264 reviews
4.08 / 5 based on 264 reviews

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Ségolène V
Housing
Type of housing: A room exchange
Arranged by: Host university
If returning, I would choose: Apartment/House
Why?
I would go to the same place because I shared an appartment with other students. And many exchange students were there.
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Personal comments
I was very lucky because I didn't have to look for an accolodation myself. Moreover, most of the exchange students going to my school were living there: it was a means to meet people! I had the opportunity to share an appartment with 2 students and it was a great experience. The location of the accomodation was quite good: it took 5 minutes by train to go to the centre of the city.
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Ségolène V
Student life
Describe host city:
Nightlife, Travel: Takes place mostly within the university/student environment
Activities: Takes place both within and outside of the university/student environment
Personal social experience
Personal comments
The student union of the university (KY) was very welcoming. It organised many things for exchange students: a cottage week-end, trips and, of course, many parties at CONTROL (on thursday nights). But we also went to night clubs by ourselves: Tiger, Kerma, Teatri were nice places. There was an Irish pub I liked as well: Molly Malone.
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Ségolène V
Overall
I wish I had known...
It is very cold and you should bring warm clothes
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In my opinion:
Most people loved it.
Important factors in my choice
(1) Unimportant – (4) Very important
Personal recommendation
I really loved my stay in helsinki because I met great people. Indeed, I met other exchange students and haad fun with them. But I really liked the fact that the student Union of the university really cared bout exchange students: I had 2 tutors who helped me opening a bank account, buying a phone but also went out with the exchange students. The students of the university are very welcoming, that is why you should go there!
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During my experience abroad, I ...
(1) Never – (4) A lot
Became familiar with another culture
Met people from other countries
Experienced a change in life
Advanced my studies & career
Final comments
I discovered a culture different from mine and it was a great experience. indeed, I became a sauna addict!
I visited a country I didn't know which is very beautiful: I went to Lapland and saw reindeers. I also went to St Petersburg with the university and i visited Stockolm, Copenhaguen, Bergen and Tallin myself. I also spent a week-end with other exchange students in the Lakeland. All these trips were amazing
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Ségolène V
Academic
Course recommendations
I took a very interesting course given by a Russian teacher: Doing business in St Petersburg. I learnt a lot about doing business in Russia, as well as, building a business plan.
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My academic experiences
Interaction with teachers
Interaction with international students
Interaction with local students
Personal comments
There could have been more courses in English. But most of the courses I followed were interesting
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My opinion of the university assessment
Exams throughout the course
Essays and/or projects at the end of course
Essays and/or projects throughout the course

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Ségolène V
Languages
Language of instruction: English
Was learning English a key decision factor?
No, it wasn't.
How much did you improve your English?
My level before: At ease in most situations
My level after: No problems in any areas (including slang)
Language difficulties
Administrative / Institutional
Personal comments
I wanted to improve my English and I think I improved it because the courses were in English and because I spoke English every day with Finnish and foreign students. I could not speak Finnish so I tried to learn the language but it is very different from every other languages and it is very difficult to learn. So I know basic words to be able to go shopping. But Finnish people speak english very well so it was not a problem.
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Ségolène V
Expenses
Main source of funding:
Personal savings
Other sources of funding:
Family
An ERASMUS grant
Work opportunities:
I didn't explore any work options
Personal spending habits
Finland is a very expensive country: that is why I spent more in food for example. But I live in Paris which is an expensive place as well so the differencce was not that big! I spent more in the travel category because I wanted to discover the country (Lapland, Lakeland) and its region (Russia, Estonia, Sweden)
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Food, Travel, Overall:
was more expensive than at home.
Telephone, Housing, Nightlife:
was the same price as at home.
Accessibility of student needs
Second-hand household items
Personal comments
We had a problem with our phone monthly fee, which was more expensive than what we thought
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