Program Reviews

Wellington is a great city with a very special atmosphere and I enjoy living here as if it is my second home! The VIC staff is very professional and easy to approach, which makes it feel like a big family. Also the Uni Hall housing is great!

Wellington is you place if you want a small touch, reachable by foot. A town that appreciates culture and that is absolutely in love with rugby (remember we are in New Zelanad). If you love outdoor activities this is your place!
Since the beginning VUW has organised different activities to help us to meet other internationals students. We travel, we party and we study having loads of fun together. Definitely a very good option. I've met other students from all around the world and that is really enriching.
The classes are quite good, I study engineering an I have a 4h lab every week of each of the subjects. So you always get to see how the things you learn in theory can be applied in real life. The teachers have been very helpful since the beginning and have offered me help with some extensions at the start of the course when I was a bit lost with uni.
Travelling: there are many things to see in NZ!!! Renting a car is the best option an is quite cheap compared to the prizes in Europe (around 33NZ$ per day). In the weekends you have time to travel but things are quite far away and normally the rides are very long. But there are some amazing places to visit in the North island and the north of the South island that can be visited in a weekend. Also, there is a mid-term break of two weeks that would give you plenty of time to see the places that are further away.
For living I recommend Uni Hall, they are flats really near to uni of around 5 roommates and you have space to organise parties and stuff. However, for those that don't want to buy, cook and clean I strongly recommend you to go to TPV(Te Puni Village). It is like 3' walk from Kelburn campus. This residence hall is full of first-year kiwis and it is good to get to know locals because living in a flat means going with international students 90% of the time. So I am very happy in TPV.

I would therefore recommend anyone to come here!! You are going to enjoy the program a lot!!

Coming here from another continent and get settle down in a new country is not easy. However, with the great help from the school and the well arranged programmes, it makes this exchange really smooth and a lot of opportunities are provided for us to meet new friends and exploring the wonders of new zealand. I have really enjoyed my time here as an exchange student.

I've been in Wellington for a few weeks now and haven't regret my choice for a second. Wellington is a nice city with beautiful surroundings. Many other beautiful places easy to go to and are perfect for a weekend trip.
Living in the UniHall is also great. You get to know a lot of new people before the study even starts. The Uni service is also great and they reply quickly when you have any questions.

There are so many amazing things to do and see in Wellington and the Victoria University Staff and atmosphere enhances that experience greatly! Everyone is so friendly and willing to help. I felt at home the second I got here.

I am currently doing an exchange at Victoria in Wellington and having the best time! I am studying Industrial Design and the students and teachers are very nice and supportive. I did not have all the skills the students have here since my study back home is focussing on other things but everyone is very helpful and I have no problems adjusting.

Also the international program is really nice, the international office organizes a lot of events to make you meet new people and to get to know the university and culture. I am living in a house organized by uni hall, which is also very nice because I am living with other internationals. We are all experiencing the same and trying new NZ things so it is nice to share. The uni hall team also organizes a lot of activities which are very nice and make it easy to meet new people, especially when just arriving here.

All in all I would recommend studying at Victoria to everyone. It is the best experience for me until now.

The international buddy programme here at VUW has been a huge success. I definitely don't regret signing up to this. My buddy has been great and organised alot of socials. It's been a great way to get out of the small international loop.

I have been living in Wellington now for about one and a half months. The city is awesome to live in, I love being able to walk/run down to the waterfront in no time at all and the general views I get when walking around are also outstanding - seeing snowcapped mountains in the distance. I have not managed to travel outside of Wellington much yet due to the University work being relatively full on (as you'd expect), although there is a two week break coming up and I have planned a skiing trip with the University's Snowsports club. I have also had some time to plan out my travels after the trimester is over - I've been given some insider information by the Kiwi's I live with about where to go in particular.

With respect to my degree programme, I'm following four courses which offer a decent challenge, but all the lecturers are incredibly approachable so any problems I have with the course or assignments can be easily resolved.

I have one problem with this place, and that is their heating. In general I've found that most of the houses are pretty cold - especially with it being winter at the moment. The place I'm staying doesn't have any form of central heating, insulation or double-glazed windows. This is, however, a little niggle, and is definitely worth being a little cold to experience this amazing place!

Definitely a great place and it's made even better if you put in effort and make things happen.

Classes: I'm a science major so I can't speak from other degrees. All of my classes were at the Kelburn campus which is pretty centrally located. Business and Law classes are about a 30 minute walk away. Standard lecture classes and then you have "tutorials" that you sign up for and it's a smaller tutor led review session. This is where you'll have most of your "homework". Large assignments every 2-3 weeks. I also had labs that often overlapped lectures which is totally normal. Skipping lectures is a way of life here. Most professors will record them and post them online.

Housing: I recommend living in University Hall. Wai-te-ata is closest to campus and town, really nice interior, houses 5 but its also really loud when it rains because its a tin shack. Te Kotahinga is more traditional apartments. Uni Hall arranges alot of events which is why I recommend it. I also advise living with other internationals. Kiwis aren't as friendly. Other internationals are looking for friends too and it makes it alot better. Just do it. If you want to live in a catered Hall, Te Puni village is the best in my opinion. The rest are out of the way and run down.

Social life: Clubs exist but arent as big as they are in say the US. Drinking is still a college pastime here. But alcohol is also more expensive so be wary. $8 for wine, $20 /12pk, $40 for hard stuff. Bars are really cool and the people in them are mostly students or young people. Mish Mosh, The Establishment, and Boogie Wonderland are fun places. Lots of bars and restaurants have specials on Wed night so...do that. And remember, you're only abroad once so live it up! You'll remember and cherish this experience forever.

There was this one crazy afternoon where me and my friend took off to Brooklyn Hill to conquer the Brooklyn Hill Wind Turbine Walk with groceries (think cabbages and carrots) and school stuff in tow. The sun would be setting in a few hours, and we were uncertainly unprepared; I was wearing extremely inappropriate shoes for navigating muddy trails and my friend was lugging her laptop in her backpack. Nonetheles, the proximity of Wellington City to Mother Nature was too close to deter us. I really like how city and nature can coexist side by side and the wonderful blend of city and nature - my room has a spectacular view of the nearby mountain range, albeit at the price of aching calves from climbing hills to get home - gives you the urge to go out and EXPLORE. On a more serious note, learning at VUW is really conducive. For instance, controversial topics such as transgender community are freely discussed in the classroom (all in the name of learning, of course!) To end off, I really can't wait to explore the rest of The Land of the Long White Cloud!!!