Bernhard Reiter
My semester abroad at Umeå University in Sweden.
Arrival
I arrived by car in Umeå in Sweden on 23 August 2015. I recommend travelling to Umeå by car if you can. But it’s better not to leave your car in the car park over winter because it gets really expensive. The majority of the exchange students arrived by plane on 22 or 23 August. We all met at the so-called Universum, the university’s administrative building. Here we were given the keys to our rooms and then a taxi took us to the right address.
The university campus
The International Housing Office provided students with accommodation for the duration of the exchange semester. My room in Ålidhem was 20 m² in size and cost around 350 euros. Ålidhem is also known as the ‘student ghetto’ in Umeå. If you are unlucky, you might encounter some of the notorious corridor parties in your building. But everything was quiet in my corridor. The university is largely based on one campus. It is situated close to the hospital and IKSU sports centre. The university is a short 15 minute walk from Ålidhem. I recommend acquiring a bike in the first week. Bikes are relatively cheap and the ideal form of transport during a semester abroad. You can also take the bus into the town centre but it is expensive in the long run. The Swedish cycle paths are well-maintained even in winter.
Student life
The so-called Orientation Weeks take place during the first two weeks. Students are provided with important information about Sweden, the city of Umeå, the IKSU and the offers available at the university and student associations. The Orientation Weeks are not compulsory events but I would recommend everyone to attend. During this time, I met lots of international students with whom I had frequent contact over the coming months. There is also a buddy programme where a group of foreign students is supported by five to eight Swedish students. You can take part in various events such as sports competitions as part of the buddy group – on a voluntary basis, of course.
Working at a Swedish university
The quality of the science is generally very high, as far as I can see. The laboratories are very well equipped and excellent supervision is provided during the Bachelor’s thesis. The employees in the research groups were all very friendly and during the coffee breaks (so-called Fika breaks), there is the chance to get to know others and maybe even improve your Swedish! Radha Tyagarian and Kristina Leijon supervised my Bachelor’s thesis. I was also involved with other projects in addition to my Bachelor’s project and was able to learn about different processes and technologies. At the university, it is possible to access virtually all of the papers in the PubMed medical database at any time. There is also a large library on campus and a library for medical literature close to the hospital.
Communication & costs
A good knowledge of English is sufficient for successful communication. However it is also an advantage to complete the university’s course on Swedish for International Students Part I and II. In financial terms, the support provided was good. In addition to the Austrian student grant, I received a grant from the grants office and an Erasmus top-up. I was also given a one-off grant towards my travel costs which was extremely helpful.