Details

• Great Britain & N.Ireland
• MAMark-21
• Graduate
• WS 2025
• Time spent at the partner university: 3 months
• Contact: Login to see contact information

1. Preparation

Definitely check what airport you need to go to! While I didn't have any fellow WU students in my program, I met two exchange students who had booked flights to London rather than Manchester. Which takes the train ride to Lancaster University up from one hour to, well... several. Also, trains between Manchester and Lancaster often stop around 10PM! So if you have a late flight, book an overnight room in Manchester. Next up, umbrellas: If you're gonna bring an umbrella, it should be a sturdy one. The wind is CRAZY in Lancaster in autumn. My umbrella broke the first time i used it. I ended up mostly defaulting to jackets and hats, because the rain wasn't too bad - it rained a lot, but not particularly hard. Lastly, I'd recommend getting there a bit early. It's a really nice town and it is fun to have some time to get familiar before jumping into uni life. (I arrived a week early)

2. Accommodation

Lancaster University has a dorm and also has some recommended accommodations, I think. You might want to check these out... I did not, though. I didn't want to stay in a dorm for a few reasons! Firstly, there are cheaper rooms elsewhere. Dorms I believe cost at least 140 or 150 pound a week, while the room I found ended up being 120 pound! Secondly, the dorms are completely empty. There are no dishes, no pots and pans, no sheets, no pillow, no towels. You either need to bring everything yourself or buy it either at Sainsbury's or at their one dorm flea market they do. Once you leave, you also are not allowed to leave anything at the dorms. So you either have to give it to the flea market for free, bring it home, or throw it out. I understand that this is okay if you're there for a whole year, but with the exchange term being less than 3 months, it just didn't make sense for me. The room I stayed at was with a very nice host woman, and she obviously had an equipped kitchen and provided me with sheets and towels as well. Lastly, LU is not that close to town! It's about a 20 minute bus ride away, and as a WU Masters student, you don't usually have classes every week day. I found it worthwhile to be closer to town (I was a 20 minute walk from town and a 10 minute bus ride / 45 minute walk from University) because it encouraged me to go into town more and explore Lancaster! An exchange friend I made who lived on campus went into town a total of two times all term. Lancaster overall is very safe, and as long as you're close to a bus stop you should be good to get to uni fast. The one downside is the bus costs! But if you stay late at uni with friends or a society, the buses go down to 1 pound a ride after 7PM! Personally, I found my room on SpareRoom, which is a room sharing website. The nice part is that you might share with someone nice and local who will be able to give you tips or show you around. (My host drove me to Morecambe for a walk by the sea and showed me around town during my first week!) However, there is a risk of not getting along with your host. If you'd rather not take that, you can also look into student accommodations in town - I had a friend who had a really good room right in the middle of Lancaster that was cheaper than the student dorms. Overall, look into the options available, and decide what works best for what you want out of your term! If you want the full student life, apply for the dorms. If you want a more immersed life abroad, I would go for a room closer to town.

3. Academic life at host university

The campus is very nice! The buildings and lecture halls are cool, and the culture is very relaxed and friendly. The teaching style also seems more relaxed and the lecturers are all very passionate and fun. Definitely go talk to them after class! You are sadly very restricted in what courses you can take based on the Master degree you choose to pursue there - I went for the Marketing one, and some of the course material was definitely a bit repetitive from what we did in our first year in our Marketing Masters at WU. However, the perspective is different and it is definitely noticeable that they use different methods for things. Do pay attention to how many courses you take - you do NOT have to take all of them to cover your 25 ECTS, just count the credits. You will need 50 UK credits. If you are doing the Marketing Master, definitely go for Marketing Communications. Especially if Anthony is teaching it. One big difference between Vienna and Lancaster are the societies and clubs! Take the opportunity! Go to the society / club fair during orientation week and join AT LEAST one!! It's a great way to meet people, try out new hobbies, and just have fun and engage with student life at Lancaster. Yes, you will likely meet a lot more Bachelor's students there than Master students, but it is such a great and fun thing that we just do not have like that in Austria. Do not miss this! I joined three societies and I had such a blast attending the events and getting to know a bunch of people. (They will have a club or society for you! They have a ton of different ones.) Also, the course load is lower than it is at WU, so you will have the free time for it, I promise. Besides classes, this is the best way to make friends. Finally, and perhaps most importantly: Do not go to Costa Coffee. Go to Coastal Coffee. They're both in the main square, and Coastal is ten times better. Trust me.

5. Every day life in the host country

Lancaster is a very pretty and historical town. If you are looking to party, this is probably not the right destination for you, but I am as far from a party person as you can find, so it was ideal. The public transport was fine, a bus is roughly 2 pound one way. I always walked into town and only took the bus to university and ended up paying a bit less than the term bus ticket (which is about 180 pound). If you don't live in town or on campus, but somewhere in the middle, be prepared! I lived in the middle and for morning classes (9AM) I had to take a bus that would get me to Uni by 8:15 or 8:30, because after that the bus will just drive by you because it is too full with students from in town. So either get some breakfast on campus or be late to class, I guess. Safety wise I had zero concerns. Lancaster makes you feel really safe, even as a woman walking around alone late. Lancaster actually has some really nice food! The Cornish Bakery has amazing Cornish Pasties (do not miss these), Journey Social has some great brunch options, Tora Ramen has good Ramen, and the Merchants 1688 is worth a visit for that one Sunday Roast you gotta have while you're in the UK. Other than that, I ate a LOT of Meal Deals, which are good for saving money if you don't like cooking. You could probably manage to spend less money than me if you just cook, though, haha. For social activities as well as sports, again: Join clubs and societies! It's the best way to get some social time in or try a new sport. Things you should to see in Lancaster (again, it is a very historical town, and that is a PLUS!): - The Maritime Museum: very cute and interesting museum about how Lancaster was a big hub and one of the most important port cities in the past. There is a lot to learn about fishing, the slave trade, and ships. It is a must, and entry is free while you live in Lancaster! Bring your Student ID, maybe. - Lancaster Castle: It's such a cool castle, and the tour is absolutely worth it. It's not expensive, and it lets you see so much more than just walking in. You will learn so much about the castle's history and how justice was practiced there! - Ashton Memorial and Williamson Park: Beautiful park and you get a great view from the top of the memorial! There is also a butterfly house. - Take a walk along the channel. It's just nice! - Lastly, take some day trips! From Lancaster you can easily take a day trip to York (historical city with old city walls!), Manchester (biggest city close by for shopping, also go into the John Ryland's Research Library. The architecture is amazing), The Lake District (picturesque towns in beautiful nature. You can take the bus to Windermere for like 3 pound. I would also recommend taking a boat ride from the Jetty Museum), and Morecambe (close enough for a half day even, beautiful coast line with a ruin and a church by the sea). - If you have a the money and the time, you should also take the opportunity to do some weekend trips! I went to London and Edinburgh. It's just a good opportunity to explore more of the UK by train. (And if you take the Avanti West Coast to Edinburgh and it has more than a 15 minute delay, which is very likely with UK trains, go make sure to apply for delay repay. You get a good chunk of money back!) Lastly, if you are in Lancaster for the winter semester, go to Light Up Lancaster! This is a MUST! It is a two day light festival with art installations all over town and it is BEAUTIFUL! Do not miss this, even if you do nothing else.

6. Testimonial

Lancaster University is welcoming, friendly, and an absolute blast with so many opportunities for social activity. I enjoyed the clubs, the relaxed teaching style, and the historical city. Lancaster is a great hub for exploring northern England, and I can only recommend to do so! I also had to make the discovery that British food gets a bad rep, I still dream of Cornish Pasties.