Details

• United States of America
• BaWiSo-23
• Undergraduate
• SoSe 2026
• Time spent at the partner university: 4 months
• Contact: Login to see contact information

1. Preparation

-Read the reports of other students, this helps a lot. -Don't use too much time for deciding which course to take, you will have a better understanding about them once you're there and you can still switch courses during the first two weeks. -There is a page called "ratemyprofessors" (like profcheck) that can help a lot when deciding for courses -Before you book your flight, make sure that there is still a connection to Champaign on the same day (Peoria Charter is the best option to get from the airport to Champaign). One hour between arrival time of the plane and connection is NOT enough at O'Hare. Better schedule 1,5 to 2 hours.

2. Accommodation

-for students that go there in fall: Be really careful with renting apartments for the whole year, although you only need it for your semester (although very often there is no other option). You will most probably have problems with finding a subletter, as fewer exchange students study during spring. In the worst-case scenario, you have to keep paying rent even though you don't live there anymore. -for students that go there in spring: Relax and you probably can negotiate the rent, as many students try to find subletters -In case you're not sure whether to go for a dorm or apartment, always go with the latter one. Nobody, except freshmen who have to live in a dorm, chooses the dorm. -Go for a place that is in walking distance to the university and Green St (try to be within 10 minutes walking distance to the middle of Green St. (e.g. Raising canes). Of course, this might cost a bit more rent each month but it's totally worth it and you can walk everything. -you can find apartments through facebook groups or websites -be prepared to feel constantly scammed by the student-housing companies, they try to squeeze every penny out of you with some weird extra fees.

3. Academic life at host university

-The whole students life there totally differs to WU life. You don't just go there to study, you will most probably never leave the campus, except you travel somewhere. Everything is there, from the gym to bars to an ice rink or supermarkets. Try to make use of all those facilities. -The connection to teachers is quite different to Vienna. Profs really do care about you and you are way closer to them. For example, sometimes I walked home with a professor after class because we were heading the same way. -"Intro to Advertising" is probably the easiest 6 ECTS course you can ever come across somewhere. -"Negotiation" was quite cool and easy, too. Anyway, the Prof retired this year, so this might not apply in the future.

5. Every day life in the host country

-Public transport is good thanks to the bus system, always check the times on Google Maps, though. They tend to be not too punctual. If you live near Green St, you might not even need it, except for the cold and windy days, where walking outside is hardly possible. -The campus itself is very safe and there is always a lot of the University police around. -There are some harmless homeless people especially on Green St, so don't be surprised about that. -Regarding the night life, there are three main bars: Kams, Lions, Joe's. I will attach a message we received at the beginning of the semester of a fellow student about what's usually going on: Monday: Wine Nights at lion, Burgers half off at murphy’s ⁠Tuesday: Ride the rail at Legends, Timewarp tuesday at kams (5$ big cups), Senior night at lion, 3$ Cheezeburgers at Brothers Wednesday: nobody goes out Thursday: Kams Senior night, Illini Inn Karaoke night, Barrelhouse big barrel night, 4$ OG Lits at Brothers Friday: Senior night at Joe’s (only 9-10pm), big cup at legends, all the bars are full Saturday: Most expensive day of the week but everyone is out normally and all the bars are full Sunday: nobody goes out Another important info to know: - In Champaign there’s a thing of having a “tender”, normally bar ”tenders” are people that are in frats or sororities. If u know them or if u can find somebody who knows them, they can “hook u up” and basically give you a “tab” = you pay around 15$ for the whole tab and can get a ton of drinks the whole evening. BUT, you can only order 4 drinks at a time. --> Try to make friends with barkeeper as soon as possible ;)

6. Testimonial

Whether you go there during fall or spring semester, both have benefits and are special in their own way. As long as you're open-minded and use every chance (especially at the beginning of the semester) to get to know new people, you will have a great time in Champaign at UIUC. Enjoy every second, as it goes by incredibly fast. The fact that there is a large contingent of WU students shouldn't discourage you from applying, as the big advantage is that you will bring some of your new friends back home with you after the semester. Also the acclimatization might be easier for some because of that. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to contact me (really)!