Exchange Report

For the interview, I would recommend doing some research on the courses and clubs/societies that one would be interested in at their chosen universities to show some initiative and genuine interest. I believe that knowing a bit about the country’s culture can also help to explain one’s decision. Besides these two points, I think the text that you have to write already sufficiently covers everything that one should think about beforehand. With the above preparation, being yourself and genuine should be enough for a good interview. Besides the obvious (finding an accommodation, booking a flight, deciding what to pack and what to buy locally, etc.), I would highly recommend booking as many freshers’ week events as possible beforehand. 99% of them are free, and they are a great way of meeting new people, but be aware that some get filled up quite quickly (though the waiting lists have a surprisingly high chance of success).

The university does offer student accommodations to apply for, but it does not guarantee that every exchange student will be allocated, and warns that the results of the dorm applications are announced quite late. Given these circumstances, I chose to look for private alternatives so as not to risk receiving a rejection when it would be too late to find anything else. I went for The Social Hub Glasgow (private), which more than makes up for the somewhat pricey rent by offering various events (where they sometimes also serve free drinks and food), monthly room cleaning, free bike rentals, study spaces, a pool table, and more. The location is very central and close to myriad food offerings of pretty much every kind. Various clothing shops and supermarkets are also right around the corner. The location is relatively safe and does not particularly require any more caution than any regular place in a larger city. The university is roughly 30 minutes away by subway. While not being a huge issue, one should be aware that the subway stops running at 11:40 pm from Monday to Saturday and already at 6:12 pm on Sundays. This makes the location somewhat suboptimal for staying out late close to the university, but buses are still available, and there are many pubs and bars easily accessible on foot from the accommodation, so it’s not an issue.

The campus is absolutely gorgeous, but the buildings are quite spread out (to the point where it is possible that you will have to use three different subway stops depending on the lecture), and some are a bit difficult to navigate. The UofG Life app and Google Maps are good ways to find the buildings, with the former even having a built-in path description to the specific lecture hall after entering the building. The biggest difference in the academic culture is that the local grading is a lot stricter than that in Austria. The difference is especially noticeable in essay grading, where they very rarely, if ever, give top marks. Based on all the above, depending on the course, it can be very difficult to get the equivalent of an Austrian 1. Another noticeable difference is that there are a lot fewer assignments. Besides exam and midterm weeks, you typically don’t really have to do anything outside of the lectures (though this, of course, is subject to vary by course). The lectures typically also don’t have mandatory attendance.

Public transport is a bit expensive, but the subway takes you everywhere you need to go and runs in pleasantly short intervals. The only issue is that it stops its service at 11:40 pm from Monday to Saturday and already at 6:12 pm on Sunday. If one has to go somewhere after these times, the bus is quite usable (though rather expensive). The area south of the River Clyde is a bit sketchy, but generally, the West End (the university’s location) and the city center are relatively safe. Through the virtually endless list of clubs/societies to join, there is no shortage of different events or “socials” to attend. What exactly is done in these events naturally will depend on the club. This can range from poker nights to watching sports together, pub crawls, and hiking trips. Besides the university societies, Glasgow also has a very noticeable love for pubs. These tend to be rather loud and energetic, but if one likes that style, there is absolutely no shortage of options in the city. With regard to sports, the university offers myriad sports clubs, which can be a great way to get into a new sport. They hold free taster sessions at the start of the semester, so students can give various sports a shot, but actually joining them can be somewhat pricey.

What made my exchange semester special was really the people. Being able to interact with people from all kinds of different places was not only enjoyable on a personal level but also helped me better understand other cultures. As I’m currently learning French and Italian, I also highly valued being able to interact with and talk to people from France and Italy, which really augmented my learning process. I also loved the beautiful Scottish countryside and the various smaller and larger cities around Glasgow that I was able to visit. Additionally, the locals were always incredibly nice and welcoming. On the academic side itself, it was also fascinating to see the slight differences in their system, which allowed me to reflect on what we could do better and where we already are stellar.