University of Missouri Kansas City
Final report- Joint Study (USA)
Summer Semester 2013 – Max Kullmer
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Expenses and Living
The average costs for the exchange derive from a variation of monthly and
nonrecurring expenses. I tried to sum up the basic costs, nevertheless, sometimes it might
be difficult to keep track of every exposure and the actual total amount may differ
depending on your personal situation. I had to pay for a new passport before my departure
and I also had to pay for a trip to Vienna and one night in a hostel to be in time on the day of
my appointment at the US Consulate for example. Frankly, the costs I listed in the table
below are just the ones I consider to be the basic expenses every future exchange student
will have to pay no matter what.
Monthly Costs
Food/Month
Rent/Month
Phone/Month
Altogether (Jan – Mai)
$ ( Euro)
approx. 250 (200)
765 (600)
50 (40)
4350 (3400)
One Time Costs
US Visa
SEVIS Fee
Visa Photos
Flight
Books
International Student Fee
Health Insurance
Altogether
$ (Euro)
180 (140)
215 (170)
20 (15)
1150 (900)
400 (310)
250 (195)
500 (390)
2815 (2130)
Total basic costs: 5530 Euro
Including the additional expenses such as the money I spend on things I bought in the
US, the money I used for travelling and other everyday costs, the total amount of money I
spent during my exchange semester is around 8000 Euros.
On Campus at UMKC you will be happy that some of the costs do not appear as high
as in Klagenfurt – on first glance at least. Certainly the costs for the usage of the American
University supplies such as recreation rooms, or the athletic grounds and the gym are
covered by the UMKC scholarship. Every semester there is a certain number of sports
courses offered, the so called Intramurals. These are also included in the fees which are part
of your scholarship. These courses are changing every Semester and are seized quite fast so
if you are planning to join a certain course you should inform yourself early and register as
soon as you can. Generally, you will have to get used to using Dollars. There are many ways
to spend a lot of money without being aware of the actual amount. However, I personally
did not consider the United States to be too expensive. Certain things are remarkably cheap
as for instance gas or fast food, while other things appeared to be ridiculously expensive,
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such as the rent or books you will need to buy for your courses. I would recommend waiting
and not buying books before your first or second time in class. It also never is a bad idea to
browse Amazon for better offers, since the UMKC Book Store is outrageously expensive. If
you are living in a dorm, such as the Oak Place Apartments you will most likely meet some
American roommates who might show you other tricks to save your book – money.
Regarding your nutrition it is not true that you can only buy fast food and sweets. It
certainly is possible to cook a healthy meal but it is also true that it might get costly to get all
the groceries. To avoid paying too much you certainly will be relieved to hear that they have
Hofer (Aldi) in the US, even including German and Austrian food at some occasions (Just
mentioning it if you feel homesick for a Schnitzel one day). Since it is not that easy to reach
most of the grocery stores without a car, you might be relieved to hear that you can use the
buses of the Metro Line and the Max Bus for free as soon as you get your Student ID Card.
Another grocery store besides Hofer (Aldi) that sometimes has some good offers as well is
called Price Chopper. If you decide to get one of their customer cards you will benefit from
it. Also the Buses mentioned above will take you there in less than 10 minutes if you are
living in a dorm on campus.
People who are interested in culture might think about visiting some of the many
museums and cultural events of Kansas City. Some of these are even offered for free.
Examples are the Nelson Atkins Art Museum and its Sculpture Garden, which is in walking
distance from UMKC, or the First Friday Event, a famous kind of Art Fair in KC. ( If you are
planning a trip to Washington D.C. you should be aware that most of the museums and the
Zoo over there are for free!) However, at some places you will have to pay, as for instance at
the World War I Museum, the Jazz Museum, the KC Zoo, or the Steam Boat Museum (yes,
they really got that one). Regarding the costs for going out, they might be a little cheaper
than to what you are used to in Austria but certainly it depends on where you are. The
Power and Light District might be a little more expensive but there are lots of Bars, Clubs and
Restaurants and everyone should find a place to be. The easiest way to explore the city
nightlife is definitely by having some barbecue, a cold beer and listening to one of the
countless life bands playing in one of the various locations in KC. One last hint I can offer is
especially interesting if you are a movie fan. The nearby shopping area, called the Plaza, only
10 to 15 minutes of walking distance away from the campus includes a lot of mostly
expensive stores, however, it also offers a huge Movie Theater to watch the newest movies
for only 4,25 $ at certain times – enjoy it!
Accommodation and Enrollment
When I was preparing for the exchange semester I tried to find out a little bit about KC
by skimming the official city page and the Wikipedia article, but that did not help to find a
place to stay. The quick offer of Kate Wozniak, the Study Abroad and Exchange Coordinator
to get a room at the (luxury) dorm Oak Place Apartments was just in time. The decision to
accept this offer and stay at Oak Place saved me a lot of stress of searching a place on my
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own. The apartments at Oak Place offer several advantages compared to an apartment
outside a dorm, as for instance the fact that you will meet other people quite easily since
you will probably have to share your apartment. Despite of that, you won’t have to fear the
loss of your privacy because everyone got their private rooms, of course. In addition to that
you get a lot of home appliances and furniture in the apartment such as a washing machine,
a refrigerator, air conditioning and a couch for the shared living room. The dorm as a whole
offers vending machines, a public pool table and community rooms in which sometimes
events take place such as a (free) pizza evening, movie nights or game nights.
Disadvantages of the Oak Place Apartments on the other hand are the high costs per
month (compare table), and the missing everyday items, such as pans, plates and silverware;
you will have to buy. However, one of the biggest problems for me was insects. I cannot say
if these little pests were a problem in every apartment, nevertheless, I had to deal with an
invasion of ants, which seemingly had already been annoying the former inhabitants, as we
could judge by the insecticides we found. Anyway, the worst thing that happened was of
administrative nature. There was a misunderstanding when I wanted to stay a little longer in
the dorm than the official end of the semester. Due to a number of misinterpretations and a
bad communication policy I got kicked out of my apartment while all my belongings were
put into a another apartment – right when I was staying in Chicago and could not do
anything about it… Also the new apartment I had to live in for the last 2 weeks of my stay at
the US was far more run down compared to the first place. After that experience I
recommend that you always get a written proof of everything important you mediate with
members of the staff. Also, the online contract you have to fill in when you are planning to
stay at Oak Place is kind of funny – you won’t get any recipe or confirmation mail (at least
that was the case when I dealt with it). To provide such surprises always keep a check on
your student account, namely your Oak Place Online Account to know about your status and
your UMKC Account to know about possible outstanding fees or the rent for the Oak Place
Apartment (which is also paid via your UMKC Student Account).
Concerning the choice of your courses you will certainly know at least a little bit about
the offers of UMKC before your arrival in the US, since you are supposed to find four courses
you are interested in before you departure. As soon as you have access to your UMKC
account, comparable to the ZEUS system in Klagenfurt you will be able to enroll classes (
there are certain restrictions which might hold you from enrolling, as for example fees you
have not paid for yet – you will get a more specific explanation of that matter during your
Orientation at UMKC.) If you have got problems deciding which courses might be suitable for
you, you will find aid by contacting the Academic Advisor of your field of study (e.g. English
or Law or Economy etc.). As usually you will learn more about that by checking the UMKC
web page as well as by using the information material you will get during the Orientation on
your first day at UMKC. Everything will be confusing at the beginning, however, do not panic!
There are a lot of people who can help you and you are never alone. If you really have no
idea how to go on, or if you are just overwhelmed by all the information there will always be
people of the International Student Affairs Office (ISAO) to contact for help.
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One advice I can give to you is that it certainly is helpful to ask whether a test of your
proficiency in English is needed or not. I was supposed to attend another test at UMKC at the
beginning to measure the exchange student’s level of English. However, after I had talked to
some people of UMKC I did not have to take the test. As it seems, as a student of English
they expect you to be good enough anyways. Furthermore, one of my roommates, a guy
from Germany, had scored really well on the TOEFL and so he did not have to do the test at
UMKC. Inform yourself about the requirements and maybe you don’t have to do everything
that was originally asked for.
Courses
When I decided which courses I would like to attend at UMKC I tried to get as much
out of it as possible. Briefly, I wanted to take courses which might be accepted for my
studies at Klagenfurt. However, it is important to really know when the courses you would
like to enroll in are offered – some of them might only be available during spring while
others are only offered in fall. I am of the opinion that everyone who speaks decent English
is able to attend usual courses together with American students.
The way you will have to deal with the courses is quite different than in Austria, just
as the whole atmosphere between students and professors. Although, English students of
AAU know that some of the professors at Klagenfurt are trying to stick to the American
model while teaching. First of all, to get a good grade you will have to work constantly –
which is also expected in Austria but is not enforced as much, since there are less small
quizzes and tests during the semester. Also the way you are planning your personal studies is
not as free as it is in Austria. Usually you will stick with one or more certain, distinctive books
or sources and have to learn them by heart. All the tests and quizzes are closely related to
these distinctive sources. Related to that, I also had the feeling that there was less critical
thinking involved while studying. (Writing courses are an exception!). Basically, there was
much more attention turned on the mere memorization of certain facts than discussing
them. Still you will have to deal with much more work per course than in Austria and that is
the reason why US students barely attend more than 5 courses during a semester, while at
Klagenfurt 10 courses are not unusual. Nevertheless, the amount of time and work you will
have to spend depends on the particular course. Basically, you will have two dates each
week for a course. Last but not least, commonly you should not miss courses more than 3
times, just like in Austria.
Contacts
Most of the time the relationship between the professor and their students is much
closer than it’s the average situation in Austria. Professors share experiences about their
private life’s, talk a lot, bond with their students and also give a lot of feedback and offer
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help. For example I was really disappointed that I could not attend a certain history course,
dealing with the European Medieval, which I needed for my studies at home. The course
could not be offered during the semester because of a case of death at the department of
history. As soon as the Professor of the other history course I had chosen in exchange, found
out about that, he offered his help, and invited me to a Medieval History Convention at
UMKC, told me about other courses, closely related to my subject and tried to help me in
any possible way. Actually, he was already 75 and just helped out but he certainly was one of
the best professors I ever had.
Most Americans are friendly and really helpful. I had the feeling that they treat each
other much more politely in everyday life compared to Austria. I still remember a situation
when I was strolling through a grocery store, overwhelmed by the number of products and
the size of the place and nearly bumped into several people just because I did not watch my
step. Everyone apologized even if it was my fault – try that one in Austria or Germany
without getting yelled at. The Americans are very interested as soon as they realize you are
from a foreign country and most of the time they are eager to proof to you how great the
USA really are. Sometimes, some might complain about certain political conditions in the US
and glorify or romanticize Europe in a weird way, although most of them do not know too
much about our continent – especially concerning smaller countries. Austrians should not be
too shocked to be asked about Kangaroos – it happens some time. Some might not even
know what Austria is and what language people do speak over here, but as soon as you
mention Vienna you should be fine. Moreover, as an Austrian or especially German person
you will find it easy to get into a conversation about the peoples heritage and their greatgreat – grandfather (or whatever) who had originally been from “somewhere in Germany”.
Chances are good you get a free beer –happened to me more than once. Just nice!
Generally, it is easy to get into a conversation. However, it is true that a lot of the
contacts you make are mainly on the surface. Something that was a little sad regarding
contacts was the fact that the other exchange students at UMKC mainly consisted of people
from China, Saudi – Arabia and India who mostly preferred to stick among themselves. So
your stay probably won’t be comparable to the experiences of an ERASMUS exchange,
regarding the interaction between exchange students. Unfortunately, the events organized
by the ISAO during my stay were not that popular among those students as well– for
whatever reason. I still remember the first cultural meeting, when only 5 people showed up
– 4 Germans and an American girl back from her exchange in Spain… Still I would
recommend checking out the ISAO events – maybe it was just this semester.
Besides, you might meet some people at the other International Student meetings
which are frequently held by distinctive church organizations from the area. Of course these
people will try to convert you – so if you got a problem with that I recommend minimizing
contact with church people. They are not aggressive or too pushy, however, if you are not
religious you might feel a little uncomfortable, for instance I once went to a soccer game
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with one of these guys and on the way back I was trapped in his car for half an hour while he
was pointing out why people who do not accept Jesus Christ as their savior (in the same way
as his church does it) will go to hell. He told me he would not wish for me to go to hell but it
would just happen – bad faith. Well, that was a fun ride… Probably the best advice I can give,
is to not expect too much beforehand – because that is what I did before I arrived in the US.
Just be open-minded. Do not try and imagine how great everything will be and what you will
do with all of your new friends, just let life go its way – sounds pathetic but I think that is the
best way to deal with that new experience. Even if my stay did not quite fit my expectations
I met nice people and made some good friends. Just try to talk to people the way you did
when you first came to AAU or remember your first day in school and take part in activities
outside university and you should be fine.
Travelling
If you are considering going on a trip to explore the country it surely will be helpful to
book early - you will save a lot of money. Kansas City has a huge train station, which you
might use to visit other places, as for instance St. Louis. However, the train tickets are quite
expensive and it would be smarter to use one of the overland bus lines: Megabus or
Greyhound. For longer trips it will be the best idea to go by plane. Flying in the US is not that
expensive and in any case cheaper than taking the train and of course it is much faster. The
cheapest way to travel surely is going by bus, however, you should not underestimate the
distances – even if I survived a bus trip from KC to Chicago of 10 hours and back, you should
be aware that a 3 day trip or anything longer than 10 hours might get exhausting. If you are
adventurous enough, go ahead though! People who are thinking about doing a road trip
should be aware of the fact that you have to be 25 years of age to rent a car in the US and in
addition to that you will need to buy an International Driver’s License, which you can get for
around 20 Euros at the ÖAMTC or for around 15 Euros at any Straßenverkehrsamt in
Germany. The average costs for a mid-sized car settle around 200+/- per week. This concerns
only the basic costs and does not include taxes, insurance or a satnav (GPS). As I heard
through the grapevine, it is possible that your European insurance might also cover
American car rental. Anyway, you should contact your European insurance first and they
might tell you more – I did not do that and had to pay a lot more in addition to the basic
price. Of course, everything becomes much cheaper as soon as you are travelling in a group
and share the costs. Luckily, besides the costs for transportation, there are youth hostels in
every big American City – a nice way of staying at a foreign place because they are much
cheaper compared to any normal hotel or motel - and you will meet a lot of different
people! I can recommend the “India House” at New Orleans for example. To find a good
hostel I can recommend this page:
http://www.german.hostelworld.com/?source=googleadwordsbranddebff&KID=5000043&A
ID=2
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Last hints and final statement
Some last hints: You will need a credit card! Actually, it is even better to have two
than just one, because sometimes they might not work. (I used two Barclay Credit Cards)
Take the offer of the university staff at the Orientation to take you to the urban
administration to get an US ID. I could not get in some of the bars using my European ID –
this might be different if you are a girl, as we all know…One last basic hint I can give about
KC is that the weather is just crazy. Prepare for lots of snow in winter and spring and weird
changes in temperature from summer heat to blizzard in a short amount of time. During
summer it can get really hot and humid.
Even if not everything about my trip to the US was exactly like what I had expected
beforehand it was a great experience and I am happy I could learn about the US culture,
educational system and everyday life firsthand. I saw a lot of interesting, sometimes even
weird things and met a lot of different people, not only from the US but all over the world. I
think I have learned much more about how different people from different cultures interact
and how foreign people might have a completely different view
on the world than anything we, as mid – Europeans, are used
to. However, my conclusion after this exchange semester is
that it was worth it but I am happy to be European and will
always prefer living here. Chicago at the most, could be a
place I could see myself living in for some time – but not
forever. Maybe your experience will be different. Just give
it a shot!
If you have any further questions, feel free to contact
me: max_kullmer@hotmail.com
Last hint 
“Don’t besuch a mermaid!”
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