“Student exchange is an experience for life”
This is what students who study abroad for a semester or two say. An increasing number of students at UiA want to study abroad.
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Former exchange students on stand representing the country and university they visited. (Photo: Sissel Eikeland).
“Student exchange gives you memories for life. It is a unique experience you will remember for a long time and get a lot out of”, 3rd year student in development studies Hanne Kristensen says.
The International Education Office on stand to answer questions about student exchange. From left: Janne Strøm-Fladstad, Aase Galteland, Elisabeth Grant and Tonje Nielsen Rørly (Photo: Sissel Eikeland).
On Wednesday 28 August, Kristensen and her fellow student Jenny Guo Strømsnes and other former exchange students were on a stand in Vrimlehallen at Campus Kristiansand where they presented the country and university they visited.
Kristensen and Strømsnes were on exchange in England this spring, at the University of Exeter. That is also where they got to know each other. Now they answer questions from students interested in the exchange experience.
“Being on exchange is more than a purely academic experience and language learning, you also learn to know yourself in a different way. It is the people we met and experiences with them that leave the greatest mark. We met other students from all over the world”, Strømsnes says.
Exchange in multiple countries
The first thing students have to decide is which country they want to go to. UiA has partners all over the world for UiA students to choose to study.
“Going on exchange as a student is easy, anyone can do it. UiA has many offers and they help you get to where you want”, Strømsnes says.
Several hundred students visited the stand to get information about exchange. One of them was teacher training student Anne Mari Knarud.
“I would like to go on exchange to learn language skills, learn about the culture and for self-development. I want to go to an English-speaking country, so I can use the experience as an English teacher in the future”, Knarud says.
Steady increase in exchange from UiA
Janne Strøm-Fladstad, adviser at the International Education Office, tells that there is a steady increase in students wanting to go on exchange.
“UiA has many exchange programmes and we are there to help throughout the whole process. This autumn we are sending around 320 students. Next spring up to a 100 students will go”, Strøm-Fladstad says.
Most students at UiA are offered an exchange that lasts more than three months. There are some exceptions due to national regulations.
Most study programmes at UiA offer exchange opportunities, says Janne Strøm-Fladstad, adviser at the International Education Office at UiA (Photo: Sissel Eikeland).
Application deadlines
Students who want to go on exchange need to prepare well in advance. Application deadline for the spring term is 15 September. For the autumn term or a full year exchange, the application deadline is 15 February.