Daisy's Exchange to University of Turku | Finland
The key factors for myself choosing to study at The University of Turku were...
- Finland is a world leader in education
- They offered units related to my degree and that I was interested in
- The climate
- The accessibility to other countries for further travel opportunities
A little about The University of Turku...
I studied 7 courses, with a combined total of 30ECTS. This meant that I had classes most days of the week, so I was quite busy. The uni was a central place for a lot of us to hang out, so we spent time in between classes at the cafeteria socialising. The teaching style was similar to Murdoch, with most courses having both a lecture and a workshop component.
A few of the courses that I took at the university had practical components which involved going to Finnish schools. One of the courses required me to spend 100 hours observing, learning, assisting and teaching. This was one of the highlights!
A little about the city I lived in, Turku…
A lot of my friends bought bikes, which was an easy way to get around
the city. I found it almost just as easy to walk and catch busses, as I lived
in walking distance to most places. With the public transport app Föli, you can
also use public bikes that are located all around public areas. Likewise, there
are apps to use public scooters which you can find on most corners, and you are
charged for the amount of time that you use them.
My favourite place to eat was a popular sushi buffet called Itsudemo
Hansa. I know sushi isn’t Finnish, but it was really great and fun to eat there
with friends! Buffet is the most popular style of food in Finland. The
university cafeterias are also buffet style, and with a student concession you
can buy a huge lunch for just €2.60! Going out to drink was expensive, so we
usually had pre-drinks in our accommodation beforehand. But the clubs and local
bars were a lot of fun and a good place to socialise.
The locals were most often friendly, but known for being reserved and a bit shy. Most of the friends I made were international students like myself who I met living at the university’s student village. Turku is a small city that we became familiar with very quickly. My friends and I treasured it, but also really enjoyed making trips to neighbouring places. One of the best places to visit nearby was Villa Järvelä Oy. Set on a beautiful lake, there were saunas and jacuzzis to warm up and even barbecues to cook lunch or dinner...or both if you stay that long! (we often did).
The best parts of my experience…
I loved being able to study education in a country so renowned for their school system, and was even fortunate enough to spend over 100 hours observing and co-teaching in a Finnish school.
But the best parts of my exchange experience were making all of my
international friends. I loved living in the Student Village as there were
always people around to meet and hang out with, but I still had the privacy of
my own room.
With the friends I made, we did so much travelling together. I visited 9
countries while on exchange and had some of the most valuable experiences of my
life so far. It was so liberating to get on a bus, ferry, train or plane and
find myself somewhere totally new. The University of Turku has a great ESN
group who arrange student trips, so a lot of the organising and logistics is
done for you!
I really immersed myself into life in Finland and started to feel like a
local there. At the same time, I knew it wasn’t forever, so I soaked up as many
opportunities as I could and felt a sense of freedom knowing that I could make
mistakes and take risks that I wouldn’t otherwise at home.
Some of the challenges about studying abroad…
I loved every minute of my exchange. The biggest difficulty that I faced was coming home! When problems arose, I really leaned on my friends for support.
A little about my accommodation whilst studying abroad…
There wasn’t much information or support around finding accommodation. I really had to investigate this myself. The host university did send some helpful links, though, which sent me in the right direction. The two most popular options were The Student Village and Retrodorm, both of which were housing options for incoming exchange students. I chose the Student Village due to its proximity to the University. On each floor there are 12 rooms with one shared kitchen. Each person had their own bedroom and bathroom, which was another reason I chose this option. Our building also had a sauna and we could book this free of charge 4 times per month. The shared laundry could be a bit of an issue as it would book out quickly. My advice: book in advance to avoid washing your clothes in the sink!
Funding my exchange experience…
I had personal savings that I built in the lead up to my trip. I also applied for the OS Help loan, which I recommend to EVERYONE! It really helped me a lot, and was the biggest source of money that went into my trip -it basically covered flights and accommodation. I was also really blessed to have supportive family members who gave me some money towards the trip as well. My advice when saving is to think of whatever it is you want to spend money on in the moment, maybe a coffee, and visualise yourself having it overseas instead.
Whilst on exchange, I travelled to…
I did a lot of weekend trips to neighbouring towns and cities like Helsinki, Naantali and Porvoo. When the weather was warm I even did a boating trip through the Finnish archipelago to explore different islands. Some of the best trips I did were organised through the ESN network, so the planning was done for me and I had a group of people to travel with. The ESN trips were especially useful for traveling to countries that required visas, like Russia. These trips were always so much fun and relatively cost effective compared to booking it all on my own.
I of course did some of my own travel planning, like my trip to Italy
with my best friends that I made who invited me to stay with their families
over Christmas. I am so glad to have made friends who wanted to show me their
own countries! New Years Eve was spent with another friend from the Czech
Republic who drove me all around the country. We even went to the border of
Germany and walked across together!
One of the best trips was through an organisation called TimeTravels,
that took me on a bus all the way from Helsinki to Inari (past the Arctic
Circle!). On the first night, although I was tired from the 24+ hours of travel
(and the bus getting a flare tire!), my friends and I went outside to try and
spot the Northern Lights. Just when we thought it might not happen, it did! It
was incredible, and I was so lucky because that was the only night of the whole
trip that they were visible.
On the same trip, I decided to go a little further and travelled to Bugøynes in Norway, basically the edge of the world! There I experienced 1.5 hours of daylight and swam in the Arctic Ocean.
Advice I would give to someone considering studying abroad…
Your time at uni is so short, make the most of it by travelling while you can. Exchange is such an enriching experience, you’ll be glad you did it and kicking yourself for not doing it earlier. Just try to let go of all your stresses back in Australia and live free in the moment. Exchange is a breath of fresh air. Enjoy where you are.
- Daisy studied abroad at the University of Turku in Finland.
EMAIL: studyabroad@murdoch.edu.au
WEBSITE:https://www.murdoch.edu.au/mymurdoch/support-advice/murdoch-experience/travel-while-you-learn
