Program Reviews

I am truly happy I took the leap to come to Canberra, Australia. I have traveled before but with family and friends for short periods of time. This has been my first time abroad for 4 months and without friends and family. I have grown close to so many students here and we are all becoming close like a family. I have adapted very quickly here, which really helped the transition. The ambassadors have been very helpful and a lot of fun. Knowing that they have also been in our situation really helps us bond with them because they know what we are going through. When I go back to the US I will have to get used to everything being on the right side since I have been getting use to everything on the left. Learning this culture really opens my eyes and excites me to learn about more cultures. I am excited to see what the next three months bring me and I encourage everyone to take the opportunity to study abroad.

Everyone I have encountered since being at UC have been extremely helpful to say the least. We always know all the activities that are going on because they make sure they inform us and everyone wants to make sure you have an amazing time abroad. All of the ambassadors are more than willing to drive you places and take you on trips to see other sides of Australia. Canberra is definitely not as populated as other big cities but you can find plenty to do on the weekends and everything is very reasonably prices. I like how my housing is perfect walking distance to the mall where i get my groceries as well as campus.

I had never been on my own in my country, so being by myself on the other side of the world seemed to be pretty challenging... Though beggining with the people from the study abroad office at UC, everyone was very welcoming and nice. I met people with whom I lived amazing experiences... friends that got to know me in a way maybe not even I knew myself. Living in Canberra is very cool, it is not hectic and yet, you get to do a lot of things... a really nice living rythim. Getting used to classes at UC was really smooth, unit's activities are all sorted out from the beggining of the semester, so you can organize yourself easily. And there are a lot of interesting things organized by uni people.

The University of Canberra provides a very good exchange program. The student society is heaps awesome and student life here is lively. However, accommodation and food on campus area are not the best. The university has a lot of interesting units from which to choose.

University of Canberra exchange program enlightened me to travel overseas for the first time. You can go away for the weekend, travel to the iconic Sydney (3 hours), or travel before/after your semester. With a lot of tourist destinations within 1-5 hour flights, at your disposal is a great opportunity to explore Aussie culture.

The only difficulties I found was planning travel with friends early enough to get a fairer price (hard life, right?). Be sure to book as far as you can in advance to get the most affordable price.

Most campus and res staff and students are extremely helpful. The campus is easy to navigate, theres always something going on around res and events on campus. Great atmosphere! Traveling around the area is very easy, Greyhound busses to Sydney (with free wifi) for only $25 and lots of great flight deals from Sydney. There's plenty to do in Canberra you just have to go out and look for it yourself!

Usually when you talk to people about the city of Canberra, they look at you with a funny face and tell you that it must be boring to leave there. It wasn't the case for me thanks to the University of Canberra. Indeed, the UC Study Abroad and Exchange Program do a great job. During my semester we made plenty of different activities, every weeks, thanks to the many UC ambassadors. They helped us to be familiar with the country, the culture and helped us every time we had a question or a problem. I keep a good memory of my semester at UC and I recommend it to future students (and it's one of the only big university in Australia where you can see everyday big groups of kangaroos crossing the campus, it's amazing !)

The orientation week was very helpful not just to get to know the university but to get to know all the other exchange students. Also in the activities we get to know the principle sightseeing places of Canberra. Very helpful because that way we knew where they where when we wanted to go back. The orientation trip was awesome, one of the best experiences. Its the place where we make more friends and got great tours in Sydney. All the places we enter and visit at Sydney were perfect to get to know the city.
All the study aboard team were very helpful with uni topics, for examples changing units, they always have time and answer all the emails.

I've learned a lot about planning my weeks and months, when it comes to my school work, becouse here I actually had to becouse off all the things I had to keep up with and remember to do at all times.

When it comes to things to bring I am so happy i brought a rain jacket and a thicker jacket, cause the weather here is cold (even compared to norway, though a reason might have been the shock about going from mid summer to winter).

And a dictionary was also helpful at times, Even though most of the time I was fine it was good to have as a back up (and I know some forgot it and missed it, and some had ask to borrow mine, so it could be a good idea even though it is big and heavy...)

Going on Exchange was something that I thought I'd never do. I've always been a homebody and this is completely outside my comfort zone, but I'm so glad I did it. I've been able to experience a different culture and make new friends from all over the world! I've also had a very supportive group of people who have helped make this experience as comfortable as possible! UC has a group of ambassadors who are students that have already gone on exchange, and therefore understand what kinds of things we may be feeling. The ambassadors are there to welcome you, take you around, plan special trips, and just help you have a good time. And the other students in general are all very friendly. Although Canberra may not be the most exciting city in Australia, its a great place to live, meet people, and study. And you can always travel around to other cities or countries on weekends and school breaks! I arrived earlier and although I may have been one of the few people on campus at the time, I would still recommend it! It gave me a chance to settle down, meet people, see the city, and travel all before school started. Therefore I knew my way around before a lot of other people arrived.