Zoe's Exchange to Binghamton University | USA
Hi my name is Zoe and in semester 1, 2019 I went on Exchange to Bimghamton University in the USA. At Murdoch I am studying Games Art and Design, English and Creative Writing.
The key factors for me in choosing Binghamton were . . .
The classes offered at Binghamton appealed
to me most (one called Fairy Tales in Social History lured me in), and the
university also had a good reputation for its academia. I also chose a place
where I thought it would be more likely to snow, out of curiosity—I had no idea
how MUCH it would snow! (A lot.)
I also had a friend who went to Binghamton
before me and told me that the campus life was pleasant.
A little about Binghamton University, the classes and the teaching system . . .
I took Life Drawing, Creative Nonfiction,
and Fairy Tales in Social History.
Life Drawing was an intense course, with once
weekly sessions in which we would work a few hours on life-size charcoal
portraits of nude models. The professor was blunt but very encouraging, always
pushing students to work harder, to unlock more in their artwork whether they
thought it was already finished or a lost cause. It was a small class and each
student was given lots of responsive instruction, so it felt as though the
professor was working with me to make the best of my pieces.
Creative
Nonfiction was a challenge for me, as I had joined the course under the
misconception that I would be able to choose to write creatively about whatever
topic I wished—but the class turned out to be entirely based on the form of
memoir. I really was not comfortable writing about my own life experiences for
a class of strangers to read, but with honest feedback from the professor
(sometimes too honest…) I learnt a lot about the form of memoir and a lot about
myself. My professor convinced me to write with the kind of complete honesty
one could never employ when speaking aloud. In the once weekly classes of a few
hours we would workshop student drafts for the final twenty-page project.
Finally, in Fairy Tales in Social History (also held once weekly) we would
discuss the themes and symbols commonly present in fairy tales (primarily those
recorded by the Brothers Grimm) and how their meanings connected to shifting
ideas in German social history (particularly how German society was affected by
the French revolution). The content was fascinating, mostly literary analysis,
but my only issue was with the time that would be wasted due to students not
reading the fairy tales. This was a larger class and my only one with less
dedicated attendees. It was also a 200-level course, where my other classes
were levels 300 and 400. Over all I was impressed with the teaching staff and
learning environments at Binghamton University.
Living, public transport and my favourite things in Bimghamton . . .
Binghamton is a small “college town”,
meaning the population, economy, and culture is primarily made of or catered to
students. It was great to be a student in a town like this, since my
demographic essentially funded the gentrification of this otherwise run-down
town.
I paid a student fee at the beginning of semester which meant that I
could take any Binghamton city bus for free, as well as the busses run by the
university, including a campus shuttle to help me get from my apartment on
campus to my classes (otherwise a 10-15min walk).
My main haunts were campus
and Downtown. Downtown was a social hub in Binghamton, frequented by students
due to the restaurants and bars there, and I had many friends who lived
Downtown either independently or in student living communities. I did have to
spend quite a few nights at a friend’s place Downtown because I stayed out
later than the last bus back to campus, but uber and lyft are also available to
those willing to spend the money, as well as taxis usually at $4USD a head for
those looking to get home after a night at the bars.
My friends and I would
spend a lot of time at Hawley, a community where one of us lived, because there
was a jacuzzi available to Hawley residents and their guests! Other favourite
places included Strange Brew (one of few coffee shops in Binghamton that
reminded me of the Perth cafe scene) and Craft Bar and Grille (due to their two
for one deal on Thursdays!). On campus I spent a lot of time in the library and
at the different coffee and food spots.
The locals were friendly, and often
very excited to meet me! The Australian accent is maybe the most useful thing I
brought with me to America… all I needed to do was speak, and people wanted to
befriend me!
The best parts of my Exchange experience were . . .
The friends that I made were the
absolute best things to come out of my exchange experience. I think I was very
lucky to have met the people that I did, and to have had the chance to form
intense friendships over a period of 5 months. I have plans to see these
friends again—people have promised to visit me in Australia, and I’m planning
for a trip to Europe already (where most of my new friends live).
I feel
globally connected, like I have a couch to sleep on in every country! Of
course, I benefited academically as well, feeling like I could not have had the
same learning experiences in Australia, as American “college” felt so unique
and immersive.
The worst of my culture shock was
the slight but not insignificant language barrier. They speak English, but not
our English. Every time I said something that to me was normal but to Americans
was indecipherable, I was hit with a wave of frustration at having to change my
language habits. Having to say “fries” when ordering chips, asking for the
“trash can” instead of the bin, and being met with complete confusion at words
like “arvo” led to me slowly feeling isolated from the strange new culture
around me. It was fun to feel exotic in a new place, to be considered
interesting due to the way I pronounced “water”, but too much of this can be
alienating.
I wanted to be stubborn and stick to my Australian ways, but in
many cases I had to assimilate. For example, walking on the right side of the
footpath as opposed to keeping to the left was a very difficult habit to form,
but a necessary one. To deal with my difficulty fitting into American culture, I
strove to expand people’s perception of me beyond the title assigned to me by
many Americans, “that Australian chick”, but to deal with my fear of
assimilation, I embraced this title.
Probably what helped most with any of the
struggles I faced regarding culture shock or homesickness, however, was to
engage in an active social life. I was always meeting new people, but I was
also spending a lot of time developing my friendships with the other exchange
students. We were a group of about 10 people, all of us having arrived in
America with no one else in the world, all of us in need of people to trust and
to travel with. This group was a great source of support and comfort when one
of us was feeling down.
Though we could relate to each other about feeling
alien in the USA, we also had fun discussing the cultural differences between
us all. Funnily enough it was the European exchange students, in their broken
English, who made the most fun of my accent!
My accommodation at Binghamton . . .
If I had done more research, I may have
chosen to live in one of these communities rather than on campus, since it was
so expensive to live on campus, but I was happy with my decision since I became
close with my three roommates. I chose to live in an apartment community, so I
had my own bedroom, but shared a kitchen and living space. My roommates and I
would often eat dinner together, have movie nights, and have friends over for
parties.
How I funded my Exchange experience . . .
I was fortunate to receive the OS Help Loan, but I used personal savings to cover
what the OS Help Loan did not. There was also the Murdoch scholarship of $2000—as
I was travelling to the actual opposite end of the globe, this scholarship was
just enough to cover the cost of my flights.
My travels during my Exchange semester . . .
I went on many weekend trips with
the other exchange students—plus our one token American friend, who was so
generous and eager to be our helpful guide. We went to Philadelphia, Washington
DC, Miami (for a week during Spring Break), Niagara Falls (twice), Disney World
in Orlando, Ithaca, New York (three times), and Toronto.
Each of these places was
so much fun, the most fun coming from the fact that I was with good friends of
course. With an Australian passport there was no need to apply for a travel
visa to visit Canada by car or train (if you fly in you would need one) so I
took advantage of that both times I visited Niagara Falls, as I’d heard there was
a lot more to do on the Ontario side than on the New York State side. Another
great thing about Canada was the legal drinking age being that much more
reasonable age of 19—not as impressive as the Australian legal age of 18, but
far better than the Americans’ 21. I may have made the unfortunate decision to
study in America for the last five months of my being 20 years old, but
thankfully Canada had my back.
After my semester ended, I went to California,
where I turned 21 with just about week left in the USA to spare. I explored San
Francisco and Yosemite National Park with my Austrian friend, until we
tearfully parted ways—she headed home as I made my way to LA. I have to say
that San Francisco was perhaps my favourite city in America but exploring
Hollywood and chilling on Venice Beach in LA was still a great treat.
- Zoe studied abroad at Binghamton University in the USA.
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