84 reviews
4.35 / 5 based on 84 reviews
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Karen D
Student life
Describe host city:
Students equally interact with the local and student community
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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
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Karen D
Housing
Type of housing: Off campus student accomodation
Arranged by: Home university
If returning, I would choose: A room exchange
Why?
The accomodation provided for through the SOCRATES exchange was in the international student house. While this was very social and enjoyable, I would have hoped to have more opportunities to practise my French on a day to day basis. Like many international scenarios, English was the universal language in the international student accomodation and I would have preferred to stay somewhere more francophonic.
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Personal comments
The appearance of the apartment block was very off-putting since, from the outside, it appeared to resemble a prison. However, it was very friendly and the shared facilities meant that we interacted more frequently than other student households also provided by the university. I made a number of close and lasting friendships with the people who lived on my corridor.
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Karen D
Academic
Course recommendations
I took a number of courses and found the overall teaching quality varied enormously. By far and away the best teacher was the linguistics professor who brought an inspiring amount of enthusiasm, research and wit into his classes. I wanted to change my major!
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My academic experiences
Interaction with teachers
Interaction with international students
Interaction with local students
Personal comments
There was a lot of confusion between the two universities I was attending. Neither academic from either university would agree with the other or provide an adequate support. I believe that at least one of these professors has been taken from his role as exchange support since I returned from Switzerland.
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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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Karen D
Languages
Language of instruction: English
Local language was: Different than language of instruction
Was learning English a key decision factor?
No, it wasn't.
Was learning the local language a key decision factor?
Yes, I wanted to improve my the local language
How much did you improve your the local language?
My level before: Everyday knowledge (shopping, directions, etc.)
My level after: At ease in most situations
Language difficulties
Administrative / Institutional
Personal comments
It was frequently difficult to find situations where I could speak French since many people in Switzerland are already fluent in English and enjoy the opportunities to practise it with a native speaker. I found it quite off putting to be responded to in English when speaking French and actually found I spoke French most frequently with the many German-speakers who were also in Lausanne to learn French. (This may explain why I seemed to have picked up a German accent in my spoken French!)
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Karen D
Overall
I wish I had known...
I would have liked to know about the possibilities of organising a private exchange. I went to Lausanne University because it was the only francophonic location offered by the University of York English department.
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In my opinion:
I loved it but I'm not sure everybody would.
Important factors in my choice
(1) Unimportant – (4) Very important
Personal recommendation
I really enjoyed my time at Lausanne. However in order to make more of the overall experience I would recommend that people take into account the academic factors before choosing their courses.
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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
Switzerland is a unique and wonderful place. Choose the time of your exchange so you can profit from the things that you enjoy most - eg go in winter if you like skiing or summer for hiking. Also, if like at my university, there is a selection process, remember the first answer is not always the final answer. When other people drop out, places that were unavailable might suddenly become free - allowing you to go on your international exchange!
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Karen D
Expenses
Main source of funding:
An ERASMUS grant
Other sources of funding:
Personal savings<br>
An ERASMUS grant
Work opportunities:
It was not legal for me to work
Personal spending habits
Food and drink was significantly more expensive in Lausanne than York. However I didn't have a telephone so naturally spent less, but also had to communicate less with friends and family back home. Travel in Switzerland is considerably more expensive than England but also more reliable. For this reason I probably made more excursions than I would have done at my home university.
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Nightlife, Food, Travel, Overall:
was more expensive than at home.
Housing:
was the same price as at home.
Telephone:
was less expensive than at home.
Accessibility of student needs
Second-hand household items
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