Andreas
Germany
Institution attended in home country: RWTH Aachen (University of Technology)
Institution attended in Australia: University of Western Australia
“My
stay will leave a permanent impression on me, affecting the way I think
and behave, in private life as well as professionally.” This is how
Andreas from Germany sums up his experience in Australia.
As a
postgraduate student of physics, Andreas has already had plenty of
experience as a student, but he could not have anticipated how different
his Australian education would be and how far it would exceed his
expectations. “The quality is very good and because of smaller groups
the interaction between students and professors is far better than I’d
ever hoped for.”
Even though his German university does not have
any formal exchange agreements with Australia, Andreas was keen enough
to organise things himself. He was careful to check details about study
credit with his home university, but he also found everyone at his
Australian host institution very eager to help—he even spoke to his
teachers to discuss his studies before he arrived.
Andreas was
sure that he would benefit academically from coming to Australia. Once
he arrived, he also discovered that living in the West Australian
capital of Perth gave him plenty of opportunities to enjoy the
Australian lifestyle.
“The climate is absolutely fantastic and
there are amazing outdoor activities here. I love the character of the
people—very relaxed. People seem happier and don’t live for work as much
as back home. One can learn a lot and still have a great deal of fun.
Its remoteness gives you a very unique view of the rest of the world.”
Andreas
had many reasons to study abroad, but he was especially keen to become
more independent. Australia gave him every opportunity to enjoy himself
while developing his personal strengths: “For the first time, I had to
adapt to a totally new environment and do everything on my own,” Andreas
says. “I’ve gotten to know so many different people from all over the
world, shared opinions and learned a lot,” he says.
And if he
needed help, Andreas found plenty of it at his university. “They
organised trips for international students and helped with every
possible question there was. If they didn’t know it, they knew somebody
who could help.”
Andreas advises others who are planning an
exchange to “get in touch with the people you’ll be working/studying
with on the phone, and talk about it with your study advisor at your
home university.” Most importantly, Andreas says: “Pick a couple of
universities that you find suitable and then go look at the city and
surrounding area. You don’t want to come here to study only!”