Experience report – Freek Haarmans
Name: Freek Haarmans
E-mail:freekhaarmans@hotmail.com
Exchange semester: Fall
Academic year: 2013/2014
Host University: State University of New York, Albany
Country: United States of America
TOPIC: Admission, arrival, housing
How was your arrival organized?
I arrived one day before the start of the introduction week in Albany. I arranged a hotel close to the
university so that it would only be a short trip for me the next day. Once I got to the quad where my
room was on the next day, there was a huge welcome committee talking me through all the important
matters and guiding me to my room. From that point on the introduction week officially started.
Did someone pick you up from the airport/station?
I flew from Amsterdam to Boston and took a bus to Albany from there. I arrived at the bus station in
the evening but the university arranged two students who picked me up and dropped me off at my
hotel. It was perfectly arranged and it all went very smoothly.
Was an orientation or introduction activity organized?
There was an entire introduction week, full of all kinds of activities to get to know all the other
international students, the university itself and the city of Albany. In this week the international office
also organized a very nice trip to New York City, which was mind blowing straight away.
How was accommodation organized?
In the United States, most students live on campus. Very often it is even mandatory for freshmen to
live on campus. However, for international students the choice was yours. I chose to live on campus,
since I wanted to participate in the real American college atmosphere. The dorms on campus are just
like you see in the famous college movies, with huge corridors with many doors on each side and
rooms you share with a roommate.
Does the university provide you with accommodation?
Yes it does.
What kind of accommodation does the university provide?
Different kinds of rooms are available for different prices. You could choose to live in a single
bedroom, a double bed room or even a triple, meaning you would have to share your room with 2
other students. More exclusive rooms were also available, they would have their own shared kitchen
and living room, but were also twice as pricy.
Did you have to book your accommodation in advance or did you have to search for a place to
live after you arrived?
If you choose to live on campus you have to book your accommodation in advance. Of course if you
want to live off campus you can choose to wait a while but this will not be very convenient since you
will not have a place to stay at first.
TOPIC: Location of university/city
Please describe the city you lived in. Where is the university located in the city?
The university has three main campuses. One of them is close to the city center, and the other ones
are on the outskirts, often referred to as ‘uptown’. The main campus, where most students live and
were most lectures are given, is situated about 5 km from the city center. I lived close to the down
town campus, which was closer to the city center and had good bus lines which would bring you
uptown.
What is the best place to go to eat/drink/dance/do sports/etc.?
The University offers a zillion opportunities to do sports. American student life all happens on campus.
On campus you can have dinner in one of the restaurants in one of the 5 quads, which provide you
food three times a day if you have subscribed for the so-called ‘meal plan’ or you could choose to eat
at one of the many other restaurants or take-aways at the university. Downtown offers you many bars,
but since the drinking age is 21, you will most-likely not see a lot of students here. They prefer house
parties.
What are interesting things to see and do in your host city?
Albany is the capital of the state of New York and offers many beautiful government buildings. You
can see the state has spent a lot of money in showing their power. The rest of the city is typically
American, with wooden houses and grid patterns. The city overall is definitely not the safest city in the
country, but since you will most likely spend most of your time on the university you will only
recognize this by the many police sirens you will hear. What I loved most about Albany was not the
city itself, since it did not have any atmosphere at all. The university and the government building are
pretty, the rest is not. But what I loved most is its location. Being close to Canada, New York, Boston,
Washington, Philadelphia and the nature, Albany is close to many places you just want to go to. I
visited all the big cities on the east coast during the time I spend in Albany. Bus lines provide excellent
transportation to all of them!
What was different than in Tilburg?
The atmosphere was totally different. Student life here is incomparable to student life in America. The
system is totally different and the atmosphere in the city is too. America simply does not have a lot of
history dating back more than two centuries. Tilburg is also almost twice as big and in general looks
better than the city of Albany. But then again, the university looks perfect, so for a student that is not
that big of a deal.
TOPIC: Academics
Which courses did you take and why?
I took many courses based on international relations and politics. This was extremely interesting and
it taught me the American way of thinking and the American view on many world issues. This was,
quite frankly, really eye-opening and extremely different from what I was used to in Tilburg.
Which courses would you recommend?
I would definitely recommend all the courses I took. I took courses in Climate Change, Voting Trends,
Building Democracy, Post-Conflict Reconstruction and Public Policy Analysis and all of them were
extremely refreshing and interesting.
What did the courses add to your program at Tilburg University?
I replaced all my courses in Tilburg with courses in Albany in order to avoid a study delay. The
courses certainly added a great deal of international knowledge about many matters. In Tilburg I most
of the times studied the Dutch system, but all the courses I took were very broad, looking at global
issues. I found this very fascinating.
How does the university compare to Tilburg University concerning the level of the courses,
use of extra material, level of English, workload, etc.?
If you study in America you will notice that in general you will have to work a lot more than in Tilburg.
This is also because attendance is mandatory and because you will simply have more lectures than
in the Netherlands. Almost every week you will have a short test or other assignment, causing you not
to lose track of the class materials. The level of English was not a problem at all and even writing
essays went very smoothly! The good thing about having all these little assessments during the
semester is that you will most likely have less stress during the finals.
Overall, were you happy with your academic achievements during your exchange?
I am extremely proud and happy with what I have achieved in Albany. I managed to get the maximum
score for all 5 of the courses I took.
Please describe the campus of your host university.
See previous.
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?
The international office offered many activities every week. Just think of trips to NYC, baseball
matches, apple picking etc. This was a very nice opportunity to meet the other International students
and above all it is simply a lot of fun. I had a lot of contact with other exchange students, we had a big
group of international friends with whom we hung out with very regularly. The local students were
always very curious about where you were from. I always told them I was from Amsterdam. Do not
expect every student to know where that is, since the only thing most of them will know is that
smoking marihuana is legal here. Overall most of my friends were international, although at the end of
the semester, more and more American students joined our group too. Furthermore, we made a lot of
travels. During the semester I have seen all cities on the east coast and also traveled to San
Francisco to visit my uncle. When the semester was finished I made a road trip with a friend on the
West coast, where we drove from San Francisco to Los Angeles, Las Vegas, the Grand Canyon and
much more. This was an amazing experience I will never forget.
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.
Accommodation on campus is very expensive, since you also pay for all the facilities like the shared
bathrooms and the daily cleaning. In general you will pay at least double the price you would pay for a
room in Tilburg. Considering the small room sizes in the quads and the fact that you share the room,
this is extremely pricy. I used governments loans to finance all my expenses. The good thing was that
I did not have to cook for myself. I paid about 250 euro every month for the meal plan, but this meant
that I could eat as much as I wanted, as often as I wanted, so that was great. Most money I spent on
traveling. Except for the books there are hardly any other expenses you will have to make for the
university. But since I was in the States, I also wanted to see every bit of it, causing a lot of my money
to be spent on traveling.
These are the expenses you will definitely face:
Housing: +/- 700 euro
Food: 250 euro
Books: 200 euro
As you can see this is certainly not cheap. However, an experience like an exchange is worth a lot
more than you think.
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?
I did not face a culture shock at all. In general, the cultural differences only reveal themselves after
several weeks. At first you will hardly see any differences between America and Europe. The people
in America in general are very friendly, more friendly than in Holland. And of course, a big cultural
difference is the food. Pizza is served from breakfast to dinner and fries for breakfast is also not
unthinkable. I did not expect to have a culture shock. In general the American movies show the right
image of what America is like. The thing that struck me most though was the tipping in restaurants
and shops. In Holland, giving a tip is seen as a generous way to thank someone for their service.
However, in America, not giving a tip is considered unthinkable and tip percentages of 20% of higher
are rather the standard than an exception. Another important aspect is the fact that America does not
really have a lot of culture. Since the States are relatively young compared to most countries in
Europe, the cities to not breath the same atmosphere as ancient cities you will find here. In a way this
makes you respect the European history.
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?
America is a country that is extremely divers, both the country itself and the people living on it are
more diverse than a Dutch citizen could ever imagine. This truly opened my eyes. Thanks to my time
in New York I have opened up towards the unknown, other people and challenges. I would not want
to change a single thing I did in America and I am extremely proud of everything I have done during
this experience. I will remember every single thing: the people, the nature, the courses and the
experience in general. Truly eye-opening.
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?
Without a doubt my exchange period is the best thing that has happened to me. I would definitely
recommend the host university, although I would recommend anyone going to Albany to realize that
the city itself is not too exciting. It is all about its location, making trips to every big city on the east
coast peanuts. There were some preparations I had to do before I was able to leave. Just think of
arrange you visa. This might be time consuming so make sure you start on time! Furthermore you
have to proof that your level of English is sufficient, although this will not be a problem since the tests
are not hard at all.
My biggest tip: Just do it. You will surely not regret it and it will teach you lessons for life you will
always carry with you.