Why did you choose this program?
New Zealand has always been a dream destination for me, especially after watching the Lord of the Rings movies. I love hiking through beautiful landscapes, and I'd heard New Zealand was overflowing with them. I was also pretty excited about spending time in a part of the world that I'd never really seen before and is otherwise pretty hard to get to.
Studying in Auckland also sounded like a great place to spend a few months as I'd heard a lot about Auckland as an up-and-coming new city with an exciting art scene and some incredible beaches. On top of that, the Unitec staff were super friendly and did a lot to make the application process as easy as possible.
What did your university provider assist you with, and what did you have to organize on your own?
My home university and Unitec worked together to make sure that the classes I signed up for were transferable for the credits I needed to graduate at Auburn. Unitec also helped me figure out finances for the semester and sent me the application for on-campus housing with a lot of other international students.
What is one piece of advice you'd give to someone going on your program?
If you're thinking about studying abroad - do it! When else are you going to have six months that you can spend in another country without having to quit your job or use up all your vacation time?
If you're at all considering New Zealand as a study abroad destination, I highly recommend it. The people are nice, the country is stunningly beautiful, and the outdoor recreation opportunities are superb.
What does an average day/week look like as a participant of this program?
I had a great schedule this semester. I had class in the afternoons on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday, so every weekend was a long weekend and my mornings and evenings were always open.
With my free time, I'd often go for a run or take a bus downtown to shop or visit a museum. I lived right on Unitec's campus, so walking to class was no problem. Groceries were about a twenty minute walk or a five minute bus ride away, and the beach was about the same.
The other residents in my apartment building were really interested in getting to know new people, so we did a lot of cooking together and traveling together on the weekends, and a lot of them were international students as well, so I got to meet people from all over the globe. It was a pretty ideal situation.
Going into your experience abroad, what was your biggest fear, and how did you overcome it? How did your views on the issue change?
I think one of my biggest fears was that I would be alone in this experience. I'd spent one semester abroad before, but I had gone with eight other students from my home university and we all knew each other really well and lived in the same house while abroad.
This time I was going by myself and was going to be sharing an apartment with four new people. I was afraid I wouldn't make any friends and would essentially spend the semester on my own.
Turns out I had nothing to worry about! The other people living in my apartment were in the same boat that I was and were very interested in making new friends. The university had lots of events to help you meet people and the residence staff organized fun activities that helped break the ice and got us well on our way to creating life-long international friendships.
As someone who has studied abroad twice now, what advice would you give to students getting ready to spend some time overseas?
First off, I would say to move to your new place like you're making it your new home. Even though you know you're only going to be there for a few months, take the time to make your room feel like home, invest in meaningful friendships, and really get to know your new neighborhood.
At the same time, be always cognizant of the fact that your time is limited, so make the most of it. Take advantage of time off during the week to explore your new city, and on long weekends, go explore other parts of the country. Make a list of all the places you want to go, get a calendar, and start on day one mapping out where you could go when. Don't let the time slip by and in the last month realize there's a million and one things you want to do and you don't have enough time to do it.
Finally, I recommend investing in a backpack. A big one. Mine's 50 liters - small enough for a weekend trip, rugged enough to take on a 6-day hiking trip, and big enough to be my only luggage for 2 months of post-semester travel. Way better than dragging a wheeled suitcase around all semester.
