One semester in Madrid

Hola a todos! I am sorry, i didn t post anything last week because i was in exams…

This will be my last article as I already finished my last test yesterday. I would like to make a quick summary about my Erasmus experience in Spain.

When I arrived in Madrid I was excited but also very nervous. I had a lot of questions in my mind: how will I find a flat, make friends, understand lessons…

In the first month it was all about organization and installation. My first flat was good, but I didn’t like so much live with just one guy so after two weeks I moved into another one much more better and very well located! During the first classes it was hard to stay focused during 2 hours because of the language. But after a while I got used to listen to the teachers and really enjoyed all the lessons that I had. Very quickly I made a lot of friends, not only Spanish but from all part of the world: Mexico, Portugal, Germany, Poland,… 15723914_10211820979501834_847293537_n

In the following months I visited a lot of places and cities (Segovia, Zaragoza, Valencia, Escorial, Porto in Portugal). I also enjoyed parties and Erasmus events where I met a lot of people. And of course I got to know Madrid! It’s an amazing capital… Even in four months here it was not enough to discover it fully. 15682698_10211821008742565_1630120320_n

In the last month, I focused myself on studies. I changed my way to work and passed a lot of time in the library. Lessons in Spain are relatively simple but it’s not as easy as it looks for exams. Even if I had just six subjects it took me a lot to learn them.

The think that I liked the most was to meet people from everywhere. I already know that i will visit some of them in their country and that i will return in Madrid. I loved the fact that I was able to speak both in English and in Spanish. This was the most rewarding part of my trip. I improved my understanding and i m not shy anymore to speak in another language.

I am very sad to be obliged to come back so soon! I would like to have stayed here one semester more. But as all Erasmus people said we have to return to “real life” one day or another…15673567_10211820933140675_1241871492_n

Even if my courses in the university are over I will stay here until the beginning of lessons in France. I am going to pass Christmas and New Year with my friends and enjoy fully my last days in Madrid.

I hope that you have appreciated my posts! But above all I hope that they made you want to go to study abroad.

Good bye 

Breaking It Down / Student Loans

Follow the Erasmus’ adventure in Southampton of the students from the IEMN-IAE, Nantes, France. Every other week, “Breaking it down” tries to make things as clear as possible about a tricky UK topic!

Summary Episode:
Can you afford university? What kind of loan can you apply for in the UK? Breaking the student loans down!

<3 This is the last Episode of “Breaking It Down”, and of our stay in Southampton. Thank you os much for watching, hope you liked it, take care! <3 

Continue reading »

Haltian Products Oy Company

 “Let’s kids be kids with Snowfox to explore the world.”

A student friend who studies at the Business School has chosen the lecture “Strategic Marketing Management” during the period A. Thanks of the partnership between the university of Oulu and the company Haltian Products Oy (located in Oulu), Gabrielle Naud realized a market study to analysis the possibility of setting-up in the United Kingdom, according to the culture of the country, the family practices… The main objectif of this lecture, was to make the analysis by group, sub-shape of challenge. Gabrielle and her team, 4 others persons, have won the competition.

Snowbox is a trackerphone for kids and seniors. It permits to see where they are, be there for them, and know what happens. This first child’s first phone helping with the first moments of independence. But it can also help old people to live an active and more independence life. Thus, it is useful in family’s daily life. You can know where you lowed ones are and how to reach them.

It develops 3 functionalities. The first one is used to sends their location to the snowfox smartphone in real time. Then, call snowfox from the smartphone application at any time. The last function is necessary to send notifications automatically when the user arriving or leaving a place. The application has up to one week battery.

 

 

This is the end of my semester in Finland, so my last post on this blog. I hope after having followed all our adventures, we have given you the desire to come and do your exchange here. If you have any questions don’t hesitate. See you later !   

Welcome to Tallinn

Situated on the coast of the Baltic Sea, Tallinn is simply loveable, a jewel of the Baltic state. This medieval city is a capital of Estonia. The city center was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is easy to visit this atypical city, distances are short, and you can discover much in just a weekend or even a day. One of the oldest fortresses of Europe surrounds the city and reflects its past. You will see for yourselves how charming and beautiful Tallinn can be with its merchant’s house, cobbled streets, colored facades and red tile roofs.

If you are lucky like us to visit Tallinn during Christmas time, you could see the beautiful Christmas market, and degusted an excellent mulled wine.

tallinn

« Assessment of my experience in Scotland »

Did you enjoy your semester in Dundee ?

“The best experience of my life”

 

Living abroad is not easy. We leave our family, friends, all our habits. We arrive in a new country with another language, culture and people.

The first days were complicated because I realised that I was alone and I was here for 4 months.

The first thing that I did was Facetime my family.

A few days after, it was better. I went to the university, I started to visit the country and I met my flatmates.

Now, when I’m thinking about this experience, I can say, “it’s the best experience of my life”. Why ?

Because I met people, I studied new courses; I saw another way of studying (which is better than in France). I discovered a new country and saw amazing places. I also did new sports like Kangoo Jump.

 

What did experience bring you ?

“Travel changes you”

I enjoyed my life in Scotland and I regret nothing.

I learned a lot of things during these 4 months, because I lived in a community so I had to be more clement and less strict.

Now, I know that we have one life and we have to enjoy it. It is important to discover other people and other country; it’s a way to be more open-minded.

 

“Travel often; getting lost will help you find yourself”

I will never forget all the places that I have seen, all the people that I met, all the moment that I shared here. Even when I was lost in the cities, I liked it. Because I had to search by myself, talk with people to have more information.

 

What did you enjoy the most ?

Maybe the best moments are:

-When my family came to Scotland :

During that week I had to speak English instead of my parents and translate for them. And that’s when I realised that my English was better because now I can have a conversation with someone. Even if I still make mistakes, my sentences are easily understandable.

-When I spent a weekend in Edinburgh:

It was the opportunity to see Scotland’s biggest city. To me, it’s also the most beautiful city.

-Stonehaven and Arbroath cliffs : it was amazing because I saw very beautiful landscapes

-All parties with my flatmates

 

How did you like the courses ?

To be honest, I liked all the courses. I liked the way of studying here. We have less courses than in France but it is an opportunity for us to focus on the most important points.

The best is “International Financial Accounting” because we studied the international accounting so it can be very useful in the future. The teacher was perfect because she spoke without an accent and not faster.

“Corporate Finance” and “Taxation” were less interesting but useful.

 

Would you recommend spending a semester in Dundee ?

Yeah, sure.

First, the city is very nice, there are a lot of students and there are so many things to do.

Moreover, the university is pretty good. The teachers are always here for us. If we need something they reply very fast! They are worried about our future, and they help students to be more confident for the exam and for the future.

And, Scotland is a very beautiful country. I saw a lot of fabulous landscapes: I will never forget this !

 

Assessment of my experience in Scotland

Hello everybody !

It’s almost the end of our experience in Dundee. So, this is the assessment of my personal experience.

 

Did you enjoy your semester in Dundee?

Yes, this semester was an awesome experience! I’ll never forgot this, it was fantastic and so rewarding! I think it’s the best part of my studies.

 

What did you enjoy the most?

I enjoyed all my trip! To start, I like the academic system which enable us to have time to do sport, to go out, and to visit the country. I think what I enjoyed the most was all the trips in Scotland. Scotland it’s a very beautiful country and you can see so many beautiful things: mountains, lakes, the amazing landscape with its cliffs, the old cities…

I particularly enjoyed the trip ain Arbroath Cliffs, it was extraordinary and so beautiful, I think it was the most beautiful things I seen in Scotland.

Arbroath Cliffs

But I really enjoyed my trip in Edinburgh too. Edinburgh is a very beautiful city with lots of things to do. You can walk in the old city where there are lots of shops, you can visit monuments, museums, the castle and more, and you can also climb some hills. I recommend especially to visit the National Scottish Museum which is very entertaining and to climb the hill to the Arthur’s seat where you have the most beautiful view of Edinburgh.

Arthur’s Seat

How did you like the courses?

I really like the Scottish academic system, I prefer it than the French system.

I liked my 3 courses which met my expectations. The course I preferred was International Financial Accounting because it’s lots of calculations and my professor was very good.

 

Would you recommend spending a semester in Dundee?

Of course! Everybody should spend a semester abroad, it’s the best experience for a student!

Today English is very important, so you have to speak a good English and the best method to improve your English is to go in an English-speaker country. Moreover, it’s very good when recruiters see you spent a semester abroad in your CV.

I think Dundee is a good choice for a semester abroad. Dundee is situated in an English-speaking country so if you want to improve your English it’s a good point. But the main reason why you should choice Dundee is because Scotland is an amazing country. People in Scotland are very nice, and it’s a so beautiful country with lots of fantastic things to see!

 

What did this experience bring to you?

I decided to do a semester abroad principally to improve my English. And I think I really get it better, especially in oral comprehension and at speaking.

Then, this experience allowed me to discover the beautiful country of Scotland and the Scottish culture. And a semester abroad permit the open-mindedness that is, I think, a good point.

To finish, this experience develop the independence and the socialization. Indeed, you are alone in a city you don’t know, with people you don’t know who speak a language you don’t speak really well. So, you have to speak to people to ask for help and also to make friends, so you can’t be shy. And, you have to manage by yourself in everyday life and also when you organize travels in Scotland. So, this experience really allows me to improve my independence.

 

 

To conclude, a semester abroad it’s an amazing experience that I would recommend to everybody. Dundee was a really good choice. And this experience bring me lots of good points, especially to improve my English that was my reason to leave.

 

I hope I made you want to do a semester or a year abroad.

Bye Bye ! 🙂

Trip to Valencia!

Hi everybody! Erasmus life is not only about studying but also discovering new areas. Many students take this opportunity to visit the main cities of the country.

For my part I decided to go to Valencia it’s only at 3 hours by car from Madrid. I took a Blablacar with my flatmate. It’s a really good way to make enriching meetings and it’s really cheap! I went at the end of September and temperatures were still very high (30 degrees).

We stayed 2 days and as my sister was studying in Valencia we slept in her shareflat with 3 others girls from Germany, Czech Republic and Spain. Valencia is fantastic for nights out. So on Friday night we went to the Umbracle, it’s a huge nightclub completely open to the outside.

Umbracle

 

The Saturday we decided to take the bus to go to Gandia (at 1 hour).There, was organized a pool party for Erasmus people. It was really hot and the place was amazing with a big pool and a lot of palm trees. We had a great time.

On Sunday we visited the city center of Valencia and the City of Arts and Sciences. It’s a scientific and cultural leisure complex designed by the Valencian architect Santiago Calatrava. The Umbracle building is part of it.

City of Arts and Sciences

 

During the afternoon we enjoyed the beach and ate Paella. It’s the typical meal of Valencia.

Unfortunately we didn’t have enough time to see the Oceanogràfic. It’s the largest aquarium in Europe. It houses 45000 animals of 500 different species!

I really enjoyed this trip because we met new people and discovered a new town which is the third largest city in Spain after Madrid and Barcelona.

Have a good week!

A semester in Dundee :

It is the end of the semester in Abertay University and the end of our semester abroad as well, that’s why with Emilie and Audrey we decided to each write a post about our experience abroad in Dundee, this week answering the same questions so you can get an overview of what it is like to spend a semester in Scotland.

Did you enjoy your semester in Dundee ?

Yes, I enjoyed it a lot. I have a great group of friends here with who I travel around Scotland during the weekends it was great.

What did you enjoy the most ?

I would say what I enjoyed the most was to spend a weekend on the isle of Skye with a lot of other international students. It was great to see the beautiful landscapes the isle has to offer and to spend a weekend with friends.

How did you like the courses ?

The courses were good, all the lecturers are really involved into their job and you feel like they really want you to succeed. My modules were interesting but also challenging because the level is some time a little bit high. The thing which is very good about eduction in Scotland is how organize the teachers are here, for example during the first class they give you a time table of what you are going to do during the semester and this timetable is really followed.

Would you recommend spending a semester in Dundee ?

Absolutely ! I am really happy I have been lucky enough to spend a semester in Dundee. Here I had 9 hours of classes per week, so even if I had to work quite a lot by my self I could enjoy quite a lot of free time. Dundee is a great starting point if you want to discover Scotland beautiful landscapes. You are also near the main Scottish cities so if you want to do a bit of tourism Dundee is great for you. The student life is also great here, you have access to a lot of facilities like the gym for example. Also and it’s a considerable asset you will improve your english quite a lot staying in the UK.

What did this experience bring to you?

I met great people during my time here, I discover a new country and a new culture. I will keep such amazing memories of my time here.

My level of english improved and I experience a complete different way of studying. The only thing I wish could be different is that I would stay here for the full year rather that only one semester.

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