Details

• Brazil
• BaWiSo-23
• Undergraduate
• SoSe 2026
• Time spent at the partner university: 5 months
• Contact: Login to see contact information

1. Preparation

I would recommend you start early with organising everything for your exchange. Starting with your visa and also CPF appointment (tax number for Brasil). Despite that, you should definitely sign in for the buddy program! I didn't do it and I really regretted it, because other exchange students made really nice friendships with their buddys. Also, don't forget to get your vaccinations. You need to get yellow fewer (and I did some others too like Rabies). I did it in Austria just that I already have it when I am there, but others did it when they arrived in Sao Paulo in a hospital and there it's for free. If you want to visit Amazonia, the Rainforest, you should get the pills you need for Malaria already in Austria. There is no vaccination for it, but you can take some pills that prevent you for an infaction. Also, start looking for your accommodation and flight early enough. I booked my flight really late and obviously it was more expensive.

2. Accommodation

I chose Uliving Paulista, because I got it recommended from previous students that already went to FGV. Also my friends from WU with I went to Sao Paulo chose this one and I wanted to be together with them. Now I can say it was definitely the right decision. I had an own room for myself and met so many nice other exchange people. I took the room with the kitchen, but I would recommend you to take the one without the kitchen. I barely used mine, because you have a shared kitchen in every floor and almost never cook in your own room. It's just a 25min walk away from FGV or 10min by Uber, depends on the traffic. The area is super safe, I never felt unsafe and it's also right next to Avenida Paulista, the main street in Sao Paulo. On their website you can get the WhatsApp number and just text with them about booking your room. The stuff is really nice and help you with everything. Only the booking process took a while, but it's definitely worth it!

3. Academic life at host university

FGV is a private university and has nice classrooms with AC (almost too cold sometimes). In every floor is a little café and there is also a cafeteria for lunch with good and cheap meals. The academic level was easier than at WU but you still learn something interesting, depends on which courses you sign up for. I chose some finance courses which I can really recommend if you are interested in Finance or maybe already take some Finance classes at WU. The exam week was quite different than the one at WU, because the teachers are not as strict as at WU, but you definitely need to prepare for your exams to get a good grade.

5. Every day life in the host country

I really loved Sao Paulo. It's actually not that unsafe as People say, but there are definitely some areas you need to be more careful especially with your phone (not have it in your hand or jeans pocket). During night, I would recommend to take the Uber everywhere you go, also if it would be a 10min walk. The area around Uliving is safe at anytime I would say, if you want to grab something to eat during night, it's fine if you walk somewhere. Partying is huge in Sao Paulo, I went out with my friends every weekend and also during week - Brazilians can party anytime!! But I still tried to stay active and go running in the huge Park "Ibirapuera" only a 20min walk from Uliving. There is so much nature, coconut water and a lot of active people. You can go there for a run, a workout session or just for a picnic with your friends. I also enjoyed taking some Pilates and Yoga classes, much cheaper than in Austria but obviously in Portuguese, but it was still fine for me. There are some student clubs, the one I joined organised a huge rooftop event at the beginning that was really nice. I barely used the public transport because I walked everywhere and for longer distances I took the uber, that's also really cheap. But it public transport would be also very very cheap, so I can recommend to take it instead of uber sometimes.

6. Testimonial

I definitely had the best time living in Sao Paulo, meeting so many people, travelling around all the time and luckily also made super nice friendships that made my exchange semester very special. Brasil is a very diverse country with so many different landscapes, islands, forests and beaches, so during my exchange discovering Brasil and other countries in South America was amazing. Being so free and do whatever you want to do really shaped my personality. You are in the middle of South America and have endless options of where you want to go on the next weekend. Uni was really good for meeting people there, but my main experience in the exchange was definitely travelling, partying and meeting new people with completely other backgrounds and cultures.