Jane's Exchange to University of Waterloo | Canada
Ever since high
school, it’s been a dream of mine to go on exchange. I’ve always loved
exploring new places, meeting new people, getting out of my comfort zone, and
being away from home. After studying at university for over four years, I
finally made it happen! I went on exchange in Semester 1 2018, to University of
Waterloo (UW) in Ontario, Canada.
Honestly, I chose UW
because it was the only university I could go to in Canada and I was 100% sold
on that being my destination. Looking back now, I’m so glad that I had that
choice taken out of my hands and would not change my experience for anything –
I’ve even been looking at my options for doing my post-graduate studies there!
UW is a highly-regarded university in the STEM fields, and has some super
famous connections – alumni Mike Lazaridis founded Blackberry and created the
first ever smart phone, and one of their professors, Donna Strickland, just won
a Nobel Prize in Physics. It’s super competitive to get into, and there’s heaps
of international students from all around the world.
UW isn’t famous for Arts
and Psychology which is what I’m studying, but I absolutely loved all the
courses (what we call units) I did. I did Evolutionary Psychology, Psychology
and Law, Women’s Studies, and Dynamics of Dating – this was literally a class
learning about dating in the modern world, like dating apps and friends with
benefits etc! I was on campus every day, but only had 12 contact hours a week. I
was spoilt with my assessments too – I had no exams so I had extra travel time!
I stayed in university
accommodation on-campus. It definitely wasn’t the cheapest option, but the
easiest. The building had a gym, massive food hall, printing services, laundry
room, study rooms and lounges, and a Tim Hortons (Canadian Starbucks) was in
the next building over. A small group of us from my floor, both exchangies and
Canadians, would hang out basically every afternoon we didn’t have anything
else on and just study, socialise, or plan our travels in a relaxed way. I really
miss that environment!
Waterloo is a
university town, and the whole area was set up for students. It was super easy
to get around, and public transport on the buses was free in the region with
your student card. From my on-campus accommodation, there were buses that took
me straight to the malls, to Walmart, to the super market, into the town
center, to the bottle shop, literally wherever I needed to go.
The main highlight of
my time there was definitely the people I met and the friendships I made. I
know it sounds very clichéd, but my friends absolutely made the experience for
me. My two best friends were both called Lisa, one from Austria and one from
Sweden, and there is a really big exchange student community there. I was so
worried about making friends, but had no trouble with it – we were all there to
have fun and not take the term too seriously. And now, I have friends from all
around the world!
There were always
events and so many opportunities to do cool things. I tried to get involved
with everything I could, especially the classic Canadian things. Being the
middle of winter when I arrived, there were so many options. We went to ice hockey,
basketball, and baseball games, maple tapping (maple syrup is my new
obsession), ice skating, tubing, s’mores by the campfire, I tried skiing (and
realised I hate it), joined a few clubs, went to the arts society’s cocktail
party, and more.
Travel was definitely
a massive highlight of my time in Canada, and I’m so grateful I got to visit so
many incredible places. For study week, I went to Ottawa and Toronto with a few
of my exchange friends. When I had to say goodbye to my home away from home, it
was actually really hard, so thankfully I had exciting plans ahead of me! During
the exam study period, three of us went up to explore French Canada for two
weeks. We stayed in Montreal, Quebec City, and a few nights in a little cabin
in the woods with no running water or electricity. Next, my parents came over
and we did a 2 week road trip through Ontario then 2 weeks in the Atlantic
provinces – Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland (where I saw
puffins and an iceberg!). Then I left my
parents and headed over to the west coast. I met up with a girl from Waterloo
to do a little road trip around Vancouver Island, then stayed in Vancouver for
a week. Next, I jumped on a little tour and did a week in the Canadian Rockies.
That’s what you always see photos of, and it definitely looks just as
incredible in person. We saw so many amazing animals too, even a black bear and
her little cubs!
Of course, exchange wasn’t
always easy and fun, and I definitely had some challenges along the way. There
were times when I felt super alone and like I was missing out on things at
home, and I was really missing my dog the whole time. For me though, it was a
really good experience of learning how to manage myself and learn some
effective coping strategies. There will always be support available if you need
it while you’re away – your exchange university will have counselling services,
and you can always contact Murdoch too.
Money is a big
consideration when thinking about exchange. I made the decision that this was
going to be my one big trip for a while, so I went hard. I got all the help I
could: OS-Help Loan, I managed to get a scholarship, I got my own loan, and I
studied part time the semester before I left so I could work full time and save
up. I found general costs in Canada were pretty similar to Perth though.
My general advice is
pretty simple – participate as much as you can! Get to know people, take up
whatever opportunities come your way, and engage with the culture and life in
your new home. There were a lot of things I agreed to do without being super
enthusiastic about, but am so glad I did when I look back. Also, I know it’s
easier said than done, but try not to stress too much before you go. I was
worried about absolutely everything, both big and small – what will my roomie
be like, will I make any friends, will I like the food, will the bed be
comfortable, will I be able to find some good snow boots? I learnt that
everything works out in the end; even if things went wrong, I was always able
to manage and deal with them.
I would definitely
recommend exchange to anyone that is even thinking about going. It was easily
one of the best experiences I’ve ever had, and it’s helped me to grow, mature,
and trust myself. Now, I just can’t stop thinking about doing it all over again
in a new city!
- Jane studied abroad at the University of Waterloo in Canada
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Murdoch University Study Abroad & Exchange - Outbound
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
CONTACT US!
EMAIL: studyabroad@murdoch.edu.au
PHONE: +61 8 93607836
VISIT: Murdoch University, Student Centre, 90 South Street, Murdoch, WA, 6150
FIND US!
FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/murdochoutbound
INSTAGRAM: www.instagram.com/murdochoutbound
