Next year I have to study abroad, as it is a component of my course at university, however the places are limited because I can only speak English and many countries don't offer courses in English.

Basically the countries that offer English are:

Canada (obviously)
U.S.A (obviously, and I have been there twice before so I would like a change)
United Kingdom (obviously)
Mexico
Denmark
Norway
The Netherlands
Sweden
Slovenia (not sure if they offer English yet, I have to look further into it, I know nothing about this country)

So people please recommend a place for me to live and study for 6 months.

I love you guys, Thanks!

Oops, forgot to mention I live in Australia, so that is out of the question!
[Edited 5/19/07 20:15pm]

i want to study a borad.

Well I live in Sweden and aussies generally seem to like it here, if you can put up with a colder climate of course. I can also warmly recommend Canada, at least if you choose Vancouver. I lived and studied there for two years and really enjoyed it.

retina said:

Thanks.

They recommended Sweden, they said it was cheaper (??) than other places, such as England. I am really considering Sweden.. I think Jonkoping University is an option and a few others with similar sounding names, but I can't remember them. Lol

Excuse my ignorance, but can you take a boat to Germany or Poland or any places around there? Or do you fly? I have absolutely no idea. I must sound like such a fool! Sorry!

Whenever I study a broad,
I like to go south of the border.

Tonylover said:

I think what they mean is that the tuition fees are much lower. For Swedish students it's basically free to study at the university (except for a symbolic fee of around $30) and even though I think international students pay a bit more, it's still not much by international standards.

However, Sweden is most definitely not a cheap place to live in. The standard of living is high, but you have to pay for it. Everything from food, rent, transportation and clothes to smaller things like movies or beer is expensive.



Are you from a small town? In that case you might feel at home in Jönköping (which is a Christian stronghold by the way). If not, I'd advise you to pick Stockholm or Göteborg instead which are both very nice cities with plenty of culture and things to do. Uppsala is quite a bit smaller, but has a very active university culture.



There are many ways to get to the European mainland. Several boat and flight routes as well as a bridge that you can drive across. Getting around quickly is not a problem although again, you'll have to pay for it.

My daughter is looking into exchange student programs and so far her 1st pick is sweden.

Mach said:

Which university?

retina said:

She is just finishing 9th grade here ( highschool ) ... it would be in her 10th-12-th grade yrs

Is that University level ?

Mach said:

Hmm, all these different education systems always confuse me. It took me a while to realize the differences and similarities between the Swedish, Canadian and Japanese ones. The US one I don't know much about.

Here's how it works in Sweden:

Age

7-9 Lågstadiet (mandatory)
10-12 Mellanstadiet (mandatory)
13-15 Högstadiet (mandatory)
16-18 Gymnasiet (optional, but everybody does it anyway)

You (usually) graduate the year you turn 19, and after that it's university or högskola (which is university-level education, but not always academic).

So, where does she fit in?

16-18 Gymnasiet (?)

Jess turns 16 next Nov.

My Paternal family ( Dad's Dad ) Is from Sweden so that attracts Jess as well

Mach said:

Ah, okay. Well to be honest I think she's too young to come over here to study then, unfortunately. I've never ever heard of any international students being accepted at Gymnasiet (it's confusing that it sounds like your word "gymnasium", I know) unless they've moved here permanently. Only the universities accept visiting students as far as I know. I could be wrong though, maybe there are some independent international gymnasier that I haven't heard about.



Nice to hear of a youngster who shows interest in her roots. I think she would like it here.

Tonylover said:

That's easy, go to The Netherlands.

retina said:

Wow, thankyou, you are very helpful.
I hope sweden isn't too cold. I would probably be visiting in the second half of next year, when is your winter? What is the average temp during winter over there?
Sorry, I'm probably asking too many questions, I am just very interested.

Also the universities that I am able to attend are:
Jonkoping Uni (which I previously stated)
It doesn't seem like my particular thing concidering I come from Melbourne, which isn't particularly "country".
Linkoping University
Uppsala University

So basically out of those three universities you would recommend Uppsala, as it would appeal more to a city girl? Right?

Thankyou very much!

gemini13 said:

I don't know much about The Netherlands. Do you?
Could you recommend cities and such? Thanks.

Mach said:

I get confused when you talk about your daughter because we both have the name Jessica and everyone calls me Jess too. Its the Perverbial school attendance, Jessia are you present and five people say yes, then the teacher realizes they need to specify which Jessica they are asking about.

Tonylover said:

Glad to hear that.



Well, it varies quite a bit but the last few years summer has been nice and warm in June, July and August and then stretched pretty much all the way through September with temperatures at least in the low 20s (Celsius) before turning into fall in October. In the fall temperatures are usually between 7 and 12 degrees on average. Then in the winter, which pretty much stretches from december to march, temperatures can stay around or even well below zero, although the last few years it's been very rare that they've dropped below -10C. Many winter days the temperature can be above zero too, it all varies year by year.



Hmm, it's too bad that Stockholm University is not available to you (how come?) because all of the towns you mention are quite small. Out of the three I'd definitely pick Uppsala though. It's also small, but like I said there's an active university culture with plenty of university-related pubs and activities etc. It's also fairly close to Stockholm, so that's a big plus. It can be a bit expensive to take the train to Stockholm Central Station but at least the trip takes only around 45 minutes if I remember correctly.

Let me know if there's anything else you're wondering about Sweden or its culture. I know what it's like to be an internaional student and not know anything about one's destination. It can be tough.

mostbeautifulgrlntheworld said:

retina said:

Thanks again!
I have no idea why they haven't offered an exchange with Stockholm, it is pretty bizarre.
I was speaking with a girl today that studied at Uppsala Uni last year, she absolutely loved it. She stayed an extra 6 months because she enjoyed it so much. I hope I feel the same way as her, I guess it depends on the person.

Come to think of it, when people from Australia go overseas and then return home they realise how rural this country is. Lol. So maybe I will fit in great in these so called "country" areas.

Australia's temps never drop below 0 degrees (celcius), so it should be interesting. I will probably die of hyperthermia, because I won't rug up enough. Or I will be one of those annoying tourists, who runs around harping on about how much warmer their country is and how they wish they were back home. Lol. Nah I would never do that! Atleast I hope not!

I never realised that Swedish people spoke english so well. You speak it better than I do. Once again excuse my ignorance, I have never been to Europe before, so it's all very new. I assume you either have learnt it from pre-school age onwards or it is your first language... just a guess. Does everyone speak English or has it become more dominant in the last couple of decades? Will it be concidered rude if I don't speak the language? Btw, I am terrible at languages.

If I do go, I will make sure to share. You're probably thinking.. buddy who cares! Lol. Oh well.

Peace and Love

Christina xx

I'm from Sweden too, Stockholm and I can say it's a pity they don't offer Stockholm University, cos their English programme is excellent - I took it for a little more than 2 semesters and had a blast. I recommend Uppsala for the same reasons that retina does, and will add that there are Prince fans to be met up with here and we're only a short train ride away then Uppsala is a university town with a lot of tradition and a very pleasant place at that.

To answer your questions about Sweden and languages, yes everybody (at least under the age of 60 ) speaks English and it's not at all considered rude for you not to speak the language. Also, in a university town like Uppsala people are very used to exchange students so you'll have no problems there. Stockholm's the capital so we're also very used to people speaking other languages. I hope you pick Sweden!

Teacher said:

Well right now Sweden is looking very promising. However, I really don't know much about any of the other European countries that are offered. So, I'm still a little uninformed, but even so I like finding out new things about countries I know barely anything about, like Sweden for example.

But the more you guys share, the more I will learn and the easier my decision will be.

Are you guys fair over there? (I'm referring to complexion, just wondering, because I have heard numerous things)

Thanks.

Christina xx

Tonylover said:

Emmm... I am fair... we have all types here but I'd say in general we are, lotsa blonde people here but also a good portion of immigrants/people with darker complexion. ArielB, when he was here (he's from Israel), kept walking into lamp posts cos he was looking at all the lightly dressed blonde women in the summertime

As for Norway, it's VERY expensive to live in, ridiculously so from what I've heard from people who've either been there or lived there. I've only been to Copenhagen when it comes to Denmark but I absolutely loved it.

One thing I can say about your choosing a country - no matter which European country you choose you will have the opportunity to experience OLD history, even though the Netherlands was bombed during WW2 so a lot of architecture was lost. History doesn't mean the same thing to people in the US/Canada/Australia as it does to Europeans, we have so much more history and it's still very vivid even if we're talking about the 12th century and even farther back. So, if you're interested in these things, Europe it should be.

Teacher said:

Sounds like a typical man
Yeah, I thought it might be multicultural, which can be a good thing. Lots of variety, if you know what I mean...

Tonylover said:

I know what you mean

Teacher said:

Yeah, well I have been interesting in Europe for years, so I already know that Europe will probably be the place for me. I also like the idea of Canada, but that limits me to only travelling around Canada and U.S after studying. Whereas, if I visit Europe I will easily be able to visit many different countries. Yay, this is sooooo exciting, I'm on the verge of creaming my panties and I haven't even decided on a place yet. Imagine what will happen when I do.. oh god ..images! Eeek.

I vote for The Netherlands....the Dutch (in my experience) are very nice, speak English perfectly, but more importantly you'll be close to "mainland" Europe in case you want to travel to other countries. (Which I highly recommend.)

Also, Heinken is Dutch...it's like water there! j/k

Tonylover said:

Cool.



Maybe, but just to put things into perspective for you; Melbourne has a population of 3.7 million, while Uppsala has a population of 130.000... So don't expect too much in terms of urbanization.



I think you'll be okay. Your spirit alone seems to be enough to keep yourself and people around you warm enough.



Wow, that's a great compliment. No, English is not my first language nor do we learn it from a pre-school age (English classes are first introduced on the curriculum when the kids are ten years old). I have however travelled quite a lot and taught English in Japan, plus I have always been interested in languages so maybe that has rubbed off on my ability to write in English to a certain extent. Here on the org I don't pay much attention to how I express myself though, which makes your compliment even more touching.



It's become more and more dominant, but even twenty or thirty years ago you were able to get by with English in Sweden. Most people think it's fun to talk to foreigners and do their best with whatever vocabulary and grammar they know.



Not at all, but of course people will be impressed if you try to learn a few Swedish words. They will probably laugh at you if you do, but not because you're doing it wrong or sound silly but rather because it's unusual and exciting to hear a foreigner make the effort.



Buddy, who cares?

Kidding. Of course we want you to come. As you can see you already have two friends here.

.

i didnt read many of the other responses, but London is cool if you want to experience culture and barcelona, if you want good weather..

Manchester is a cheaper alternative to London..

DevotedPuppy said:

"close to mainland Europe"?? It's ON the mainland...