular life there (which is one great argument as to why you should stay for two semesters - it s much less stressful). I met a lot of nice people, got better at english, took intresting classes and learned a bunch more about American culture. There were of course days when everything sucked, when I just wanted to go home and when I hated everything but luckily those days were few and far between (and those happen a lot when you are home too). I wrote once that going on an exchange is like making your emotional life into a rollercoaster - ordinary days seize to exist and instead your either always in a great or not so great mood. But if you go to Boulder, that rollercoaster will most likely be filled with great days. Also, if anyone has managed to read through all the way to here, I wrote in Uppsalaekonomernas magazine Reversen all throughout my exchange (nr. 4 through 6 in 2015 and 1 to 3 in 2016) and there I go more in-depth into some of these aspects, so if you want to read even more about being an exchange student in general and Boulder in particular, I d suggest you check those out. And feel free to contact me personally if you have any questions about anything. Approval 18. Your report will be available for future exchange students in printed form at the International Office and will be sent by email to individual students requesting it. Do you also approve Vetenskapsområdet för medicin och farmaci, Uppsala universitet Sida 5 av 237
the publishing of your exchange report on Uppsala University s website? Yes 19. Do you have any photos you would like to upload and include in your exchange report? - 20. Please tell us a little bit about the picture/s. - 21. Publishing of pictures - Thank you for submitting your exchange report! Vetenskapsområdet för medicin och farmaci, Uppsala universitet Sida 6 av 237
Person 3 Basic Information 1. Name Ida Källman 2. E-mail address: ida.kaellman@gmail.com 3. Exchange university University of Colorado at Boulder 4. City Boulder 5. Country USA 6. First semester of your exchange Swedish autumn semester (HT 2015) 7. Academic year 2015/16 8. What subject area/s did you study during your exchange? English, Comm, Peace and Conflict, Acting 9. Level of studies at the exchange university Undergraduate 10. What are you studying at Uppsala University? Litteratur och Retorik 11. How many years of study had you completed before going on exchange? 3 Studies 12. Tell us about your studies on your exchange. If you are stuck for ideas you can for exemple write about: The differences between Uppsala University and the exchange. What were the teachers like? What courses would you recommend (or not) for future exchange students? The relationship between teachers and students. The academic level and quality of your courses. Access to computers. Examinations... Det har varit väldigt kul att plugga i Colorado! För det första så är ju den amerikanska college världen en riktigt cool grej att få vara med om. Speciellt i Boulder där universitetsområdet var fantastiskt. En skillnad från Uppsala var att hela campuset var samlat, nästan som en egen liten stad inne i staden. Det finns dessutom allt möjligt tänkbart där, till exempel en arena, en pool, ett gym på tre våningar och en massa olika restauranger. Jag åt lunch på campus varje skoldag eftersom det fanns så mycket att välja på. En helt ny Starbucks har också nu under vårterminen -16 öppnat vilket är i min mening underbart. Alla lärare som jag hade har varit bra. Särskilt Kerry Reilly som jag hade i Non Fiction Writing. Jag blev tipsad om henne i en av utbytesrapporterna från ett tidigare år och kände igen namnet när jag var inne för att registrera mig till kurser. Relationen mellan studenten och läraren är helt klart starkare här, och om man är riktigt trevlig kan det till och med visa sig positivt på betyget. Även Jen Calvano som jag hade i Acting 1 var fantastisk och det var en kurs som jag nog kan rekommendera till alla. Alla kurser jag läste var på undergraduate nivå. De var olika i svårighetsgrad och de lättare kurserna på 1000-2000 nivå var det mer att läsa och skriva medan de mer avancerade kurserna på 3000-4000 var mer tänkande och diskuterande. Alla Peace and Conflict kurser var bra, särskilt 3700 i conflict management. Sedan läste jag också organizational communication och interpersonal communication som var rätt bra. Vetenskapsområdet för medicin och farmaci, Uppsala universitet Sida 7 av 237
Jag pluggade för det mesta på UMC och Norlin Library. Där finns datorer och man kan med lätthet skriva ut det mesta med sitt Buff kort som kan fyllas på vid Center of Community (C4C). Prov och examinationer kom i alla olika former. På acting var min midterm att framföra en monolog för klassen medan interpersonal communication hade multiple questions i sitt prov. Uppsatserna i alla klasser var ganska basic och enkla att skriva, men ibland svårare. Peace and Conflict var det som tog mest tid att plugga till för mig. Orientation and reception 13. Tell us about how it was to arrive and settle in. Jag kom till Boulder den 17 augusti 2016. Innan hade jag varit i kontakt med min roommate som kom och hämtade mig från Denver International Airport. Redan under den första och andra veckan började universitetet anordna aktiviteter och möten för nyanlända utbytesstudenter och det var kul att träffa de andra svenskarna igen, men även nya människor i samma sits men från andra delar av världen. På ett av dessa möten träffade jag en tjej från Australien som idag är en mycket god vän och som jag ska hälsa på redan i sommar. Att anlända till campuset var helt fantastiskt och jag fick mycket hjälp med att hitta och annat. Folk är väldigt trevliga här. Det är mycket sport som gäller, framför allt klättring. Jag testade en gång men på grund av min rädsla för höjder fortsatte jag aldrig, men det är alltid häftigt att se andra människor klättra utomhus uppe på de klippiga bergen som ligger precis intill staden. Min roommate berättade också för mig att bergen ligger i nordväst, vilket gjorde det väldigt enkelt att lokalisera sig i staden. Accommodation 14. Describe your accommodation. What type of accommodation did you have, where you satisfied? Do you have any tips for future students? Jag bodde utanför campus i en lägenhet på Buffalo Canyon. Den var ganska liten, men jag kom snabbt överens med mina roommates, så det var roligt. Jag hade även lyckan att få rummet möblerat eftersom att den tidigare hyresgästen i rummet också varit utbytesstudent och lämnat alla sina saker. Mitt tips är att kolla upp vart i staden du vill bo beroende vad du är intresserad av. Om det är fest och huvudgatan är det bäst att bo nära pearl street. Jag bodde i andra sidan av campus, men det var väldigt fint ändå. Dessutom delar skolan ut busskort till studenterna som gör att man alltid kan åka buss vart som helst helt gratis. En negativ sak är dock att de flesta avtal är på 12 månader, vilket gör att man måste hitta någon som tar över rummet på sommaren när man åker. Så kolla upp avtalen. Om du har roommates, kolla även upp direkt med management exakt vad hyran är. Jag hyrde genom min roommate, och hon sa fel hyra till mig vilket gjorde att jag betalade fel belopp under en lång tid. Det fick jag senare justera, men jag hade inte riktigt räknat med det. Annars är Boulder en underbar stad att bo i. Även om hyrorna är väldigt höga, så ligger allt nära, och jag har fått chansen att bo med trevliga människor. Bergen är helt fantastiska och det finns mycket att göra och att se. Your finances 15. Describe the cost of living. Did you find CSN adequate? How was the rent in comparison to your rent in Uppsala? Did you undertake part-time work in addition to your studies? Jag tog det mesta på CSN som räckte ganska precist till allt under året. Hyran är såklart den Vetenskapsområdet för medicin och farmaci, Uppsala universitet Sida 8 av 237
dyraste hyran jag har varit med om för mitt rum (774 dollar per månad = ca. 6500kr). Jag har inte jobbat någonting under året. Free time 16. What did you do in your free time? Did the university arrange any special activities? Where there any activities specifically for exchange students? Were you happy with what was on offer? Det händer alltid saker i staden. Jag hade ett gym på Bear Creek som låg rätt över gatan. Roadtrips är en fantastisk grej just här och under vinter är skidåkningen helt underbar. I närheten längst klippiga bergen finns Keystone, Breckenridge, Vail, Beaver Creek, Aspen och mera. Jag hyrde skidor för säsongen på Chrystal Ski shop och var riktigt nöjd med dem. Observera dock att man inte får ta med skidor på stadsbussarna om man inte har dem i en väska (jag fick gå hela vägen hem med skidorna). CU skidbussen är bra, men även Higher Ground Ski Club anordnar dagsresor upp till bergen för att åka skidor. De kan verkligen rekommenderas. En av deras dagar, Gaper Day, upp till Vail var fantastisk. Your exchange on the whole 17. Please sum up your exchange experience. If you have any other tips for future exchange students, or any other comments feel free to include them here. Jag är obeskrivligt tacksam och glad över mitt år här i Boulder. Jag har sett så mycket av USA, men också Colorado. Dessutom har jag träffat fantastiska människor som nu befinner sig runt i världen, och i sommar kommer jag att hälsa på två av dessa. En i Australien och en i Japan. Resandet fortsätter, men början var utbytet. Jag hoppas på att alla som vill åka på utbyte någon gång får möjligheten eftersom att jag kommer att minnas detta i resten av mitt liv. Dessutom har det hjälp mig i mina studier på ett fantastiskt sätt, och jag som i framtiden vill skriva mina uppsatser på engelska, så har det här varit den bästa året inför det. Alla nya perspektiv och upplevelser kommer att lysa igenom mig i alla mina framtida studier, men också genom livet. Approval 18. Your report will be available for future exchange students in printed form at the International Office and will be sent by email to individual students requesting it. Do you also approve the publishing of your exchange report on Uppsala University s website? Yes 19. Do you have any photos you would like to upload and include in your exchange report? http://doit.medfarm.uu.se/kurtattachment/1463353941248628798.jpg http://doit.medfarm.uu.se/kurtattachment/14633539411994315242.jpg http://doit.medfarm.uu.se/kurtattachment/1463353941977469311.jpg http://doit.medfarm.uu.se/kurtattachment/1463353941855679668.jpg http://doit.medfarm.uu.se/kurtattachment/1463353941298475072.jpg http://doit.medfarm.uu.se/kurtattachment/1463353941994494742.jpg http://doit.medfarm.uu.se/kurtattachment/14633539411912688725.jpg 20. Please tell us a little bit about the picture/s. - 21. Publishing of pictures I approve of my pictures being published and used in Uppsala University s marketing of international exchanges Vetenskapsområdet för medicin och farmaci, Uppsala universitet Sida 9 av 237
Thank you for submitting your exchange report! Vetenskapsområdet för medicin och farmaci, Uppsala universitet Sida 10 av 237
Person 4 Basic Information 1. Name Jasmine Öberg 2. E-mail address: jasmineoberg@hotmail.com 3. Exchange university University of Texas at Austin 4. City Austin 5. Country USA 6. First semester of your exchange Swedish autumn semester (HT 2015) 7. Academic year 2015/16 8. What subject area/s did you study during your exchange? Kurser relaterade till HR; management, PR, sociologi, kommunikation m.m. 9. Level of studies at the exchange university Undergraduate 10. What are you studying at Uppsala University? HR/Personalvetenskap 11. How many years of study had you completed before going on exchange? 2,5 Studies 12. Tell us about your studies on your exchange. If you are stuck for ideas you can for exemple write about: The differences between Uppsala University and the exchange. What were the teachers like? What courses would you recommend (or not) for future exchange students? The relationship between teachers and students. The academic level and quality of your courses. Access to computers. Examinations... Nivån på de kurser jag tog (management, PR, kommunikation, sociologi m.m.) var betydligt lägre än vid Uppsala universitet. Det var mycket lätt att klara av tentorna, det är nästintill omöjligt att få IG. Däremot är tempot högre eftersom man tar flera kurser (minst 4) samtidigt. Upplägget för kurserna liknar upplägget i gymnasiet, dvs. små och stora inlämningar varje vecka under hela terminen vilket gör att man måste plugga nästan varje dag. University of Texas at Austin är ett jättestort universitet och därför finns det massvis av kurser att välja fritt bland. Det är ingen större skillnad på upper och lower courses när det gäller nivån men lower courses är oftast större klasser (i en av mina kurser var vi 350 pers) vilket gjorde kurserna opersonliga och aningen tråkiga. Tentorna är ofta multiple choice. Inlämningarna var korta, runt 2-4 sidor dubbelt radavstånd, ofta utan krav på källhänvisning. Lärarna var mycket hjälpsamma. Alla lärare håller i så kallade Office hours varje veckan dit man kan gå vid frågor och funderingar om kursen. Alla mina lärare var karismatiska, en del lärares föreläsningar kändes som TED talks! En stor nackdel med utbildningen är att de flesta kurser har obligatorisk närvaro. I sin helhet tycker jag att utbildningen i USA var mycket bra. Orientation and reception 13. Tell us about how it was to arrive and settle in. Jag reste till USA tillsammans med två andra svenskar från Uppsala universitet, tre veckor innan skolstart. Det underlättade en hel del att anlända ett par veckor innan skolstart eftersom vi hade mycket att fixa med skolan Vetenskapsområdet för medicin och farmaci, Uppsala universitet Sida 11 av 237
och med boendet. Under orienteringen erbjöd universitetet bussturer till Walmart för de som behövde köpa hushållsartiklar. Accommodation 14. Describe your accommodation. What type of accommodation did you have, where you satisfied? Do you have any tips for future students? Innan vi anlände till Austin hade vi alla tre bestämt oss för att bo tillsammans samt med en amerikansk student som vi träffade i Uppsala under informationstillfället. Tillsammans med vår amerikanska rumskamrat fixade vi boende under sommaren. Det underlättade mycket att vår amerikanska rumskamrat redan bodde i Austin och kunde gå på visningar, fixa med papper och förskottsbetalningar. Vi hyrde ett hus i North Campus där det mestadels bor mastersstudenter och familjer. Vi blev rekommenderade att bo i West campus eftersom många studenter bor där, dock fanns det inga lägenheter kvar eftersom vi började titta på boende sent. Man bör kontakta mäklarfirmor så tidigt som möjligt så vänta inte! En mäklarfirma med ett bra rykte är Austin City Realty. Nu i efterhand vill jag påstå att North campus är bättre än West campus. Båda områdena ligger ca 15 min gångavstånd från campus men North campus är mycket lugnare. Om du är över 21 år och kan festa downtown så hade jag valt North campus före West campus. Hyrorna är högre i West campus. Vi betalade ca 750 dollar i månaden för hyran inklusive vatten och el. De flesta lägenheter vi tittade på i West campus tog 850 dollar i månaden. Hyreskontrakten är ofta på 12 månader. Att bo i andra områden förutom West campus och North campus är omständligt eftersom kollektivtrafiken är bristfällig. Vädret är ofta cykelvänligt, dock inte vägarna. Your finances 15. Describe the cost of living. Did you find CSN adequate? How was the rent in comparison to your rent in Uppsala? Did you undertake part-time work in addition to your studies? CSN räckte till hyran och mat. Om man vill resa runt i USA samt inte tvingas leva på existensminimum så bör man även ha andra besparingar. Tänk på att du måste betala universitetets obligatoriska sjukförsäkring som kostar runt 1000 dollar per termin. Utbytesstudenter får inte jobba i USA men det är okej att jobba för universitetet. Free time 16. What did you do in your free time? Did the university arrange any special activities? Where there any activities specifically for exchange students? Were you happy with what was on offer? Universitetet anordnade aktiviteter i början av terminen (bowling, spelkvällar, fikaträffar, dagsutflykter) samt dagsutflykter till närliggande städer/event en gång i månaden. Dagsutflykterna kostade runt 50-70 dollar och inkluderade bussresan och ofta inträde till eventen (ex. Huston Zoo). Om du vill resa på egen hand så går Megabus och Greyhound (bussföretag) till en hel del städer i USA. Vi bussade från Austin till Chicago och besökte olika städer på vägen, det fungerade jättebra. Downtown är området med alla barer. 6th street har flest barer. En öl kostar ca 3 dollar. När man inte festar kan man åka till Barton Springs och bada eller paddla kanot. Hamilton pool är ett coolt naturreservat utanför Austin som är värt att besöka. Det finns en hel del studentorganisationer (hornslink.org) att gå med i, jag gick till exempel med i en tjejorganisation för att uppleva den amerikanska college-kulturen. Om du gillar sport bör du köpa The big ticket som ger dig inträde till universitetets matcher inom alla sporter. Austin har två stora musikfestivaler, ACL och SXSW. Vetenskapsområdet för medicin och farmaci, Uppsala universitet Sida 12 av 237
Your exchange on the whole 17. Please sum up your exchange experience. If you have any other tips for future exchange students, or any other comments feel free to include them here. Austin som stad har allt man behöver och min erfarenhet av University of Texas at Austin är överlag mycket bra. I Austin är det dessutom sommar året om! Jag rekommenderar alla att åka på utbyte till Austin. Jag rekommenderar även att stanna ett helt läsår, en termin går fort! Approval 18. Your report will be available for future exchange students in printed form at the International Office and will be sent by email to individual students requesting it. Do you also approve the publishing of your exchange report on Uppsala University s website? Yes 19. Do you have any photos you would like to upload and include in your exchange report? http://doit.medfarm.uu.se/kurtattachment/14633859361408439957.jpg http://doit.medfarm.uu.se/kurtattachment/14633859361203597362.jpg http://doit.medfarm.uu.se/kurtattachment/14633859362075178092.jpg http://doit.medfarm.uu.se/kurtattachment/1463385936300988310.jpg http://doit.medfarm.uu.se/kurtattachment/14633859361623713138.jpg http://doit.medfarm.uu.se/kurtattachment/14633859362050676167.jpg 20. Please tell us a little bit about the picture/s. 1. Amerikansk fotboll, 2. Basketboll, 3. Universitetspoolen (poolen och gymmet är gratis för studenter), 4. Baseboll, 5. Universitetets sköldpaddsdamm, 6. UT Tower 21. Publishing of pictures I approve of my pictures being published and used in Uppsala University s marketing of international exchanges Thank you for submitting your exchange report! Vetenskapsområdet för medicin och farmaci, Uppsala universitet Sida 13 av 237
Person 5 Basic Information 1. Name Lovisa Sekund 2. E-mail address: Lovisa.sekund@sekund.com 3. Exchange university University College London 4. City London 5. Country United Kingdom 6. First semester of your exchange Swedish spring semester (VT 2016) 7. Academic year 2015/16 8. What subject area/s did you study during your exchange? Business, Marketing, History, Literature 9. Level of studies at the exchange university Undergraduate 10. What are you studying at Uppsala University? Media and Communication 11. How many years of study had you completed before going on exchange? 3 Studies 12. Tell us about your studies on your exchange. If you are stuck for ideas you can for exemple write about: The differences between Uppsala University and the exchange. What were the teachers like? What courses would you recommend (or not) for future exchange students? The relationship between teachers and students. The academic level and quality of your courses. Access to computers. Examinations... I truly recommend UCL to everyone. The level of education is high with skilled teachers and motivated students. The teachers at UCL provides students with exciting and up to date material as well as challenging assignments. I really enjoyed my classes Digital Marketing and Business in the Digital Age. I wouldn t recommend History and Culture of the Nordic Region, only because it didn t suite my interests. Over all the teachers were fantastic but my tutor Elettra Carbone in Nordic Literature in Context made the subject super exciting due to her great interest and knowledge of the subject. A con is the lack of examples of exams or essays- they are not written with the same structure in Sweden, an are where it would have been great with some additional help or just have the opportunity to look at some example. When you are new you don t always want to bother your classmates with those sorts of questions and the teachers have not always been a good help. Orientation and reception 13. Tell us about how it was to arrive and settle in. It was hard to find my way around campus the first week but if you ask and have some extra time you manage. Neither of us exchange students have received an answer if we were accepted to our classes on the week they started (a bit stressful!) but I went and asked the teachers directly, where I got answers. Vetenskapsområdet för medicin och farmaci, Uppsala universitet Sida 14 av 237
Accommodation 14. Describe your accommodation. What type of accommodation did you have, where you satisfied? Do you have any tips for future students? I am renting an apartment together with a friend through Foxtons, it works perfectly well. The corridors (from what I have heard) have a low level of standard, maybe (if possible) arrive to London 1,5 week prior school starts and search for a room in someones apartment. Spareroom.co/uk is often used. But, to not be tricked you shall be here and see the room for yourself. Your finances 15. Describe the cost of living. Did you find CSN adequate? How was the rent in comparison to your rent in Uppsala? Did you undertake part-time work in addition to your studies? Since I m renting out my apartment in Uppsala it was possible for me to rent and apartment here. I think the CSN support was enough. I didn t work extra. The food cost is the same in Sweden and UCL offers food and snacks in all price ranges. The travel card (busses and tube) is very expensive (even though you have the student discount) so to live close to UCL is definitely preferable. Free time 16. What did you do in your free time? Did the university arrange any special activities? Where there any activities specifically for exchange students? Were you happy with what was on offer? There were some activities arranged specifically for exchange students, but I didn t go to any. There are a great variety of societies at UCL where i recommend to get involved as soon as you feel like it. On my free time I hang out with friends, both Swedish friends and friends that I had gotten to know in class. Your exchange on the whole 17. Please sum up your exchange experience. If you have any other tips for future exchange students, or any other comments feel free to include them here. UCL is a great school to attend. It has a fantastic reputation here in the UK but also all over the world. I just received a job offer party because I studied here on my exchange semester. And London is so exciting and has so much to offer. I would recommend student to do the most of their time here, join societies and do your best in class. The teachers have a lot of contacts in the business world so to study here is more like a stepping stone in to the business world then just a semester to relax- so use the opportunity that you are studying at UCL. Approval 18. Your report will be available for future exchange students in printed form at the International Office and will be sent by email to individual students requesting it. Do you also approve the publishing of your exchange report on Uppsala University s website? Yes 19. Do you have any photos you would like to upload and include in your exchange report? - 20. Please tell us a little bit about the picture/s. - 21. Publishing of pictures - Vetenskapsområdet för medicin och farmaci, Uppsala universitet Sida 15 av 237
Thank you for submitting your exchange report! Vetenskapsområdet för medicin och farmaci, Uppsala universitet Sida 16 av 237
Person 6 Basic Information 1. Name Edvard Nordenskjöld 2. E-mail address: edvard.nordenskjold@gmail.com 3. Exchange university Université de Montréal (UdeM) 4. City Montreal 5. Country Canada 6. First semester of your exchange Swedish autumn semester (HT 2015) 7. Academic year 2015/16 8. What subject area/s did you study during your exchange? Environmental Geography 9. Level of studies at the exchange university Undergraduate 10. What are you studying at Uppsala University? Environmental and aquatic civil engineering 11. How many years of study had you completed before going on exchange? 4 years in my current program, but also 1 year before that with biology and chemistry, also at Uppsala University Studies 12. Tell us about your studies on your exchange. If you are stuck for ideas you can for exemple write about: The differences between Uppsala University and the exchange. What were the teachers like? What courses would you recommend (or not) for future exchange students? The relationship between teachers and students. The academic level and quality of your courses. Access to computers. Examinations... The teachers were all very good at their subjects. About half of them were Anglophones, which meant their French was a bit slower and easier to follow in. With the other half, it was nice to hear real Quebecois or French and you got used to the speed, as you understand more. Their teaching style varied a lot between those encouraging discussions in all their teaching and those who just presented the subject matter with as much detail as possible. But even then discussions usually emerged, with Canadian students being quite extroverted, which was nice. The teaching itself in the courses was varied and went between lectures, individual assignments, writing reports and summarizing scientific literature, study visits, presentations and group projects. The activities in some courses varied more than others. In my experience, the social sciences (Cultural Geography & Urban Geography) varied more than the natural sciences (Climatology, Geomorphology, Catchment areas, Hydrology and Natural Resources), with the former being more discussion and group project-oriented and the latter being more lecture and assignment-dependent. Both emphasized the understanding of scientific literature. The two French courses I took (one for each semester) were very nice for the purpose of meeting other non-french speaking students. These were very focused on oral and written communication and they consisted mostly of traditional homework, tests and presentations. The language courses were enjoyable and are highly recommended if you have courses in a language youre not very proficient in, not least for the opportunity to meet nice people. There are great similarities between Montreal and Uppsala in terms of the content of the study material and lectures. The greatest difference was the amount of time in lectures. In Montreal, a course was commonly 3 credits (counts as 6 hp), with each credit corresponding to one hour of lecture per week. So a 3-credit course Vetenskapsområdet för medicin och farmaci, Uppsala universitet Sida 17 av 237
corresponds to one 3-hour lecture per week and, according to the course plan, 6 hours of work outside the lectures. In reality, you just did the different assignments given as well as you could to submit them before deadlines. You can choose to study between 12 to 18 credits, 4-6 courses per semester. In my experience, 15 credits was too much and too often didnt leave enough time to do the different assignments as well as you would have liked. 12 credits leaves more time to the assignments well and also more free time outside the studies. I highly recommend doing no more than 12 credits, out of experience with 15 credits in my autumn semester and 12 in the spring. I only did 15 credits because I thought you had too at first, and then that the language course wouldnt include any credits, so it was good to learn that that was false for the spring semester. To study 12 credits also gives you the opportunity to work alongside the studies if you need to, which is very hard with 15 credits. However, if you need a full semesters worth of credits to include in Uppsala, then study 15 credits. I would say that it is absolutely not a good idea to study 18 credits, since it would fill your entire life with studies. For me, the social sciences were a great challenge with the more complicated terminology in those courses, although they were very interesting and provided new useful perspectives. They were perhaps too big a challenge for me with my somewhat limited language; I could have used another university course or two in French, even though I was very well prepared academically for the studies I undertook. In the second semester, I only studied the natural sciences, with the terminology closely resembling English words, even though I am content that I did the social sciences. I was happy with all the courses I took in terms of its content, but unfortunately, they varied a lot between them in terms of the amount of work they required. With the social sciences, there was a lot of reading you could do and it was expected, but you could just do the assignments and study for the tests to get a passing grade, although perhaps not much above, which was ok with me. This was overall less work than with the other courses because the expected but not required reading of articles took their space in the course. I think the amount of work you do to pass the different courses was more even and organized between courses at McGill University, the other university in Montreal in which you could do a general exchange from Uppsala University. From the perspective of different workload for the different courses makes me not want to recommend the Hydrology and Catchment areas courses since they were heavily loaded in work assignments and they comprised more work than other courses. But they were also very educational and I got several great insights from both of them. In terms of moderate enough workload, at least for a passing grade, I would recommend all the other courses, especially the language courses. They were a stark difference to the other courses. The assignments all added to the grade in a weighted manner, which meant you could skip them, but then it is much harder to get a passing grade. The relationship between students and teachers was very good and you always had the opportunity to ask questions, which was very much like Uppsala in my experience. A few of the teachers who didnt have French as their first language had a more limited teaching style and did not develop as good a relationship with the students as the other teachers, which was noticeable in fewer students and perhaps less laughing and smiley faces at lectures. However, the relationship was never bad and you could always talk to the teachers one-on-one. Things to know when choosing courses before going on the exchange is to focus on the general desired topic of your studies, and also the level of those studies (undergrad, postgrad or a mix between the two). For the application, you are required to propose courses that you will study, but these are not important since you choose the courses you will study when you arrive at the University, so you dont need to put much forethought into these choices when applying for the exchange. The purpose is rather for you to choose your study field and level. My tip is to choose something that youre interested in, if possible different studies from the ones in Uppsala in order to gain a new perspective. In my experience it was a really good idea to only do undergraduate studies despite the fact that I do postgraduate studies (masters thesis) in Uppsala. Everyones situation is different of course, but I recommend not taking the most Vetenskapsområdet för medicin och farmaci, Uppsala universitet Sida 18 av 237
difficult courses because going on exchange studies is in itself a new situation and it takes a while to accommodate yourself. The academic level and quality of my courses was very good, about the same as in Uppsala. The level of detail varied between different teachers, but mostly the academic knowledge required was reasonable. The quality of the content covered was good, but the workload was very high from all the assignments. I recommend looking at the course plans more carefully than you would do at Uppsala University, because apart from just the course schedule, some teachers put the assignment dates and hand-in instructions only on the course plan, which meant that if you didnt read it you missed that there were an assignment. Most teachers would use UdeMs version of the student portal for assignments and to hand out material and this was easiest since all things were gathered at one place. But for those rare cases when you couldnt submit assignments there, instructions would be on the course plan. Access to computers was very good, with the University pavilions spread out and each of them containing computers, especially the libraries. The examinations reflected the course material and assignments quite well but from my viewpoint it was a bit more focus on just remembering facts than in Uppsala. This might be due to the different subjects I have studied, with more problem-solving work in engineering than most natural sciences. Orientation and reception 13. Tell us about how it was to arrive and settle in. I arrived just before the semester started, one day before the introduction for all new geography undergraduate students and a test to determine which level of language course I would do, as well as two days before the courses started. This was due to my circumstances and is not recommended, although it worked out well in the end. I arrived without having arranged permanent accommodation, which was recommended to me, at least to not sign any contract at home. So I started at a youth hostel in central Montreal. I booked this for 4 nights to give some time to find accommodation for the entirety of my stay in Montreal. During this time I looked for accommodation with the help of the International Roommates in Montreal Facebook Page where you present yourself or accommodation you seek a roommate for. With the help of this I found accommodation very quickly, I got it on the 2nd try, five days after my arrival in Montreal. So I only prolonged my stay at the youth hostel for one night and then I moved in to the accommodation I stayed in for the rest of my stay in Montreal. These first days in Montreal were quite stressful, with both searching for accommodation and doing everything required for school, which is why I recommend arriving at least one or two weeks before the studies start, in order to settle in. The summer language course available for exchange students I recommend, if you can, in order to be better prepared. In Montreal, it was the same faculty that was responsible for all the language courses, Faculté déducation permanente (FEP), whether winter, summer or autumn trimester (each one third of a year, 4 months). This is good to know if you plan to take a language course at the side or in the summer. The summer courses almost never stretch 4 months, as I understand it, but they stretch from the period of the beginning of may until the end of august, the summer trimester. I also recommend reading up on the city youre going to as if youre a tourist, and also the province and country, so you know what trips you would like to do during your stay. I did not know many specifics about Montreal, but was very interested in the background of the French-speaking, how bilingual the city would be (very) and its role in Canadian history. Accommodation 14. Describe your accommodation. What type of accommodation did you have, where you satisfied? Do you have any tips for future students? The youth hostel I stayed in at first was Vetenskapsområdet för medicin och farmaci, Uppsala universitet Sida 19 av 237
a very typical one, with a lot of evening activities that you could participate in as well as orientation related activities, such as bike tours in the city. I was happy with it; breakfast was included and the lodging was decent. I got very lucky with my permanent accommodation, including how early I got it compared to when I arrived, which was good in order to avoid still searching for accommodation when the studies really got started. Apart from that, the accommodation itself was also very fine. It was located in a gentrified, southwestern neighborhood called Petite Bourgogne and it provided easy access to the rest of the city with subway, commuter train and bus. It was located closer to all the other major universities in Montreal (McGill, Concordia and UQAM) than UdeM that I went to. It took about 45 minutes to commute by subway to UdeM, which was a drawback of the location. However, it had everything you needed in close proximity; a supermarket, a market place and beautiful scenery for running and walking right next to a channel. The accommodation consisted of a three-floor house with one roommate living in the bottom floor and me and the other roommate staying in the upper floor while the middle floor consisted of a kitchen and common room. In terms of housework, it was like having a single roommate since we shared the kitchen, bathroom and space. In the back of the house, there was a garden with a pond. I was very satisfied with the accommodation. For future students, there are other options than Facebook, like AirBnb and advertisements to look for accommodation. Also, as stated above, it is a good idea to arrive in your exchange city sufficiently early in order to have time to look for good accommodation before the studies really get started. As a searcher of accommodation, you are a bit of an underdog since there are several people looking for it and the provider can therefore choose as they wish and it might take a few rounds to get it. However, the housing situation is much better than it is in Uppsala, with more apartments, residences and houses available, so this relationship is not as skewed. Overall, the situation will by all likelihood work itself out if you arrive early and dont try to arrange it before the trip, which puts you at risk of scams. Your finances 15. Describe the cost of living. Did you find CSN adequate? How was the rent in comparison to your rent in Uppsala? Did you undertake part-time work in addition to your studies? The cost of living was overall quite similar to the situation in Sweden. The rent cost for me in Montreal was 450CAD (2900kr), while my rent in Uppsala was about 620CAD (4000kr). However, most of the people in Uppsala, from what Ive seen, have a rent closer to 500CAD and the rent was often higher than that in Montreal. So I would say the rent situation is about the same in the two cities. In terms of groceries I found they were overall a little cheaper in Montreal than in Uppsala, but restaurants, bars and pubs were on the other hand overall more expensive since taxes and tips were not included in the price in Montreal. Taxes were 10% for the Canadian state and 5% for the province of Quebec, while 15-30% tip were expected at restaurants, and perhaps bars as well. I found CSN adequate to cover expenses. With the new system you got a single lump sum at the start of the semester, the sum a bit larger than with all the monthly payments combined for the old system. You could choose which system you wanted to use, I would recommend to make a budget yourself and to go with the new one. I did not undertake part-time work in addition to my studies since I found CSN adequate and the studies quite hard themselves. I would have had more opportunity to work part-time in the spring semester since I only studied 12 credits then, but did not and was content with that. Furthermore, I did not apply for a visa, which would be necessary in order to work in Canada. You need a study permit to apply for a visa, which I received (although only about 10 weeks after my arrival in Canada) because I was going to stay in Canada for more than 6 months. So I could have applied but did not feel the need to since I had decided to not work part-time. Vetenskapsområdet för medicin och farmaci, Uppsala universitet Sida 20 av 237