E-mail: caro_strucks@live.nl
Study Program: Psychology (bachelor)
Exchange semester: Spring
Academic year: 4
Host University: Aarhus University
Country: Denmark
Introduction
It took me a while to take the decision to go on exchange. In the second year of my studies I
was already considering going abroad, but at that time I was not sure enough about my case.
In the year that followed, I could not get the idea of going on exchange of my mind. In the last
year of my bachelor, I finally made the deciscion: I wanted to go abroad! I applied for the last
minutes with one of the most beautiful cities in Denmark as my destination. I recognized that
when I told people that I was going to study in Denmark, a lot of people asked “Why
Denmark”. I think that the general consensus is that when you go abroad, you should go to
popular (and far) destinations such as Australia or America. Well, I can tell you a secret
(which is not really a secret): You do not need to go far away to have an incredible time
abroad! So why did I choose Denmark? I had several reasons. First of all, I had never been in
a Scandinavian country, so I really wanted to explore the beauty Scandinavia has to offer.
Secondly, I wanted to improve my English, and the Danish people master the English
language pretty well. Lastly, I did not want to go too far out of my comfort zone. I was not
sure about going on an exchange for a long time, so I thought it would be smart to choose a
destination not too far away from home.
General information
On the 30th of January I started my adventure. Because Aarhus is only 800 km away from my
hometown, my parents brought me by car. This was really nice, because in this way I could
take a lot of stuff (bed linen, pillows etc.) with me that I otherwise had to buy in Aarhus.
When I arrived in Aarhus it was cold. Very cold. But also very beautiful. Aarhus is located on
the East coast of Central Jutland and is surrounded by green hills. The hills be a challenge in
the first few weeks, because you really need your bike as a means of transport, and you never
escape biking uphill when you go somewhere ;).
The first two days I discovered the city centre of Aarhus a litte bit. What stroke me, is that I
immediately felt at home in Aarhus. The city centre is really cosy, with a lot of nice
architecture, cafes and restaurants. The university campus is located on top of a hill, so it is
slightly higher than the city centre. The yellow university buildings are surrounded by green
hills. The campus has two university parks, and in one of them the annual Kapsejladsen, a big
boat race event which attracts thousands of students, is held.
On the 2nd of February, the start of my semester, I could pick up the keys of my room. To
pick up my keys, I had to go to the Housing Office on campus. The registration and pick-up
was very well organised. It took me approximately half an hour to register and pick up the
housing folder together with the keys. The only small problem was that the International
Centre did not have my studentcard yet, because of problems with the computer system. What
I did not know then, is that it would take 2 months and a lot of angry e-mails before I finally
got the card.
As soon as I got my keys, I furnished my room and rushed to campus, to attend my
introduction that also started that day. The introduction was quite formal, and students were
provided with a lot of practical information. All in all it was okay, because it was also a
chance to get to know people. After my first day at the University, I met my mentor and the
two other girls she guided. She showed us campus and took us out for a nice cup of coffee in
Lowe’s bog og vin café (I can definetely recommend that cafe!). Over the course of my
semester, me and the two other girls, which where also in my class, met on a regular basis.
In the second week, I had to apply for my CPR number. A CPR number is comparable with
what we know as a BSN number. A CPR number is really important in Denmark. Without it
you cannot go to a doctor, or apply for a gym membership. The application took place at the
university and went really fast and without any problems. After the application I had to wait
for about 6 weeks until I got the card with my CPR number.
My housing was organised by the Housing Office of Aarhus University. Some months before
my exchange I could apply for housing. On the housing website, you can give in you personal
preferences, such as proximity to the university, shared facility house or dorm etc. I applied
for a shared facility house close to the university, and luckily the Housing Office could offer
me one. Later I learned that this was not the case for everyone. Because there were not
enough accommodations that suited the needs of the students, a lot of students did not get
what they preferred. Taken all together, I was really satisfied with my own house. I was living
only 5 minutes away from the University, and 10 minutes (down-hill, uphill 20 minutes) from
the city centre. I was very lucky with my 7 roommates, who made my time in Aarhus
unforgettable. Unfortunately, the quality of the house was not so good. I had a lot of problems
with mold in my room, and when Spring approached, the house was regulary visited by all
kinds of insects. Also, when something was broken, it took a lot of calls and e-mails before
someone would come and fix it.
Although these problems were inconvenient, they did not at all spoil my amazing time in
Aarhus.
Because of my (quite high) rent, I spend roughly a 1000 euro each month. My rent made up
almost half of this amount. I think that I spend the most of my money on my trips through
Scandinavia. I visited Swedish Lapland, the South of Norway and the mainland of Denmark.
In addition, I often did some daytrips to cities as Odense and Copenhagen.
As an exchange student, party’s are the perfect occassions to meet new people. Sometimes I
even went to three party’s a week. But partying is an expensive hobby, and even more when
you are in Denmark. It is important to take into account that Denmark is an expensive
country. Especially meat, vegetables and alcohol in bars is more expensive than in the
Netherlands. I financed my expenses with my Erasmus grant, study allowance and money I
got for not using my OV chip card in the Netherlands.
I think that my semester in Denmark really changed me. I learned a lot about different
cultures and backgrounds and discovered that some stereotypes I have of other countries are
wrong, but also that some of them are sometimes right. The most important aspect of my
exchange for me was that I finally had the feeling I could completely be myself. Arriving in a
strange country with strange people that speak a language you cannot understand, being all by
myself with no one to hold on to in my immediate environment, taught me to become more
independent. Because I did not belong to a certain group of people yet, it felt like I was given
a fresh start. Some the people I met during my exchange, I now consider as one of my best
friends.
Because both my student house and my classes at university consisted of primarly exchange
students, most of my friends were internationals. It was quite hard to connect with the Danes.
I consider the Danes as friendly but also as very distant and individualistic people. When you
need help with anything they are always there for you, but they are not the kind of people that
like small talk on the bus. Furthermore, Danes are very proud people. They show their love
for their country by hanging the Danish flag on their flagpole, and by celebrating national
holidays together with their family. With Easter for example, Aarhus was very empty and all
the shops were closed for 4 days.
Despite their chauvinism, Danes are very good at speaking the English language. For me this
was really a life savior, because I could not speak or understand Danish at all.
Aware of the gap between Danes and internationals, the university offered several
programmes to make the bonding between Danes and internationals easier. One of these
programmes was a free language course, offered in cooperation with the language institute
Laerdansk. I applied for a course, but dropped out after three classes because I was not
motivated to learn this difficult language for a period of only 5 months.
Another programme was offered by the Student House. The Student House is a non-profit
organisation mainly run by students. On Tuesday’s, they always organised international
nights and in the weekends they organised theme party’s or game nights. Furthermore, the
Student house had a café and a bar, were you could always go for a coffee or a beer.
To connect internationals to Danes, they offered a Friendship Ambassador Programme. In this
programme you are connected to a Dane with the same interests and preferences. The
programme supplies free tickets for football games and theater which you could go to
together. Because of this programme, I now have a good Danish friend that will soon visit me
in the Netherlands!
Academic Information
My semester in Aarhus started on the 2nd of February, and ended on the 30th of June. I had
three courses a week, which were all taught in English. With 25 people in each class, my
classes were small compared to what I was used to in Tilburg. Each course I had to prepare by
reading some articles. In class, these articles were discussed in groups or in plenum.
Furthermore, for each course I had to present an article together with two other students.
I experienced this way of teaching as very useful. I think I learned a lot in these seminars
because I was forced to work with and think about the information I read more than in my
lectures at Tilburg University.
The teachers were all very helpful and kind. In Denmark it is normal to address your teacher
by his or her first name, which makes the relationship with a teacher very informal.
During my semester I had one break, which was the Easter break. A lot of exchange students
got visitors or went home during that break.
In the table below you can see the courses I followed at Aarhus University.
I did three courses of 10 ECTs each. I think the level of the courses was the same as my
courses at Tilburg University: the material I had to study was not very difficult but the
workload was high enough to not make the courses too easy.
Course
Clinical, Cognitive and
Social Aspects of
Autobiographical
Memory
Prerequisites
None
Exam
Essay
ECTS
10
Comments
80% mandatory
attendance,
presentations, active
participation
Personal Development
In Adulthood
None
Essay
10
80% mandatory
attendance,
presentations, active
participation
Psychological
Trauma,
Dissociation and
Attachment
Perspectives on
Psychopathology
None
Essay
10
80% mandatory
attendance,
presentations, active
participation
As you can see, I had to attend at least 80% of my courses, give a presentation and actively
participate in classes to pass them. In addition, I was required to write a 9-page essay about a
topic of my own choice related to the course subject.
The course I enjoyed the most was the Trauma course. The topics were very interesting and
the teacher made the classes fun and dynamic.
Going on exchange is one of the best decisions I have ever made in my life and I can
recommend it to everyone. This experience made me more open-minded and as a result I
know feel more confident to try new and exciting things.
If you want to go on exchange but you are still a little frightened about what to expect (which
is completely normal), just make sure you are well prepared. Read about the country, city, and
university you are going to. Try to arrange proper housing several months in advance and get
some information about practical matters such as applying for the CPR number. In order to
get an idea of how things are as an exchange student in the city you are going to live in, join
as many Facebookpages concerning your exchange or destination as possible.
And last but not least, be open-minded and you will defenitely experience the time of your
life!