- Name
- Kylie
- Study Programme
- GPM
- Semester
- 6th semester
- Host Institution
- UC Leuven-Limburg (UCLL)
- Location
- Leuven, Belgium
- Period
- September 2022 to January 2023
What was your main motivation to go abroad?
I always wanted to live abroad and get to know new cultures. I also chose HNU because it has so many partner universities.
It was incredibly pleasant to belong to such a helpful community.
What were your biggest concerns?
I was definitely very worried about whether the stay would take place at all, as I had an acceptance for Taiwan the semester before, but it was withdrawn at short notice due to COVID. I then applied to universities in Europe because I thought that a semester abroad would work out better there. Fortunately, that was the case.
Would you recommend a stay abroad? Why?
Definitely. During this stay, I was able to meet new friends and cultures and also find out a lot about myself. If you take the plunge and go abroad completely on your own, you can only benefit from it. It made me more independent and social, which are very important characteristics for life. It's also true that as an Erasmus student you have less work than other students, so you also have time to visit nearby cities and countries. Many universities also offer trips and events.
What did you learn from your stay abroad?
I learned an incredible amount about Belgian culture and also about the cultures of my friends (France, South Africa, Italy, Mexico and many others). It was always very funny to see when some stereotypes turned out to be true, for example that "southerners" are always late without exception. The biggest thing I'm taking with me is my own development and, of course, my new friends, who I'll be visiting in the summer after my semester here. It was also very noticeable here in Leuven how much international students help each other. If someone had a problem, 15 others were able to help directly or they lent each other things like mattresses or other things. The biggest help, however, was in finding a place to live. It is incredibly difficult to find an apartment or a room in a shared flat because there are strict requirements and the landlords never want to rent for less than 10 months. Here, people helped each other and let the others know when something became available. It was incredibly pleasant to belong to such a helpful community.
Were your expectations met?
Since I didn't know what to expect, I could only be pleasantly surprised. I definitely didn't expect to make so many new international friends. In addition, the courses at the university are incredibly interesting and interactive. For example, we have to shoot a commercial for a course and we had professional equipment available for this.
Is there anything you would like to highlight about your experience abroad?
At this point, I would like to mention the Erasmus community in Leuven in particular, as they are incredibly helpful and committed. If you had any problems, you could turn to them and they did their best to solve them. In addition, they offered a lot of opportunities for students to network, be it with a language chain, parties, cooking evenings or weekend trips to nearby cities. Through these events, I also made a lot of friends from other universities.
Fun Fact
The first thing you notice about eating in Belgium is that they have an unhealthy obsession with mayonnaise. They really have mayonnaise in all their dishes. Even on sushi and pizza there was mayonnaise. There was no escaping it. So if you don't like mayonnaise, this is a very bad place to be.... Like for me, unfortunately. 😂
Impressions of Belgium
