Experience report
Name:
E-mail:
Exchange semester:
Academic year:
Host University:
Country:
Charlotte Klein
c.m.m.klein@tilburguniversity.edu
second
2014/2015
Uppsala University
Sweden
Housing
It was really easy to find accommodation. About two months upon my departure I received an e-mail
from the Host University about which area I would prefer to live in. I filled in my top three and a few
weeks later I had been given a chamber in my first choice accommodation area! My first choice and
also the place I’ve been living during my stay was Flogsta, a neighborhood about ten minutes away
from the city center by bike. The area consists of a couple of flats, filled with (international) students.
Every floor has two corridors, with eleven rooms per corridor. You share a kitchen and a living room
with your ten fellow “corridormates”, but you got your own bathroom! This was one of the big
advantages of living there.
Arrival
When I arrived at Stockholm Arlanda airport, I immediately met four other Dutch students who were
about to study in Uppsala. We took a cab (which was not too expensive when divided by five) to
Uppsala and there we went to a welcome meeting at a student nation. Here we got a lot of information
about our accommodation, upcoming introduction events, we got our housing contract + keys and
even were given a simcard with 500mb free data every month!
Location of university/city
Uppsala is a small and cute town located north of the capital Stockholm. Even though the town is not
that big, it still is the fourth biggest city in Sweden with about 200.000 inhabitants, of which 40.000 are
students. Uppsala therefore is a real student city. The university was founded in 1477 and there are
lots of different departments. Law, economics, physics, everything is there.
The main building of the university is situated right in the city center, the departments are spread all
over the city. As the city is not that big, it is easy to go from one place to another, by bike. Yep, just as
here in the Netherlands, biking is super popular in Sweden. In the first or second week of your stay,
you can buy a bike from another exchange student who is leaving Uppsala or on a second hand
website similar to Marktplaats (www.blocket.se).
Academics
The courses I took were Russian Law and the International Legal Order & Comparative Legal History
and Contemporary Jurisprudence. I was really interested in Russian law, as the judiciary is very
influenced and even controlled by the executive and the current legal system is relatively a new one.
The course was substantively very good and we had an excellent teacher, a lawyer who actually
helped writing the Russian Constitution. The other course was mainly about history and philosophy.
Personally I found it less interesting, but if you want to go for an easy course, this is the right one to
choose.
The teaching method in Uppsala is different from Tilburg. The seminars are focused on group work
and presentations. The lecturer has a passive roll, the students lead. In Tilburg the students are way
more passive and at the law department everything is individually based. The method used in
Uppsala is in my opinion more effective, in the sense that you prepare more and better for the
seminars (group pressure) and you develop your presentation techniques.
Social life
What I find most interesting about the Swedish students life, is that they also have a culture of student
associations a bit similar to what we have in the Netherlands. In Uppsala there are no fraternities or
sororities, but there are so called “Student Nations”. Each nation is named after a specific region in
Sweden, and traditionally students joined the nation representing the region they were from. Today
however, students can join the nation of their choice. The nations have clubs, restaurants, choirs,
libraries, sport groups, etc.
You don’t have to worry that you won’t make enough friends or have enough fun in Uppsala. There
are so many international students and there is so much to do. You can go out every night to a nation
if you want, and if there is not a party at a nation, there will be a legendary Flogsta party. The nations
close at 1 or 2 already, which is way too early if you ask me, but the Flogsta parties can go on until 6
in the morning. You will never get bored!
The community of international students really feels like one big family. Everyone knows each other
and hangs out together, even though there are hundreds of exchange students. The international
students don’t really hang out that much with the locals: the Swedish students are sometimes difficult
to bond with, as Swedish people can be a bit reserved and are less out going as i.e. Dutch people.
Going to a restaurant or bar is not really affordable in Sweden. Fortunately, all the student nations
have restaurant of good quality! You can have a nice juicy burger for only six euros, which is a good
price if you ask me.
Living costs
Living abroad in Sweden is expensive. Most money I spend on food, food and food. And drinks of
course. But I’ve got a tip for you: there are the so called “booze-cruises” to Helsinki, Riga and Tallin,
where you can buy duty-free alcohol! One liter of vodka was only 8 euros. Great deal. A beer in a
normal bar is often around 5 or 6 euros, but in the Nations you pay around 3 euros for a beer.
I paid over 400 euros a month for housing, which is not that bad, but still more expensive than the
average student room in Tilburg. Furthermore, public transport is quite expensive, so make sure you
buy a bike!
Culture
I didn’t really experienced a culture shock when arriving in Sweden, but there are certain differences.
For example, Swedish people are way more polite and friendly than the sometimes rude and direct
Dutch people. They are also really pretty, blond and skinny! When I came back in the Netherlands, I
had a bit of a “reverse culture-shock”. People I didn’t know started talking to me in the streets, and
they seemed really direct and rude. Foreigners always say Dutch people are like that, but I never
really realized that until now. It was definitely something I had to get used to.
What I really liked about Sweden, is the position of women in society. It seems that a lot of women
have high positions in for example the parliament, but also in big companies as the Kiruna Iron Ore
Mine which I visited. Also, instead of a guy hitting on a girl in a bar, it is often the girl who makes the
first move and buys the guy a drink!
Furthermore, Swedes love queuing. In almost every shop you have to get a number and stand in line.
Also, in supermarkets, the change is not handed out to you, but the coins come out of a machine.
A huge Swedish student tradition are the gasques. These are formal dinners, where you have to wear
a nice dress or suit. Everyone sits at long tables and you get a songbook. After every song you raise
your glass and “skol” your drink. After the dinner there is a party. You can compare it to a beercantus,
but a gasque is way more fancy!
Personal development
During my exchange I’ve learned a lot. I’ve become more independent and I’ve learned that you have
to enjoy every day. Before you know it your time is over, and you will regret the moments that you
didn’t spend with your friends. So Carpe Diem, make the best of every day and every moment!
The best experiences I’ve had were the moments of fun with my friends, the walks in the beautiful
enormous Swedish woods and my trip to Lapland. It’s hard to describe the beauty of Lapland. The
landscape is quite flat, but the norther you go, the more hills and mountains there are. In winter,
everything is white and frozen. It really looks like a place where Santa would live, as in a fairytale. I
have been riding a snowmobile, did dogsledding, climbed a waterfall, and best of all: I’ve seen the
northern lights. That might have been one of the most beautiful experiences in my life.
Of course I’ve also experienced some difficult moments. In the beginning I have been a bit homesick,
as you are on your own, without friends and family. But after a while that went away.
Tips for future students
I would highly recommend an exchange period. You learn so much about yourself and about life,
make awesome friends and do stuff you would never have imagined doing. This really is an
opportunity you just have to take. Of course it is a bit scary, living abroad for half a year isn’t nothing.
But don’t let fear hold you back. It will be such a great experience, wherever you’ll go. You meet
people from all over the world and make friendships that will last forever, of that I am sure. So don’t
hesitate and just go!!
I would highly recommend Uppsala University to everyone. It is a high ranked university and the city is
perfect to live for exchange students. Here I’ve got some tips:
- Buy a bike;
- Choose Flogsta as area to live in if you want to party a lot;
- Visit Lapland!
- Take a course in basic Swedish. I didn’t do it because I was travelling, but if you’ve got time, I
would certainly try it;
- Enjoy every second of it!