Digital Experience Report
Name
ANR
E-mail
Academic year
Exchange semester
Host University
Country
: Monique van Vliet
: 852051
: m.vanvliet_1@tilburguniversity.edu
: 2014/2015
: Spring(in the Netherlands)
: UNSW
: Australia
When my family and friends ask me: ‘How was Australia?’, I don’t even know where to start. It
is impossible to explain how amazing it was and how it changed me(professionally and
personally) and the way I think about things. However, I will try to explain how the exchange
affected me anyway.
The first two weeks
The beginning is hard. I am not going to lie about that. I arrived in Sydney at 5 am, while I
hadn’t slept for two days. I was absolutely exhausted. I had made a German friend on the way
in Dubai, but when we arrived in Sydney, we separated our ways(I’ve met up with her very
often after that and we are still good friends now). I went to the hostel that I booked by train.
The hostel was in front of central station, so that was quite easy. When I got there I couldn’t
check in yet and there was nobody but the reception staff. I went to the other exchange people
from Tilburg University. I heard about a Tea Party hosted by the university for exchange people
to meet each other and make new friends. Of course I went and it was one of the most hilarious
parties I’ve ever been to. Everybody was desperate for friends and introduced his- or herself to
pretty much everyone(which were around 80 people). I absolutely loved the fact that everyone
was so open to meeting new people. After that first day it went fast, I met people everywhere:
in my hostel, on the streets, on the train, on school etc. I was surprised by the fact how nice
Australians are. They’re all very interested in foreign people and help you with everything. If
you look confused for ten seconds there is already somebody offering to help you.
After a week and a half I found the best room I could have ever wished for. It was a five min.
walk from Coogee Beach, a fifteen min. walk to uni and my housemate became my best friend.
The University of New South Wales
UNSW was even better than I thought. It has a great location: reasonably close to the beach
and easy to reach by bus. It’s a huge campus and there are many international students. I took
the course ‘International Business Law’ and I reckon that around 70% of the students came
from overseas. The relationship between the teacher and student is way more personal than in
the Netherlands. One teacher asked us every week how we were personally and what we
thought about Australia. Also, Australians are always late. I had one teacher who was half an
hour late every single week, even when we had an exam. The positive side about this fact is
that students can easily arrive too late as well. You can choose to live on campus at UNSW, but
this is way more expensive than looking for your own room.
Sydney
I fell in love with this city. You’ve got everything you need: stunning beaches, rooftop clubs, the
best shops, free swimming pools next to the beach, very nice people and lots of beautiful parks.
Another thing that makes Sydney my favourite city is the fact that there are many young
people. There is so much to do that even after four months I feel like I’ve missed out on some
things. Also, the Opera House and Harbour Bridge are amazing. I definitely recommend to do
the Harbour Bridge Climb and go to a show in the Opera House. Plus, every Saturday there is
firework at Darling Harbour. Sydney is a very expensive city, but it’s totally worth it!
Academics
I took the following courses:
- International Business Law
- Introduction to the Australian Legal System
- Insolvency Law
- Law of Banking and Finance
I would recommend all my courses. I found them very interesting. Insolvency Law and
International Business Law could be quite hard sometimes, but the other two courses were
super easy. The workload is way lower than in the Netherlands. In the course Introduction to
the Australian Legal System I learnt a lot about the common law system. In general, the courses
made me improve my English a lot and I increased my knowledge about some specific legal
topics. I am very happy with my academic results in Australia.
Living costs and culture
I financed my exchange period with financial support from my parents and money that I saved.
The living expenses are way higher than in Tilburg. I spent most of my money on my rent and
shopping haha!
I didn’t experience any culture shock while I was on exchange. This is probably because
Australia is a very western, relaxed and laid-back country. I am currently experiencing a little
culture shock now I’m back in the Netherlands because I look at the Dutch culture in a different
way now.
Personal development
Going on exchange changed me as a person in many ways. I became more: responsible, grownup, independent, flexible, social, more relaxed, more ambitious and just a nicer person in
general. I still lived with my parents in the Netherlands, so I learnt to cook and do washing as
well.
I would definitely recommend Sydney and the UNSW!!!