Program Reviews

I am currently an exchange student from Lancaster University (England) studying at Victoria University of Wellington (NZ) for 1 year.

Firstly - New Zealand is an amazing and beautiful county and I really love living in Wellington, the city is small so it is easy to find your way around as well as plenty of things going on each week!

Course/University experience: sadly the University is the one part I am really not enjoying about my year abroad. It may be due to my course choices (I am taking mostly 300-level biology and chemistry courses) but I find it very difficult and stressful. The chemistry courses here are very broad and cover a whole range of topics, for example one module is devoted to physical chemistry whereas at my home uni the content would be split into different modules eg. thermodynamics and computational chemistry. This has meant that the course content does not overlap very well and I have been left with gaps in my knowledge when trying to complete assignments here. Furthermore I find the University very assuming - you are not told about things and are expected to magically know. For example - all lectures after 1pm start at 10 past the hour despite appearing as on the hour in the timetable. The timetable is also incomplete and only contains lecture times - it does not update for tutorials or labs. There was also no introductory talk on how to check items out of the library.

Societies: There aren't all that many societies at Victoria and the one I did try to join (canoeing) -the other members weren't actually students at all!

Accommodation: I am currently living in Uni Hall, accommodation provided by the University. I chose this option as I thought it would be easier than having to sort out private accommodation from overseas. Considering this accommodation is aimed at International student's I'm not sure the location is very good. It is a short 10 minute walk to the university (which is great!) but very far from the supermarket/food shops - a 40 minute trek up and down 90m
with heavy shopping (the only supermarket you don't have to drive too is very small!). The public transport does not bring you close enough to the accommodation. Furthermore the accommodation is very expensive for what it is and the rooms are very disproportionate, I am paying $240 a week for a small, dingy room whilst my flatmate pays the same for a room half the size with loads of sun - not very fair! Maintenance response is also poor - I reported my heater 2 weeks ago and it still hasn't been fixed, and the fire-alarms which ran out of the battery the second week of being here have only just been fixed 10 weeks later. The houses here are also very cold/bad at retaining heat as they are not insulated and only have single glazed windows. The provided kitchen equipment is also pretty poor - most of it was bought by previous residents! The events hosted by Uni Hall are excellent however and are technically free (if you forget about the $150 non-optional activity fee paid at the start of the year). It is also very difficult to meet actual New Zealanders! Uni Hall creates a community of International students with little chance to meet or socialise with actual Kiwis. The wifi - you only get 2GB per person per day! So my house of 5 gets 10GB in total each day. The fact that the WiFi is limited is a bit ridiculous - especially in a house designed for internationals where most want to call home each day! We run out of WiFi most days meaning trying to work in the evenings is both pointless and frustrating.

Food: Food is very expensive here, especially fruit, veg and dairy products. Markets are available on Sundays to purchase cheaper fruit and veg but it is very season dependent!

Public Transport: Poor depending on where you live - no bus links from town to my accommodation.

City: There is so much going on in Wellington! Loads of great places to eat (if you can afford it!) and many cute and unique shops to explore. There is a craft market on Saturday on the water-front that I love and night-markets selling food Fridays and Saturdays.

Despite the negatives I have enjoyed my time here so far overall and I am definitely glad I came. It really depends on how focused you are on grades and doing well. My home university will reduce all the grades I receive here by 10% so I need to work extra hard to ensure my average doesn't slip - this has ruined my experience somewhat.

Hope this has helped and hasn't put you off!

My time in Wellington was truly amazing. I really enjoyed studying at the Uni. It was a big change from my school back home that only has about 3,ooo students to Vic which has about 21,000. The academics were very interesting. I studied Philosophy and Maori culture. I very much enjoyed the social life. The Uni only being up the hill from the downtown area is very nice and there is so much to do. From night markets, to all of the good eateries, to even the salsa dancing scene I got into there-it was all just a great experience. The salsa dancing may have even been one of my favorite hobbies I picked up and learned there! I also travelled a lot while there. This may have been one of my favorite parts of it all. I met so many great people and shared such amazing memories that helped create great bonds. I think one part of my trip that made it unique was the moko I got and the bond I built with Hohua Mohi, my ta moko artist. It really was an awesome experience.

I loved Victoria University as well as the city of Wellington. With a great location within the city, everywhere was basically walkable.. In respect to classes, they were easy enough to balance travel with studying.
I was able to take advantage of the two week Easter break, this was a very big part of my study abroad experience. Being able to travel to four different countries during this time was something that gave me more knowledge than I could ever have learned in a classroom.
I have only heard positive reviews of Victoria University and the housing that was offered. The best part of studying there was the people that I was able to live with. Being placed with people from all over the world I was able to broaden my knowledge without even realizing it.
Overall location of Wellington within New Zealand was perfect. I was able to travel the whole North and the whole South Island. The ferry took a few hours and flights were cheap so you could plan last minute trips without spending too much money.

This was the most incredible experience of my life. Being in a country this far away from my own really put the whole world into perspective. I had always dreamed of traveling New Zealand after seeing beautiful pictures, and I felt that Victoria University of Wellington offered the perfect balance of academics and free time for an exchange student granting me the opportunity to explore this beautiful country.

I am from the USA, studying music composition at Victoria University’s New Zealand School Of Music. I’m coming near the end of my first of three years here at Victoria, and it’s been an incredible experience!!! I’ve met amazing people - both lecturers/faculty and students, embraced a new and beautiful country, and have learned so much this year. This first year has been an amazing journey.

For starters, Wellington is a fantastic city for Uni students generally, and Victoria University’s location here is truly ideal. You can get practically anywhere you need to by foot, and should you need to travel further, public transportation options are abundant. There are plenty of scenic places to go as well as shops, cafes and restaurants students frequent. I have loved the flexibility I have to get up and go whenever I need to and get everywhere I need to easily. There are, however, LOTS of hills and if you’re not accustomed to that (I wasn’t at first) it can be daunting. But you get used to the terrain very quickly - just take it slow in the beginning!!

Victoria has multiple campuses in Wellington, and I spend most of my time at Kelburn. The facilities at the school have really impressed me - they’ve modernized different sections among older buildings that have been there since the start of the school’s existence and it makes for a great atmosphere. Though the campus is big enough for the many students it houses, it’s still quite easy to find your way around once you familiarize yourself with it.

I fully recommend taking advantage of VUW’s halls of residence for your first year in Welly, especially if you’re new to the area. I’m at an alcohol-free section of a catered hall and I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my experience living here.

I know I’m just scratching the surface of the good things I have to say about Victoria - but I’m truly glad I made the decision to come here for university, and am genuinely looking forward to my second year!!

I chose to study in Wellington because of the country's fascinating culture, and for me Wellington is the perfect combination of opportunities while not being overwhelming in size. I also was attracted to the University of Wellington's strong science department. The opportunity to do a lab for my Earth Science class in the field was especially exciting. Where else do you have a fault line nearby that you can visit?
The InterCity Bus also makes traveling around the north island easy. I spent a weekend in Tauranga, and also got to see Napier. It's also not hard to get cheap flights within New Zealand. But even if you don't want to leave Wellington, there is so much to do. A couple of my recommendations are: take a ferry to Somes Island, spend an afternoon at Te Papa, visit the Underground Market on Saturdays, and go to the Wellington Zoo and/or Zealandia. I have loved this semester, and do not want to leave. I highly recommend traveling abroad to everyone!

Wellington is indeed a very windy city, which I came to realize when I first got here. It is not as warm as I would have thought at first. It is, however, a lovely city with loads to experience. The university is very helpful and makes a good effort to meet your needs when you are here. Since I am a masters student I had a difficult time finding the relevant courses, and I still don´t think they fit as well as I had hoped. Therefore I feel I got more out of the experience, rather than the academic outcome. Housing can be difficult if you are looking for a flat outside of uni, took me a while before I ended up in university hall in the end. Wellington is easy to get out and about from, so I highly recommend to do some traveling while you are here.

Vic Uni of Wellington does an amazing job accommodating international students. From the first day I was greeted by my kiwi host, and any issues I had during my semester I felt I could go to them for help. Uni Hall (the "dorm" I stayed in) had fun events all year long and I made my best friends from this group. The academics were not as challenging as my home university, but I'm sure more difficult classes were offered.

While being an exchange student at Victoria University of Wellington and living in New Zealand, I learned a lot, both related to my studies, and about myself.
It was a fantastic experience living abroad. I got the experience of living abroad and traveling without giving up on my professional goals related to my studies.
The social aspect of being an exchange student has been an incredible experience as well, where I have met many new friends and been a part of several clubs, where I could meet both local and other international student who have turned out to become new friends for life.

When I applied for this program, I already knew that New Zealand is a great country. But since i'm here, it goes way beyond my expectations!
This country is amazing, there so many things to see that I'm afraid no to have enough time to visit all the things I'd like to visit.
People are really friendly, there always a new thing to discover around every corner.
Moreover, the education in New Zealand is great. I come from France, where the education is all about theory. When I started the university, I was very surprised that all the courses works in the way. All about discussions, reflexion.
I'm in New Zealand for one year, and I'm already afraid to come back to France because I love this country.
So, if I had to give you an advice, it would be this one "be curious, ton be afraid to ask and have fun !"