Exchange Report

As of my knowledge in the new exchange system that started for us in 2025 60% is GPA and 40% the exchange specific thinngs. So keeping a good GPA is probaly the most relevant thing, for the exchange specific tasks the people I know had quite different experiences esp. types of interviews so it is hard to prepare for it. Just be yourself, excited and know some things about the uni.

So we stayed in a student dorm called The Verge, Other exchangies stayed in the 9, Aves, Plaza, Lark and Boardwalk, about in the order of popularity, SThe experience in all is rather similar, you have a private room in a flat of 4-6 people and can choose (pay extra) for private bathrooms, otherwise there is 1 bathroom for 2 people. All of them are also close to uni and you can get there by the UCF shuttle or bike. They are all also quite safe and people frequently walked home 30min at night from on dorm to another. Some also stayed in Airbnb´s but they were typically further away, but it´s also an option Important tip: Try to get a short-term lease. We had a yearly lease from the Verge, some say it can be hell to find new tenants, we were lucky to sell them to the new WU students but had to pay a 700$ reassignent fee. Apparently it is possible to get it for the Verge and but only 1/20 people i knew there had one and got it only because she went through UCF Global and had a lot of discussion with them. Otherwise I personally would go for the 9 because they were easy to get and there were most exchangies, but it´s a bit further from UCF. Aves are also good if you can get a short-term lease.

UCF has great facilities, it is a huge uni campus with a lot of things, a beautiful reflection pond to chill at, gym, sports amenities, libraries and most importantly you can borrow huge party speakers at the library for free. Most courses, especially in business and the standard economics courses are comparatively easier than most courses at WU. They are designed to incorporate students even more and rely on weekly homeworks, quizzes and even less on exams. I believe that a reason for that is that in the USA almost the whole population goes to college and receives sufficient support and guidance to pass it.

Pubic transport is about non-existent in Orlando, drives that take about 20 min by Uber/lyft take like 2 hours by bus, just forget about it. Safety was actually never really an issue, we had no safety concerns walking from one dorm to another or from a club to a close bar or restaurant. The problem is DISTANCE!!!! 50 min walk to a the closest grocery store in 30 degree heat aint no fun. You are completely reliant on uber or friends to drive you around, or you buy a car yourself and sell it at the end. Most stuff to do is offered by the university, football games and tailgating is a huge thing. Tailgates are like huge parties on the whole campus before a football game, thats just a must-do even if you dont care about football. In general UCF is a huge uni with I believe the 2nd biggest campus in the US so it offers a lot of activities clubs you can join. That your life will probably focus around when you are in Orlando, otherwise most people travelled to see more cities like DC, NY, Boston or did road trips through Alabama/Georgia etc.

At UCF you are a a huge uni with a huge campus and a lot of offerings, thats a straight 10/10 for experience of the American life. Weather is warm all year round and you can go to the beach and try surfing but during summer, esp August it can get killing hot and sunny. Being an exchange student is also a 10/10 experience because all American are like WTF you´re European thats so cool and you are in a cool and experience driven community of exchangies. Orlando is a bit boring tho, you are also rather on the outskirts of it. It got disneyland and theme parks so you can spend an endless amount of money into them, but the rest of Orlando feels like concrete poured into a swamp and cheap drywall houses built on top, 4/10.