A Blog about Education Abroad

Tag: semester exchange

  • Lara at KU Leuven

    Lara at KU Leuven

    Living in Leuven:

    Living in Europe in the summer is one of the most fun things you could do. Not only are the days extremely long, but there is a lot to do. Cycling around and visiting other towns in Belgium is extremely easy. Other than in South Africa, the towns are close to each other so within an hour or so you can be in almost any of the towns. I also found that as the good weather set in, the people in Belgium started to come outside and open up more. This was a great time to make friends with the locals.

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  • Julie at the University of North Carolina Greensboro

    America! The land of dreams, potential and possibility!

    The day that I heard that I was accepted as an exchange student at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro was the day that my life took a dramatic change, although at the time I did not realise this. The preparation began by considering various courses that would be suitable, checking all my VISA requirements and mentally preparing myself for jumping into one of the coldest of winters that I would ever experience! Although having done a lot of research on the available courses, we soon learned that only a hand full were available in my field of study. In hindsight, I should have used this opportunity to take courses in various other fields in addition to my major subjects.

    The VISA process was surprisingly quick and swift, although this did mean that an early morning trip to the embassy in Cape Town was in order! Once my VISA was secured, I then started to look at various airfares on a variety of airlines. Would it be easier to fly direct and pay a bit more in order to have a greater peace of mind and reduce fatigue when changing time zones? Or would I prefer to save that money and do a layover instead? Since I was travelling during the Festive Season, flights were more expensive than usual. I would advise new exchange students to arrive earlier in order to avoid expensive plane tickets. In the end, I opted to layover in London for a week to visit family and from London embark on the shorter flight to Washington D.C.

    Packing my suitcase was another obstacle to overcome. I needed to pack enough for 6 months yet still have space so that I could bring new things back. After a lot of experimenting, I found it useful to roll up my clothes as this utilised space a lot better than simply folding ones clothes. In addition, I packed a few days’ worth of clothes in my carry-on luggage just in case my baggage got lost. This turned out to be a good idea as many of my soon-to-be friends ended up in the USA with only the clothes on their backs because the luggage got lost between connecting flights. (more…)

  • Lauren at the University of Georgia

    Lauren at the University of Georgia

    Pre-exchange:

    On the 28th of December 2015 I embarked upon a 5-month semester abroad at the University of Georgia in the United States. It was going to be the longest time I had spent away from home and I was very excited, but also very nervous. The last few weeks before my departure were marked by the bureaucratic nightmare of having to replace a stolen passport as well as applying for a visa. In recent years, applying for an American visa has become a less intimidating process and, with the support of the host institution, it is highly unlikely that one should experience any problems with the application. The application is filled in online and once completed, an in-person appointment at the Embassy (in Tokai) will need to be booked. During the in-person appointment, a consular official will ask you a few questions, just to confirm the information you have already submitted and will then either approve or deny the application. They are also extremely prompt, and one can expect to receive the visa about two days after the appointment. (more…)