pensieripercena - Tumblr blog

pensieripercena · 1 year ago

Text

30+1 Tips about Erasmus

(and things I wish I knew before going)

Hello there! So, I thought it would be nice for some of you European kids to have a guide to Erasmus and studying abroad in general, especially if you are considering doing it/won the grant/are leaving next semester. (and all the lists I see here on tumblr are about packing for college in the US, sooo.)

I did an Erasmus twice, stayed abroad seven months, and I fully intend to get a third one during my master degree (fingers crossed), so I think I’ve gained enough knowledge and life hacks to be able to help you newbies.

And here it is. You got that Erasmus grant and now? You didn’t think you were going to get it but you did! Congrats! Now buckle up kid, and take notes, because I’m taking you on a trip. Won’t be easy but it WILL be unforgettable.

First thing. Your mindset. Some schools basically force students to go and maybe you didn’t even want to, but. You’re here now and you got an amazing chance, so embrace it. Start dreaming about it, but be careful, because reality is going to be different. Buy a guide about your new country. Start learning something about the culture, without going into stereotypes. For sure the last weeks before leaving are going to be mental. START GETTING READY. It’s never too early.

Bureaucracy. That shit is messy, especially the first time. Make a masterlist of stuff that needs to be done so you don’t miss deadlines. Go to meetings about Erasmus at your uni. Talk to others who are leaving. Ask to your uni tutor if you’re not sure about stuff. I can’t really give singular advice here because every uni is different and every uni website sucks, but my advice is: find someone from the previous years who’s gone to the same place, pay them a coffee and pick their brain. (Uni tutors can, in theory, give you their names.) Make a list of questions. I once sat for three hours in a café while a girl was basically interviewing me about my experience. But don’t worry! Unis are used to you being confused. Deep breath and get through it. Try being as precise and accurate as possible always. Also, if you don’t have one, you may want to consider getting a passport. I needed it for a short trip to Russia and without it I couldn’t have gone. In some countries you need it to open a bank account.

Next on, planning. So you got the papers ready, now start familiarizing with your host uni’s website. Start looking for flights and remember the basic sites (skyscanner, studentuniverse and so on). Book the first flight but – unless you know for sure when you’re coming back – don’t book the second one. Uni dates are unpredictable. Someone even uses a few days to explore around, before going home. Now it is the time to see if you need to worry about changing some currency (Sweden, Switzerland, Russia, UK are the ones I can think of) and buying adaptors to charge phones and laptops. (Don’t buy money and adaptors at the airport if you don’t wanna waste a bunch of money). Check if you’re gonna have free wifi, and think about your data plan, you’ll need it. Act accordingly. Maybe buy a sim card once you’re there. Remember now we have new roaming rules in Europe so check that too. Think about where you’re going to stay. Host families are tough, and… I don’t know, they’re not for everyone. There’s gonna be accommodation linked to the uni, or private apartments. Check if the neighborhood is safe.

Adult stuff. Insurance. Super useful especially if you’re staying more than three months. See if you need to register at the police or the town hall once you’re there. Check with your doctor if there’s something you need to do before leaving, special prescriptions or vaccines etc. Check if your credit card will work without extra fees. Get a bigger budget plan so you’re covered anyway.

Aaand we’re packing. Travel documents, passports, IDs and Erasmus bureaucracy should be in your carry-on bag or backpack AND they should not be expired/about to expire, and remember to see the bags sizes for your flight company. Check how the weather’s gonna be in your new country. If you’re going to cold places, it’s better to buy there the winter clothes as you’re sure they’re gonna be the same stuff natives wear and not some decathlon cheap stuff. In general, I’d say: bring a swimsuit, flipflops, towels and sheets. Umbrella and shoes for rain, a winter or rain jacket maybe? Don’t bring heels – you won’t need them. Even if you go to the disco, you’ll want to be comfortable. But maybe a pair of cute shoes. An elegant dress (I needed it to go to the ballet in Russia). Don’t worry if it looks like you have a lot of stuff, we’ll go through this later. Always, a sweater AND summer clothes – better safe than sorry, and you could be doing sports so why not? Sunscreen cream. Sunglasses. Hair dryer. Tissues and an alarm clock. Search for a map of your new town and print it, worry about the fancy version later. Don’t forget some basic food for the first night and morning – it’s not guaranteed you’ll have time to go shopping but you need to eat. Bring something for your new room: a poster, pics of your family and friends, postcards? A couple of books? Having a kindle can save your ass, by the way. Maybe a packet of cookies from home. (It’s nice to have something like that if you’re sad). Medicines are so important! Tampons if you need them, you’ll buy them there anyway at some point. Your contraceptive pills if you take them, band aids, alcohol to disinfect, condoms, aspirins, a thermometer, collyrium, those pills not to have diarrhea, and for basic stomach ache. Bring your laptop, its charger, a notebook and some pens, but don’t expect to have the same level of aesthetic you have at home. Bring an agenda, a small dictionary, scissors and tape. A bag and a small clutch. Some make up stuff, don’t forget the wipes to remove it. Only your basic skin care stuff. That bottle of super luxurious cream? Won’t need it. Having your toiletries tho, it can be useful as you don’t know what they’re selling in your new country. Also, start making lists of stuff you’ll need – this is mine, but you may need different stuff. Start noticing what you use when you’re home. Also! Those bag you can remove air from are super useful when you pack.

First impact. And you’re there. Scared as hell and excited and with two enormous suitcases, or more? IT’S OKAY TO CRY DURING YOUR FIRST DAYS. Just, cry a little during breakfast, and skype your fam, but then wipe your tears and chin up. No one goes through Erasmus without crying, I promise. Bring a freaking stuffed animal to hug. But go out, and ENJOY. Schedule skype calls and mind the time difference if there is. It may come a time where you are annoyed at the thought of calling who you left behind, because you’re having fun! but you should anyway. It’s really important that you stay in touch. Don’t be that person who disappears.

Transportation. Make sure you roughly know where the uni is, where’s your house and where’s the hospital and the nearest doctor. At uni they’ll probably help you about this during your first days. Depending on the town, you can go around by feet, or buy a bus card (check for student discounts) or a second-hand bike. You’re going to get lost at some point and google maps is a life saver, but also try asking for directions.

Roommates. Remember, you’re not there forever. You may be lucky, you may be not, but try and be friendly with them, they may turn out to be your best friends. Or not. Anyway try to establish cleaning rules, first thing you do. It really helps get the mood going.

Make it your home! Your room is your new home, most of the times. I recommend, as I said, pics from your family and friends, drawings, postcards, small posters, maybe buy a string of xmas lights? Take care of a mini cactus? I wrote a list called 100 things worth living for and it was SO HELPFUL during rainy days. I also brought my home country’s flag to hang to the walls. And I brought one of my fave mugs.

Go to orientation days. They’re SO important, and you need to know every little useful info you can get. (Where are the main things, the canteen, the best place for photocopies and so on.) Get friendly with the uni tutors. They’re your age and can’t wait to get to know you.

This is maybe the most important point. I don’t care if you’re a lone wolf at home. MAKE FRIENDS. I promise everyone is as scared as you, and as homesick as you, especially the new Erasmus students. You need to make sure you can count of them. There’s such a network of solidarity, you have no idea. Talk to everyone, you’ll find your own group in time. In general, stick to kids with your same passions – if you like to watch series all day don’t go with the group who likes hiking. Or do! Challenge yourself! If you can, make friends with locals too. Some of them will be haughty because they don’t want to make friends with abroad students who are going to leave soon, but others will be amazing. But at the same time don’t worry if these friends are just there during the Erasmus period. Not everyone is meant to stay in your life forever.

FB groups, whatsapp chats, new numbers. They can save your ass. Get involved.

Get up and go to class, seriously. Some teachers are kinda lax with Erasmus students but most aren’t and you’re gonna be treated like a native. So do your best to get up in the morning, see how the timetable is, see if you need to change the learning agreement. Be in contact with your home uni profs and tutors, and the person who’s sending you the grant.

Languages! Now, I’d say: if you get the chance to be offered free classes of the language of the country you’re studying in, take it, especially if you’re a beginner. Of course if you go to France, there’s a high chance you’re already proficient in French, but let’s say you go to Finland or the Netherlands, and you take your classes in English, also take a course of Finnish or Dutch. It’s gonna be useful.

Shopping. Find out where the grocery store is, bring your own bags. It really depends if you cook for yourself or use the canteen, but. Always have something at home, in case you can’t go out for a few days. Have some medicine too. Buy a couple of glasses and plates for your room anyway, and try to share the house cleaning stuff with your flatmates. And about clothes… I mean shopping of clothes… don’t overdo it. Remember there’s a maximum weight for your suitcases.

Laundry! Really, buy a detergent for normal clothes and delicate clothes, and that’s it. Ask your more expert friends if you don’t know how to work the machine, or watch a tutorial, I promise it’s easy. However, you’re totally allowed to call your mom and ask her about a particular item. If in doubt wash by hand. Try not to use your super favorite items if you’re unsure about how to wash them. Better than ruining them.

Explore the city! I know that staying inside is tempting but try to live it at its fullest – especially on Sunday, it can be a nice occasion to bond with your friends. Go to parties! Absolutely sign up to the ESN (Erasmus students network) if you can, they’ll organize a lot of cool stuff around the city. But allow yourself to rest sometimes.

Relax. TV series can be useful too tho. There’s gonna be someone who loves the same series as you so why not schedule a night for you guys to watch them together? And if you did at home, do sports. Maybe change the sport but continue it. It’s super good to unload and it’ll be like a small ritual from home, a familiar thing in the middle of a brand new situation.

Safety. Try, let’s say, to be safe and walk home with your friends at night. Maybe go around with less money? Carry a couple of condoms with you? You never know. Catcalling is going to happen. Know the police number. Know some phone numbers by heart, for emergencies.

Get into the aesthetic and DO STUFF ALONE. You’re going to be alone on your own for a lot of time, deal with it; you won’t be with people you know all the time. Get away from the phone and do stuff. This is the masterclass experience to learn how to be alone with yourself. Go to that café while it rains and read a book. Music is your friend, make playlists. Eating by yourself will stop feeling weird. Go to the movies, to museums, to the theatre, do fancy stuff with a fancy dress or a fancy hat. No one knows you, no one will judge you. And you’ll also practice your target language!

For god’s sake TAKE PICTURES. I had a horrible breakout on my face during the first Erasmus but I still took pics of myself and my friends doing stuff. Because you don’t want to regret not doing that. Pictures, videos and all that stuff, the more the merrier, you’ll sort it out at home. But appreciate the moments, you don’t need to take pics of everything. Also, I bought a hard-disk to save pictures and documents because I was terrified about losing them. Make a shared Drive doc with your friends to get their pics too.

Trips! If you have the chance, explore the country, if needed skip uni days. I promise even the most boring-looking country is going to have something interesting to see. I mean! Give up a night or two at the club, you don’t need to go there always. Save some money and just go. Buses and hostels are your friends. If your mates aren’t coming, go alone, but be safe. Try new stuff, dare yourself.

Eat the country’s typical food. Erasmus is not Erasmus if you don’t gain ten kilos (I’m joking, sort of.) Also, if you know how, cook your country’s typical food for your friends. International dinners are just amazing. And make bucket lists of things you wanna try.

Keep it up. Be updated with your home country – serious news, town gossip, the latest songs, so it will be easier to get in the flow once you go back.

Library. It’s SUPER useful to get to know it on the first days and get a library card. Try the uni library and the public library. You may find books you need there, and it’s a very popular place for Erasmus student to bond after class.

Alcohol and clubbing. Now I know everyone thinks the Erasmus is this super cool thing where you drink every night but. Of course you can do this but remember you need a number of passed exams to get the money. So unless you’re super rich, you may want to check that the number of evenings you spend at the clubs are balanced. I mean, if you have class at eight… maybe don’t? Or do, try the experience of going to class without having slept. Have fun but please, responsibly. Maybe it’s the first time you’re away from home and you wanna enjoy the freedom and I get it, but… don’t do things you’ll regret later. Know your limits! And most importantly HAVE FUN, it’s one of the best things about Erasmus. I’m just being an old grandma. I’ve seen some things…

Packages. You’re about to leave and your room is FULL OF STUFF. You may want to send a package home before taking your flight? Plan it in advance. It depends on the country, so try the Post Office if the Post Service has a good reputation, or a private company. Booking the package delivery from your host country is going to cost less than making your parents do it from home. I get that you don’t know how you got so much stuff! It’s completely normal. Also, consider donating the stuff you leave to charity places in your host town, or to your neighbors. Better than throwing it away.

Final tests. Don’t stress about grades. In most cases you just need to PASS. The exams are gonna be different if compared with home. Go talk to the teachers if in doubt, they generally treat Erasmus students better (if they’re not assholes). Ask for a fac-simile of the exam. In general, when your home uni teachers will convert the grades, they’re gonna be generous. Please relax. During your final days there is so much going on – packing, the last dinners and evenings with your friends, the goodbye parties, and you don’t really want to lock yourself into your room and study all day. Go, do, and relax. Again, in most cases you just need to pass. And you’re doing them in another language! You’re amazing!

Going back. Be sure you have your bureaucracy stuff ready. The check-in papers for your flight, the documents your teachers or tutors have signed. It’s really important that you don’t lose them. Give back the key to your flat. Sell your bike if you had one. Plan some doctor appointments for when you go back – I assume you didn’t do your check-ups while abroad. Also, I hope you bought some souvenirs for fam and friends during your time abroad, but not too many. Really fundamental: you should buy something for YOURSELF. You won’t see the postcard you bought for your grandma every day, but you’ll see the things you’ve bought for yourself. I got a uni hoodie, and some other stuff. Oh and a really cute thing, I bought a giant flag of my host country and made each one of my friends sign it. It’s a really cool thing.

Post Erasmus blues. Cry as long as you need. You’re gonna experience some kind of reverse culture shock. Talking about it helps, especially to someone who has done an Erasmus. Try and keep contacts with your friends! But don’t worry if it dies off after a while. If you have the money for it, go visit them maybe? Be crafty about your Erasmus! Make a video or a photo album, or a scrap book. It really is a nice memory.

+ 1.

AAnd that’s it! I really hope you’ll enjoy your time there, and get the best experience possible! And if you need advice, come and talk to me, my ask box is always open. Good luck!

p.s. If you went to Erasmus and have something to add, please do!

Once Erasmus, Always Erasmus <3

#pensieri #emigrare

276 notes · View notes