Bulgarian Universities for Vet Med: Trakia University or Sofia?

Hi there!

I'm Irish, currently taking a gap year but I'm planning on studying Veterinary
Medicine in Bulgaria next year but I cant decide between two Universities.

Is anyone currently studying in either Trakia University or the University of Forestry Sofia? Sofia would be more ideal as there is a direct flight from Dublin to Sofia so
traveling would be easier but if Trakia is the better university I wouldnt mind making the extra effort.

Please get back to me, im desperate lol

Hi Emma, I will probably be attending trakia for vet med from September. I will let you know how it is. When are you planning on starting?

Anke.

My daughter is also interested in studying veterinary in Trakia , I would love to hear what your experience is like of the college

Hi I'm also interested in Trakia. Was thinking of Brno and Wroclaw as well but they're double the cost. Would you recommend the university? What are the teachers like? What about the city? And life in Stara Zagora? What's your time table like in the first year?

Great thank you so much! I am thinking about the revision aids such as library and online system do they have these to a good standard? And anatomy as you have already said things like that? Have you found the class rooms good as well? Thank you

Hi, I’ve almost finished my first year of veterinary medicine at Trakia University and I’d be happy to ask any questions you have

Hi I was just wondering how you went about applying. Did you apply through the university itself or use an agency. Thank you

Hey guys, thought I'd jump on this. Had no idea that this university even existed. The fee's seem quite appealing ! Can you tell me a little bit more about your class mates, many Uk citizens? Why did you chose to study in Bulgaria as opposed to another EU university?

Would love to have a good chat with you about the university and your thoughts, can I PM you?

(Original post by aerobatt)We do have a library but to be honest it’s not very useful, it’s quite run down so hardly anyone uses it, however all books that we need are recommended to us by our lecturers and we purchase them from the stores to make our own notes in them as such. You can visit the library if needed but hardly anyone goes there to be honest! We do have an online system where we can find lectures, practical sheets and stuff like that which is very useful, we don’t usually need to use it however because the teacher usually hands us the lecture and puts it on our usbs after class. Yeah anatomy is good as we have real specimens to work with so it’s good. The class rooms are usually good as well and fit all our group inside, most of them have aircon machines as it gets quite hot here as well so that’s good. There is only a handful of classrooms that can be small but that’s quite rare

Hello there, I'd be happy to answer questions you have about the uni and Stara Zagora. Personally yes, I would recommend the university for a number of factors. The university itself on the inside is not the most modern, but it has good facilities as well as good anatomy classes with real preparations starting from second semester, first year. The University fees are also not too expensive and your fee cost will stay the same for your whole stay, even if they increase the price for new students. Also, the student supervisors are very helpful, and help you get a Bulgarian ID along with health insurance paid for by the University if you're under the age of 25/26.

The professors are as a whole good teachers. Some professors can be lazy, but out of my two semesters I've only had about 1/2 'lazy' professors (in the sense they don't teach a whole load and finish classes super early) and the rest have been very good teachers and answer any questions you have in person and by email. If you make the effort to learn they will see that and will be happy to talk to you after class and in their offices at any time. They will also check your essays for exams and prepare you best they can. As this is Bulgaria, its best to keep in mind not all professors will speak perfect English. I've had about one professor who's English was not the best, but still understandable. Most professors however have very good English for non-native speakers.

The city itself is nice, usually quiet as it is a small city in Bulgaria but there are still things to do. There is a cinema, many bars and pubs, some events in the parks and two large shopping malls. The town also has a good bus system, costing 1 lev per journey. These buses can take you almost anywhere in the town including to Uni. Taxis are also very cheap. The people are usually very friendly with only a short few not being fully warming due to your English speaking (but this is quite rare). Almost everyone tries to help you, even if they don't speak English. Overall the town is quiet but it is a nice place to live and I don't feel unwelcome here. Apartments are also good prices and the bills here are so cheap (as long as you don't over-use electricity and water, for example my bills this month were 16 leva for electricity, and 3 leva for water!).

Timetable in first year is ok, of course it is longer days than school as the lessons are much longer (ranging from 2-4 hours depending on if its a practical lesson or a lecture). Some days you start at 8/9, and you can finish anywhere from 2/3/4/5 depending on the day and your professor. If the class starts too early you can arrange with the professor to start later without breaks for example to shorten the day. Some courses also finish sooner than other, so closer to the end of the year you will have more free periods as different classes finish for the semester. You also sometimes have breaks during the day ranging from 1-3 hours, so you can go to the computer room to complete essays or work or go home and come back later in the day.

Sorry for the essay of a reply! I just thought you could use all the info I could give as I didn't have any when I first joined. Let me know if you have anymore questions.

Hello All

I am coming this Sep to Trakia for Veterinary.

Students who are already in Trakia
Please suggest - Stay single is a flat or share the flat with another student? How do you all get a roommate?
How safe is the city?

Thanks