Details

• Canada
• BaWiSo-19
• Undergraduate
• WS 2025
• Time spent at the partner university: 4 months
• Contact: Login to see contact information

1. Preparation

Make sure to apply for the eTA when you fly to Canada. I recommend applying for the ESTA (USA) at the same time as well, if you are planning on visiting the US. It only takes a day or two to receive the confirmation of the travel permit but I would do it 1-2 months prior to your arrival in case there are any problems. Regarding the eSim, you can easily do it online when you get to Canada, it only takes 15min to get it installed, so don't worry about it too much. I used FIZZ and it was great. I had 70GB with unlimited texts and phone calls for approximately 25€. Depending on your usage, there are a lot of different offers so have a look at it. When it comes to bank, money, currency, ... I recommend Revolut since the majority uses this app and it's just very convenient. Take the premium option for the months you stay in Canada. Otherwise, you have to pay an extra fee every time you change currency or pay in CAD. I personally went from Vienna to Montréal and then from there to Kingston. But I would recommend flying to Toronto since the airport is much better organized and especially when you don't know any French, you will have a problem communicating with some people. The first time I went to Kingston, I took the bus (Megabus). When you book it in advance, it's really cheap. I got my ticket for 7€ but it can vary a lot. You also have the option to take the train (VIA rail) but it's definitely more expensive but also a little faster. Either way, you will have to take an uber to your house in Kingston.

2. Accommodation

I found my room on Facebook marketplace. It sounds and looks really sketchy in the beginning but just trust the process. There are certain groups you can join and there, you will find some offers. I would recommend writing a direct message to landlords as well because they sometimes have other rooms available which they haven't uploaded yet. If you don't like the shared housing system, there are also student housing apartments but they are quite expensive and not much better. The process can be quite stressful but bear in mind that there are also students looking for a room not until they get to Kingston personally, so it can be worse. (and they also managed to get a room :)) If you want to make sure that you're not getting scammed, you can attend a Zoom meeting from Queen's but if you can't make it or already missed it, you can also just write an email to that specific department and they will give you some questions you should ask before signing the lease. In addition to that, I would also recommend asking your landlord for his drivers license or any other legal document as well. My house was in Napier Street and it took me about 15min. to get to campus (by foot) but it was quite a long walk to Princess Street/supermarkets/clubs. I didn't really mind but if you are not a big fan of walking, I would look for a room within the student ghetto. All in all, I really enjoyed living in a house with several roommates because it never got boring. Also, they can help you immensely in the beginning when you are new in town. Of course, it's important where you live but it's not as important as you think since you won't be home that often especially with the all the traveling, courses and meeting your friends.

3. Academic life at host university

Campus facilities: - I spent a lot of my time at Stauffer's library but there is also the Douglas library. Definitely have a look at the second one! - You can go to the gym for free as well. There is a women's room, common room, swimming pool, basketball court, ..... quite everything you can think of. - A lot of cafeterias where you can get your lunch, I would recommend Brew since they have the best, affordable options. My courses: - COMM 374 Int'l Business Strategy (Sartor,Michael): only case study analysis during the sessions, a lot of active participation needed (50%), no midterm and final but group work - write your own case study (50%) => very interesting, some preparation work needed, not too much work load - COMM 406 Social Impact and Innovation (Litrico,Jean-Baptiste): midterm, a lot of group work, system is a little bit confusing, find solutions for current existing problems => big portion of your grade depends on the group work. Bear in mind that most exchange students have the pass/fail system at their home university. Therefore, they don't really care about their grades as much as you will. - COMM 416 Organizational Fraud (Young,Esther; Tam,Richard; Paxton,Conor): midterm, group presentation, participation, professors take turns and tell their experience which is enriching => would definitely recommend, interesting guest lectures and workshops - ECON 222 Macroeconomic Theory I (Khan,Tanvir Ahmed): no attendance needed, midterm, final, lecture comparable to courses at WU I only took 4 courses but it's definitely possible to take 5 especially when you have courses where you don't have any attendance. In the beginning, I had to get used to the teaching style since they expect a lot of participation and input from their students. But you will notice quickly that it just gets much more interesting and fun when you participate and hear different opinions and insights from different experiences all over the world.

5. Every day life in the host country

If you live in the student ghetto area, you probably won't take/need any public transportation. You'll wait longer for the bus than just walking home by foot. Safety wise, there were more homeless people than expected (only on Princess Street), so make sure you don't walk around with open bags or your laptop in your hand. But in general, they are harmless. Also, if you don't live near the main street, you won't be encountering any of them. There are so many students in this area, so there is always someone near you or cars passing. I personally never had any problems with safety. If you take a trip, rent a car instead of going by bus or train. It's much cheaper and faster. I would really recommend attending the welcome week. You will find most of your friends, with whom you'll spend most of your time with, there. It's a great opportunity to get to know people. Don't worry too much, everybody is in the same situation as you, just be open and say yes to plans! Also, follow QUIC and CGN on instagram, then you won't miss any important events. Queen's has a lot of sports options (basketball, football, lacrosse, yoga,...). You can even join clubs if you want but then you'll have to be there for the practices as well.

6. Testimonial

Kingston is nothing like Vienna, and that's exactly the point. A small town, last-minute cramming sessions, spontaneous (road) trips.... Somehow all of it turned strangers into the people I now call my closest friends. I didn't just grow academically, but gained experiences that enriched me far beyond university.