William (Sem 2, 2023)

My Exchange at The University of Edinburgh

I completed my one semester exchange at the University of exchange and returned home 2 weeks ago. When I first arrived in Scotland and went straight to my dorm, I felt that it felt a little bit lonely as I had left all my friends and family in New Zealand and was put in a dorm full of people I didn’t know. My accommodation was clean and in a fantastic location which was awesome but I found it very hard to make friends at the dorm as compared to my halls experience in New Zealand, there were very little events and opportunities to meet poeple in the same accommodation. However, as with many things, it just took time. I slowly started meeting people from the same accommodation through clubs and social activities organised by student bodies. There were many of these events organised by clubs during orientation week which I found amazing. I went to a few football taster sessions and was able to meet many people (local students and exchange students) who I can now happily call “friends”. Some of these happened to be from my hall (Shrubhill) which was amazing as I was able to go and come home together from football matches and other events. What was cool about this orientation week was the number of clubs that were there. There was a club for literally anything you could think of and I was able to see and meet people who were interested in a wide variety of things. The coolest experience I had during this time was going to the baseball club opening sesion. I have never played baseball but I felt like I wanted to give it a try and it turned out to be extremely fun! 

Living in Edinburgh was definitely the highlight of my exchange. As my dorm was a 20 minute walk away from University, I was able to walk through some of the oldest buildings in Europe every day and it felt like I was living in a movie. The cost of living in Scotland was also very reasonable. In fact, I would say that some products are even cheaper than New Zealand, which was a great reflief as I had heard that some parts of the United Kingdom such as London can be very expensive. 

In terms of advice for future exchange students, I would say to “make the most of every day”. Time flies, especially in a 1 semester exchange, and before I knew it, I was already in January finishing up my time in Edinburgh! If there is an event on, I would recommend you to go. Even if you don’t enjoy it, at least you gave it a go and met some new people. It was those events that I didn’t really want to go to where I met the coolest people in the end. So, my advise is to just put yourself out there because it’s only a temporary exchange!

Q&A

What were some of the highlights of the academic experience at your host university?

The highlight of my academic experience at the University of Edinburgh was by far the globalization class I took. I was able to study this course with a fellow student from the University of Auckland who I met during the exchange. This class was fascinating for me because it was something I was studying a lot back home but it had a very different lens to it. I was always studying globalisation through a fairly political perspective, but here in Edinburgh, I was able to study it from a sociology point of view, which I found fascinating as it was something I had never really come across in Auckland. The assignments for this class was also very fun to complete as there was a lot of freedom with the essays we could write and the questions we could pick and choose. 

Would you recommend any particular activity/activities unique to your host country or university?

I would recommend going to a sports game. The atmosphere, especially for rugby and football games, are surreal and something I have never experienced in New Zealand. People love their sports in Scotland so that was an unreal experience for me, especially because I play football and love rugby myself. 

What are your top 3 tips for future students attending your host university or going on exchange to your host country?

• Join a club (whether it’s serious or social)! I joined a five-aside team who were some of my best friends during my exchange and I also played for a football team. It is at these clubs where you can meet people and go to events. 
• Find your study spot! I found an amazing spot to study at the University which was great because every dorm is a little distance away from the campus so being able to study at Uni in between classes was essential. 
• Shop at LIDL. It was such a cheap supermarket and there is one right by the University! 

How much did you budget for your exchange? Was this enough? Were there any lessons learned that would help future students budget for their own exchange?

I budgeted around 300 pounds to spend every month from September to January. This was more than enough considering how cheap it was to eat at home and cook for myself. However, if you eat out a lot, I think more money will be needed because the price for eating out is very expensive. I definitely learned the importance of cooking at home to save money and also carrying your student ID wherever you go because the city offers MANY student discounts. 

What are your most significant takeaways from your experience abroad?

My most significant takeaway was the importance of putting yourself out there. I was only in Scotland for 4 months, and this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to be able to go on an exchange to study in a new place and meet new people. As I wrote above, the best people I met were as a result of me putting myself out there and going to events even if I was nervous or shy. The only way I was able to meet people and make the most out of this 4 month experience was because I put myself out there without caring about what others might think or how nervous I was. 

Do you want to share anything about travels you did outside your host city/country?

Because I was in the United Kingdom, I found time during the semester to go around the United Kingdom a lot. I visited Newcastle four times as it was right by Scotland (only a 2 hour train ride!), London twice as it was such a nice city to shop and look around and Liverpool once where I visited one of my favourite football stadiums in the world: Anfield. I also had the chance to travel around Europe a little bit – I went to countries like Italy, France and Spain. I wouldn’t have been able to go to any of these countries from New Zealand so I am so glad I did this exchange. 

Final Comments

I would 100000% recommend doing an exchange. Not only do you get to study what you like overseas in a new setting, you get meet so many new people, make lifelong connections and live in a new place. So much fun. I think this exchange changed me as a person and I will forever be thankful for this opportunity.