experience with a year abroad during uni??

hi i'm in year 13 and i've applied for biological sciences at uni (my top choice is liverpool). i've been looking at the year abroad/summer abroad and there are so many different places to choose from but i'm mainly interested in australia as i've always wanted to visit and i have family over there too!
i'm wondering if anyone has any experience with taking a year abroad like the move, being away from family, and the actual uni work?!
thank u sm

Reply 1

quietmodule41

I went on a year abroad from Liverpool to Bilbao in 23/24 and it was the highlight of my degree. Being away from family, having to deal with visas and having to find some new people to move in with when you're back all suck BUT the experience outweighs it.

I would describe the level of education around A-Level level, it felt completely different to UK uni (although that'll change depending on country) and it was generally accepted that lecturers would bump up the marks of international students, especially if they were producing work in a foreign language.

The experience was amazing outside of academics too, I got to explore a lot of Spain and some of North Africa on my time off and had some of the best food I have ever eaten. It really was a once in a lifetime thing and I strongly advise you do one. It never hurts to talk about a year abroad in grad interviews either.

Reply 2

evsurfer

Original post

by quietmodule41

I went on a year abroad from Liverpool to Bilbao in 23/24 and it was the highlight of my degree. Being away from family, having to deal with visas and having to find some new people to move in with when you're back all suck BUT the experience outweighs it.
I would describe the level of education around A-Level level, it felt completely different to UK uni (although that'll change depending on country) and it was generally accepted that lecturers would bump up the marks of international students, especially if they were producing work in a foreign language.
The experience was amazing outside of academics too, I got to explore a lot of Spain and some of North Africa on my time off and had some of the best food I have ever eaten. It really was a once in a lifetime thing and I strongly advise you do one. It never hurts to talk about a year abroad in grad interviews either.

thank you so much and i'm glad you found the experience positive!
i'm sure it's probably varies for different countries but what was funding like? like most people i'm going to be living off student finance from the government, will this change for the year abroad? i'm worried i will have to somehow find the money to pay for the year myself.

Reply 3

quietmodule41

Original post

by evsurfer

Yeah so I had student finance but that was reduced and I also got some money from the Turing Scheme but that's uni dependent and then also up to them how they distribute it. I had the chance to teach English for some cash too (again, country dependent) and I actually moved out there with my girlfriend who was a full-time English teacher.

Money can definitely be an issue but usually you get given more if it's a higher cost of living country.

Reply 4

UEA Rep Jas

Official Rep

Hey!

I’m currently an ecology and conservation student at UEA, studying abroad at UTAS in Hobart, Australia!

I’m over half way through my year and honestly I’m loving it so much!

It was stressful sorting everything out to begin with (visas, insurance etc!) I won’t lie, but I definitely think it’s worth it, and you can get help with these things.

Regarding moving away- I did a foundation year, so already spent 3 years away from home at uni in the uk (plus I did a gap year, so I’m a bit older), but I’m not finding it too tricky- obviously I miss people but it’s not too hard. I think if you have family there you can see that will make it easier!

I’m finding studying/uni life itself to be quite different, but not in a bad way! Things are just taught differently/at different stages. It feels like things are more self directed here? At my uni at least, there seems to be more emphasis on multiple smaller assessment tasks, rather than one big bit of coursework like I’ve experienced at home. Lectures are also more flexible, and there is more option to do them online in my experience, although I’m not sure how this varies across unis.

What unis are you interested in (if you have any yet) and what are your interests in biological sciences? I think Australia is a great place to study, especially if you’re interested in marine or Antarctic sciences!!

Let me know if you have any questions or are curious about life in Australia, I can do my best to answer them!

Jas :smile:

UEA Rep

Reply 5

McGinger

Whilst working at Uni of Melbourne about 10 years ago, I 'looked after' a bunch of exchange students from the UK and Ireland. They loved it - big city living, fantastic food and drink, trams, beaches, theatres, music etc. A few of them had a bit of a wobble after about a month - the initial excitement of 'wow, I'm in Australia' had worn off, and they were missing their mates but they got through this and it was all part of their learning experience. They also did some astonishing travelling and saw more of Australia than many Australians, and went to places like NZ, Fiji etc. They were 'bigger' people at the end of it all - more resilient, more confident and with a wider understanding of the world.

(edited 3 weeks ago)

Reply 6

StardustShoot5

Original post

by evsurfer

I have taken a year abroad in France/Germany as i was doing Modern Languages for my degree. Being from EU bypassed the difficulties UK colleagues have had (e.g.: visa, translated documents).
Moving was the most fun part, especially in first term because i didnt apply for a dorm on time and spent the entire summer looking for room, even when i arrived in France early. Because of that i just brough my backpack and a few spare clothes, but once i found a place, i have brought over clothes, items. KEEP IN MIND to bring just the necessities for such cases. Depending on the city your relatives live in and the uni, they could help with a few things instead of bringing things over.
For uni work, year abroad doesnt count to grade, yes you do get credits, but what you do at host uni is up to you. You could do some extra courses (going over the credits); in Germany for instance i did Spanish as extra course.
The UK uni gives you work throughout the year just to prove you are doing work there. It sounds overwhelming, but take your time reading. Reply whenever if you have questions.

Reply 7

Kingston Zhi En

Official Rep

Original post

by evsurfer

Hi there @evsurfer ,
I did a work placement year instead of a study abroad during my sandwich year 🙂
Many of my friends went on study abroad in Berlin, Portugal, Milan and Copenhagen and had an amazing experience! That said, in my uni, the location of the study abroad is not guaranteed and is subject to availability each year and not all courses will be taught in english, so there might be a little language barrier.
It is ultimately a great opportunity to travel around, meet new people and experience a new culture for the first time 🤗 Hope you get the location of your choice and wishing you the best of luck for uni!

Zhi En
(Kingston Student Rep.)

Reply 8

evsurfer

Original post

by McGinger

Whilst working at Uni of Melbourne about 10 years ago, I 'looked after' a bunch of exchange students from the UK and Ireland. They loved it - big city living, fantastic food and drink, trams, beaches, theatres, music etc. A few of them had a bit of a wobble after about a month - the initial excitement of 'wow, I'm in Australia' had worn off a bit, and they were missing their mates but they got through this and it was all part of their learning experience. They also did some astonishing travelling and saw more of Australia than many Australians, and went to places like NZ, Fiji etc. They were 'bigger' people at the send of it all - more resilient, more confident and with a wider understanding of the world.

wow that sounds amazing! especially the travelling opportunities. australia and the surrounding islands are very beautiful so this seems like a great experience. thank you

Reply 9

evsurfer

Original post

by UEA Rep Jas

Hey!
I’m currently an ecology and conservation student at UEA, studying abroad at UTAS in Hobart, Australia!
I’m over half way through my year and honestly I’m loving it so much!
It was stressful sorting everything out to begin with (visas, insurance etc!) I won’t lie, but I definitely think it’s worth it, and you can get help with these things.
Regarding moving away- I did a foundation year, so already spent 3 years away from home at uni in the uk (plus I did a gap year, so I’m a bit older), but I’m not finding it too tricky- obviously I miss people but it’s not too hard. I think if you have family there you can see that will make it easier!
I’m finding studying/uni life itself to be quite different, but not in a bad way! Things are just taught differently/at different stages. It feels like things are more self directed here? At my uni at least, there seems to be more emphasis on multiple smaller assessment tasks, rather than one big bit of coursework like I’ve experienced at home. Lectures are also more flexible, and there is more option to do them online in my experience, although I’m not sure how this varies across unis.
What unis are you interested in (if you have any yet) and what are your interests in biological sciences? I think Australia is a great place to study, especially if you’re interested in marine or Antarctic sciences!!
Let me know if you have any questions or are curious about life in Australia, I can do my best to answer them!
Jas :smile:

UEA Rep

hi, it's good to hear you are enjoying your time in australia!i'm spoiled for choice with the australian universities that liverpool offer so i'd have to do a deep dive but i'd prefer to be situated in the east/south east.at the moment, i am quite interested in ecology, marine and micro so it would be so exciting to see what opportunities i have in aus!
what is the culture and social life like there?

Reply 10

UEA Rep Jas

Official Rep

Ooh ok,

There’s definitely a lot of options in that region!

I know UTAS (where I go) is one of the options for Liverpool because I have friends there from Liverpool too. It’s definitely worth checking out if you’re interested in marine science (I think they’ve just ranked #2 in the world in that area?) and they’ve been pretty relaxed with letting me take whatever modules I’d like.

Some unis are a little stricter with what they’ll let you take, so on top of looking through the modules, it would probably be worth contacting their exchange teams before you apply (probably at the end of your first year at uni) to see if they would let you take certain modules.

I really enjoy the culture here, even in big cities there seems to be a much slower pace of life, with more emphasis on your free time. People get up a lot earlier to enjoy the beach or go out for coffee before work starts, and then will often go to the beach after too! Interestingly, people dress a lot more casually, and less wear makeup too, there’s definitely an emphasis on comfort and practicality. There’s also a much bigger outdoors culture. I think those are the main differences!

Socially will depend where you go and what sort of thing you’re interested in, but in my experience Aussies are very friendly, so it was quite easy to just make friends with people in my flat or on my course. I think bigger cities are better for clubbing, but it’s less of a thing where I live (but I don’t really go out much anyway, so I’m not super sure!) but bars and pubs are popular! People love going out for coffee though!

I hope this is useful again,
Please let me know if you have any more questions though!

Jas :smile:

UEA Rep