Experience report
Name: Paul van de Ven
E-mail: p.a.f.j.v.d.ven@uvt.nl
Exchange semester: january - june 2014
Academic year: 2013-2014
Host University: University of Cape Town
Country: South Africa
TOPIC: Admission, arrival, housing
How was your arrival organized? Did someone pick you up from the airport/station? Was an
orientation or introduction activity organized? How was accommodation organized? Does the
university provide you with accommodation? What kind of accommodation does the university
provide? Did you have to book your accommodation in advance or did you have to search for a place
to live after you arrived?
I was one day too early for the orientation days, so I arranged the first night myself. The next day I got
picked up and brought to the university, where all exchange students were coming in and going to
sleep. The first two days were merely to discover UCT and the surrounding communities, the
following days were both fun and helpful. I would recommend anyone to do the orientation if there’s
one! My accommodation was arranged via UCT, I just asked them if this could be arranged and they
did so. They arranged a house for me with 9 other exchange students, 20 minute walk from campus
(you get used to the walk pretty fast!). I lived in Rosebank in a pretty safe area. Other cool places to
live (via UCT) are Rondebosch or Observatory.
TOPIC: Location of university/city
Please describe the city you lived in. Where is the university located in the city? What is the best
place to go to eat/drink/dance/do sports/etc.? What are interesting things to see and do in your host
city? What was different than in Tilburg?
So I lived in Cape Town South Africa, it’s one of the most beautiful and diverse cities I’ve been to.
UCT is voted as one of the most beautiful universities in the world, that’s for a reason! UCT has nice
buildings and is build against the slopes of Devil’s Peak, and right after that you find Table Mountain.
Hiking is really easy here and you get incredible views from up these mountains. The university is 20
minutes out of the city center by car, but cabs are cheap and there are other cool places much closer
as well. I would recommend several places to go out, but the best ones are Stones (in Observatory)
on a Wednesday night and The Beer House (on Longstreet, city center) on every night where they
have good craft beers. Other cool things that you could do in Cape Town is relaxing on the nice white
beaches of Camps Bay, seeing sunset from Lion’s Head (this is an absolute must in my opinion!),
tasting good food every Saturday in the Old Biscuit Mill and going to a township braai (bbq) called
Mzoli’s (only if you want to taste A LOT of the best meat you’ve ever tasted…). Cape Town is also not
far away from famous wine areas. Wine tasting in Stellenbosch and Franschenhoek was really
awesome as well. Interesting museums are to be found in the city center for the cultural experience.
TOPIC: Academics
Which courses did you take and why? Which courses would you recommend? What did the courses
add to your program at Tilburg University? How does the university compare to Tilburg University
concerning the level of the courses, use of extra material, level of English, workload, etc.? Overall,
were you happy with your academic achievements during your exchange? Please describe the
campus of your host university.
I took the courses Intellectual property law A (IPLA), Commercial Regulation and Governance
(CommReg), and Principles in intellectual property law (PIPL). The first two are undergrad courses,
the last one is a post grad. I took Commreg because I had to write a thesis and for this course I had to
write a research paper. Also I had some Ideas to write my paper on, and eventually I wrote about
which actors are important in the process of getting medicine more accessible in South Africa. It was
really interesting for it showed me things that I had never thought of and also how the western world is
dictating/dominating the developing countries. I took PIPL, a post grad course, because I needed
enough credits to transfer and this course was the only one left after my initial first choice wasn’t
available anymore. I thought it was wise not to focus on too much different subjects in a different
country and law system, so I took the bachelors course in intellectual property as well. These courses
did fit good with each other. The master course required a lot of attention with writing papers (it was
worth 15 ECTS, so I already knew, but still) and I’m afraid that almost everything I’ve learned in this
subject is not transferable to Dutch law. However it is cool to see how other jurisdictions work and
where the flaws are. The bachelor courses were comparable or just a little bit easier than in Tilburg,
totally unexpected to be honest (I thought I’m going to Africa so how hard can it be) but UCT is ranked
higher in university rankings than Tilburg for a reason. The master course was heavy, but maybe
that’s because I’m still in my bachelors. There were many different nationalities which made it
interesting to compare the situation of different countries. You had to speak English, but it was really
easy, especially after a few weeks. I even spoke English to my Dutch roommate as much as possible,
just to practice and for solidarity to other roommates.
The university is made up of three different campuses, lower, middle and upper campus. This is
because it is build up the slopes of Devil’s Peak (1000m). Also it is a lot, and I mean a lot, bigger than
Tilburg university, but luckily law students only have to be in one building. If you’re interested to see it
in advance, just check Google Maps and drive over upper campus!
TOPIC: Social life
Which social activities organized by the university or students? Did you have contact with local
students? Did you have contact with other exchange students? How did you get along with the local
students and other exchange students? Did you travel to other places/countries during your
exchange?
Most of the activities for students were arranged by students. There were a lot of house parties in the
bigger student houses, there was an easter egg hunt on campus (eggs were hidden all over upper
campus, which was kinda fun actually) and there are several sport societies where you could choose
from. I was in the volleyball society with lots of local students, and in the mountain and ski club which
went for hikes in the surrounding area with a mix of locals and internationals. The mix of not only
hanging out with international, but also with locals was really interesting and learned me a lot more of
the country. The local students are also very friendly and helpful. However most of my friends were
exchange students. With three of them I went to Durban (other side of country) and with another I
went to explore Namibia. I also drove the garden route (famous route) with my girlfriend and went on
a tour to Botswana, Zimbabwe and Zambia by myself. All of these travels were amazing on their own
so it’s hard to pick a favorite.
TOPIC: Living costs
How did you finance your exchange period, apart from the grant you received from Tilburg University?
What were your living expenses abroad like compared to Tilburg? What did you spend most of your
money on? What would you advice future students to spend their money on? Please outline your
approximate monthly budget whilst on exchange: housing, food, textbooks, etc.
I had money saved up in advance and together with the monthly income from our beloved
government I survived. My flight and accommodation were paid before arrival, so all the money I
received were directly going into fun things and holidays which was awesome of course! Housing was
the same as in Tilburg, around 300 euro’s a month, but if you arrange it yourself it can be a lot
cheaper (but be careful, there are unsafe areas so check this). I also spent much money on eating
out, but compared to the Netherlands it’s not even that expensive (you can have a decent dinner for
4-5 euro). But the most money I spent on were the holidays, but no regret! I would recommend
anyone to travel at least a little bit around. I never forget these experiences and I’m already looking
forward to travel again.
A monthly budget of 600 will suffice, with this budget you even can go out and have dinner several
times. A total budget of 5000 euro is enough for the semester including one or two holidays. I spent
around 6000, mostly because of my last trip which was over budget (but worth it).
TOPIC: Culture
Did you experience culture shock while on exchange? How would you compare your host culture to
your own culture? What did you learn about your own culture while on exchange? What was different
about your host culture than you expected? What did you like and not like about your host culture? Do
you feel you learned a lot about your host culture, and if not, what would you like to learn more? How
would you describe your host countries culture? If you travelled to other cities/countries during your
exchange, were they different than your host city/country, and how?
In Cape Town I didn’t really experience a culture shock. It is a vibrant city, both western as African,
but especially around UCT it’s just Europe. The African culture is more friendly on the one hand, but
also more criminal. The thing that I liked the most about ‘African culture’ was that everyone supported
Africa, not only their respective country. I didn’t like the constant fear of criminality or violence,
however you get used to this and then it’s not so bad. There are 11 different official languages in SA,
which made it difficult sometimes. The most easy was English of course, but also Afrikaans was
funny, it’s just undeveloped Dutch. History is also important in SA and I haven’t done enough to learn
about this, which is one of the many reasons I have to go back. I did travel to Durban where we were
the only foreigners in the whole area. This was kind of alarming since everyone was watching every
move and following us. So If I experienced a culture shock, it was there.
TOPIC: Personal development
What did you learn from the people you met during your exchange? Would you do things differently if
you had the chance, and what would you do differently? What was your best experience, and what
was your worst experience? What will you remember for ever about your exchange period? What was
the most important lesson you learned about yourself during your exchange period?
I’ve learned to be open to people and to interact with people from all over the world. Also I’ve learned
to switch between different languages which is quite easy now. I also did voluntary work in a township
where I taught English to primary school children. This was an amazing opportunity to experience the
other (poor) side of the city and help people that really need it. The last day of going to them was the
best experience in Cape Town. The children were so happy with us and we made it a big party, and
afterwards they were all really sad. It’s interesting to see what kind of close bond you have after only
5 months. My worst experience was Durban, as described above. I was a little scared and constant
on my guard. However the activities we did outside Durban were really cool, but it was just the city. I
will remember some of my friends and the beautiful view and hikes forever, it was amazing. The most
important lesson I’ve learned is that there is so much more in life than only studying.
TOPIC: Tips for future students
Would you recommend an exchange period? Would you recommend your host university? What
should prospective students bring with them/leave behind? What preparation is required for going on
exchange to this destination? Was there anything you should have done in preparation that you didn’t
do?
Everyone should do an exchange. You learn so much and meet amazing people, see beautiful places
and do stuff you would never do in Tilburg. Cape Town is a really good city to go to, there is so much
to do, there’s beautiful scenery and the UCT is highly regarded. If you’re going to Cape Town, bring
both warm clothes and t-shirts, since the difference between summer and winter is big. In winter it is
around 15 degrees, but with the rains and no central heating in houses on top of no isolation it can be
pretty chilly. Also bring a phone you can afford to lose. There are a lot of pickpockets in Cape Town,
but as long as you’re on your guard nothing much will happen, but just to be sure! The only thing I can
say about preparation is: be sure that you bring ALL of the right documents to the embassy. They will
reject you every time only a miniscule thing is wrong, like writing with blue ink instead of black. I had
to go there 5 which could be arranged in two. But besides that just pack your back and enjoy!