Details

• Canada
• BaWiSo-23
• Undergraduate
• WS 2025
• Time spent at the partner university: 4 months

1. Preparation

The process at WU was quite easy and straight forward. My only advice for this process is to think about, what you want from your exchange experience and focus on that. For the semester abroad, I found it very helpful to reach out to others, who have been in the area you will be going. I received a lot of helpful tips regarding things to do, places to visit (and not to) as well as housing and living. Also, in my case we quickly created a WhatsApp group for everybody coming to UVIC, which helped a lot as well.

2. Accommodation

I would recommend living on-campus, if you get a place, just because you are where most other exchange students are living. I lived downtown in a apartment complex called Neighbour, which was really nice and I would definitely recommend checking out. It is brand new and very nice and about 30 minutes away from UVIC. However, the area is quite rough, because there is a lot of drug use in the streets surrounding the house, but they have 24 hours security, which makes you feel safe. Some tips: On-campus housing offers a nicer experience because you are closer to everyone, but off-campus usually is cheaper and better equipped. One thing to note is that the ones, who took the meal plan offered by UVIC, felt a bit scammed by it. The food is not that good and also not much.

3. Academic life at host university

The campus is really nice and very open. Studying in the library or just walking around is nice. I can recommend the campus pub, especially Music Bingo and Karaoke night. In general the vibe on campus is really chill and it is a nice place to be. I found the courses to be a lot easier than those at WU. I got lucky and only had one final exam, since most of my classes were graded on assignments and participation. In my experience first and second year courses are more exam based and third or fourth year courses more interactive and hands-on experience.

5. Every day life in the host country

Victoria is a really nice and fairly safe city. The public transportation networks works good, from a canadian point of view, and gets you from A to B. Downtown is where all the action is located in the city, but there is not much to do there. I would rather recommend taking any chance to go outside of Victoria and explore the beautiful nature there. Often times we would rent a car for a day or the weekend and just drive up the island. Some tips, that might help finding the right spots are the various clubs at UVIC. I joined the outdoors club and the surf club and had wonderful trips with them. A major issue or downside of Victoria and BC in general, is the issue with drugs. There is a lot of drug use on the streets and at first it is really uncomforting, but they are usually quite harmless and keep to themselves.

6. Testimonial

I found my exchange experience to be one of the most significant things I did so far. Learning and living in a different country on my own did not only help me in my academic progress, but also showed me, that I am capable of navigating a new environment and make lasting memories, knowledge and friends. In some ways I learned more about myself and found new interests and hobbies I would like to explore. I am very happy that I got the chance to go on exchange and I would definitely recommend for everyone to take the chance as well.