Erasmus Options?

Phoenix Wright

Hi there,

I'm in second year at the moment and I will be gone on Erasmus this time next year. I've got until the 31st of October to indicate my preference in terms of colleges and I have no clue where to go. There's just so many things to consider and I don't know where to start..

Has anyone got any experiences that they can share? My options are: Netherlands, Germany, Spain, Hungary, Poland, UK, Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Belgium.

Also, do any college semesters in the above countries finish before Christmas? Having to study during the Christmas holidays and return just sounds like a nuisance..

Aragneer

Phoenix Wright wrote: »

Hi there,

I'm in second year at the moment and I will be gone on Erasmus this time next year. I've got until the 31st of October to indicate my preference in terms of colleges and I have no clue where to go. There's just so many things to consider and I don't know where to start..

Has anyone got any experiences that they can share? My options are: Netherlands, Germany, Spain, Hungary, Poland, UK, Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Belgium.

Also, do any college semesters in the above countries finish before Christmas? Having to study during the Christmas holidays and return just sounds like a nuisance..

Before I can give any advice on the options in Germany, what are you studying?

Also in reference to the Christmas holidays, there are a few places but also you can sometimes get an early.exam, essays instead of exams, if.your lecturer is understanding enough! I had to stay through Christmas and had.my exam at the end of January..

Phoenix Wright

Aragneer wrote: »

Before I can give any advice on the options in Germany, what are you studying?

Also in reference to the Christmas holidays, there are a few places but also you can sometimes get an early.exam, essays instead of exams, if.your lecturer is understanding enough! I had to stay through Christmas and had.my exam at the end of January..

Thanks for your response

Yeah, staying through Christmas isn't exactly ideal. If your exams were at the end of January, were you pretty much into a new semester in UL upon arriving back home to Ireland?

I'm studying Psych and Soc, but I'm definitely going to be steering clear of sociology modules if I can. The places/universities in Germany are: Bielefeld, Dresden, Heidelberg, Jena and Marburg.

highlydebased

I went to Malta and most definitely recommend there if you can

Also a number of my friends went to the Netherlands (Gronigen and Hanze I think?) and they also recommended it

Definitely worth handing back your form as soon as you can to avoid disappointment.

VanishingActs

I'm in Norway on Erasmus right now. I am enjoying it but honestly it's so expensive. The semester at my uni (Agder, I think the Psych partnership is with the one in Bergen though) started August 7th and finishes December 19th. Well technically it finishes November 21st but the exams could be any time between then and the 19th. I only have to take two classes here because they're 15 and 10 credits. Most classes are 10 credits so three is the most anyone takes. I have VERY few hours (9 1/2 a week with random weeks off) and everything is so laid back. It rains here more than it does in Ireland but they're fond of saying "there's no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing". You don't need to know any Norwegian, most people speak perfect English.

Feel free to PM me with any questions.

Aragneer

Phoenix Wright wrote: »

Thanks for your response

Yeah, staying through Christmas isn't exactly ideal. If your exams were at the end of January, were you pretty much into a new semester in UL upon arriving back home to Ireland?

I'm studying Psych and Soc, but I'm definitely going to be steering clear of sociology modules if I can. The places/universities in Germany are: Bielefeld, Dresden, Heidelberg, Jena and Marburg.

I actually missed Week 1 and 2 of the new semester but I e-mailed my professors and everyone understood and didn't mark me for attendance until I was back which was nice of them.

Dresden, Jena and Marburg are meant to be the best and also the cheapest. I have heard very good things about Jena and there is a German Psych student currently at UL from Marburg who said it is possibly one of the top for that course.

Germany is really cheap too but you would need to talk to lecturers about semesters.

Phoenix Wright

VanishingActs wrote: »

I'm in Norway on Erasmus right now. I am enjoying it but honestly it's so expensive. The semester at my uni (Agder, I think the Psych partnership is with the one in Bergen though) started August 7th and finishes December 19th. Well technically it finishes November 21st but the exams could be any time between then and the 19th. I only have to take two classes here because they're 15 and 10 credits. Most classes are 10 credits so three is the most anyone takes. I have VERY few hours (9 1/2 a week with random weeks off) and everything is so laid back. It rains here more than it does in Ireland but they're fond of saying "there's no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing". You don't need to know any Norwegian, most people speak perfect English.

Feel free to PM me with any questions.

Appreciate it!

Phoenix Wright

Aragneer wrote: »

I actually missed Week 1 and 2 of the new semester but I e-mailed my professors and everyone understood and didn't mark me for attendance until I was back which was nice of them.

Dresden, Jena and Marburg are meant to be the best and also the cheapest. I have heard very good things about Jena and there is a German Psych student currently at UL from Marburg who said it is possibly one of the top for that course.

Germany is really cheap too but you would need to talk to lecturers about semesters.

I've started to lean towards Germany from reading the Erasmus reports of others. It seems like Dresden's semester starts in October and runs into February though, it'd probably be too late getting back and readjusting In the last few days I've narrowed down my options and I'm considering Germany, Netherlands, Madrid and Hungary.

pbowenroe

Where can you read the erasmus reports?

Aragneer

Phoenix Wright wrote: »

I've started to lean towards Germany from reading the Erasmus reports of others. It seems like Dresden's semester starts in October and runs into February though, it'd probably be too late getting back and readjusting In the last few days I've narrowed down my options and I'm considering Germany, Netherlands, Madrid and Hungary.

If you're worried about running into February, do not worry. Usually this is just a rough estimate. My classes in Germany finished in the first two weeks of January and then I got home on the 1st of February. The only reason I missed two weeks was one, due to the semester in UL starting at the end of January (early) last year and then I stayed with my family for another week. You honestly only miss one week of college and that is week 1, where everything is not so important

Phoenix Wright

pbowenroe wrote: »

Where can you read the erasmus reports?

http://www.ul.ie/international/en/home/erasmus-exchange/partner-universities/

If you can't access them, then give me a pm and I'll send you a user/password

Phoenix Wright

Aragneer wrote: »

If you're worried about running into February, do not worry. Usually this is just a rough estimate. My classes in Germany finished in the first two weeks of January and then I got home on the 1st of February. The only reason I missed two weeks was one, due to the semester in UL starting at the end of January (early) last year and then I stayed with my family for another week. You honestly only miss one week of college and that is week 1, where everything is not so important

Usually Week 1 feels like a little bit of a waste of time, so missing it would be no problem. Now I've narrowed my choices down to Germany and Netherlands so I'm going to read the reports on the colleges and take it from there Hopefully I'll get my preferences sheet in by the end of the week, but I've got my interview for co-op on Thursday and a lab report so it's been a busy couple of weeks!