University of Freiburg

Experience Report 1 - Christopher Burnett (Fall 2014 - Winter 2015)

1. Was there anything you wish you'd known or planned for before you left on exchange? 

I wish there had been a bit more communication from the Freiburg international office, as when I arrived, I went to two wrong addresses before finding the right building because I was never given any details about where I should go on my first day in the country. That made arrival a bit stressful. Otherwise, though, there isn't much that caught me off guard that I could've prepared for. 

2. What were some of the highlights of your exchange experience? Were there any major challenges that you weren't expecting?

One of the major highlights was that Freiburg lies on the edge of the Black Forest, making it incredibly easy to leave the city and go for a hike in beautiful forests and mountains with breathtaking views. This was a great way to escape from the stresses of everyday life, which can be overwhelming when you're studying abroad. Another highlight was simply meeting so many people from all over the world, although I suppose this could also relate to one of the biggest challenges, which was making friends with the locals. Because I made friends with so many fellow exchange students, it became more difficult to meet locals, and even when I did, it wasn't as easy as it was with internationals to become close friends. Therefore, I recommend not putting all your eggs in one basket and doing your best to socialize with the locals as well as with your fellow exchange students. 

3. How did the partner school measure up to your expectations?

The University of Freiburg is a very good university, especially for my major concentrations, Linguistics and German. Therefore, the courses I took were very informative and interesting. However, the overall structure of university in Germany is different to that of North America, which means that there were several things that I found to be either better or worse. Firstly, it seems that most courses are only once a week, and with each lecture only 1.5 hours long, this is about half as much class time as I would have in Canada, and I found this to be too little time. Additionally, most courses don't give much homework, but instead have a big final exam or final paper (or both), which means that things can build up a lot towards the end of the semester. However, this does give you more time during the semester to enjoy your host city and country. 

4. What were your favourite places to visit? Was it easy (or not) to find accommodation? What's the cost of living like?

Because I was on the edge of the Black Forest, I spent a lot of time hiking near Freiburg. My favourite mountain to hike was most definitely Belchen, which offers fantastic views of the surrounding area. Another great hike was Schauinsland, which also has a gondola lift that takes you to the top of the mountain if you'd prefer not to hike. There are also a few very nice cities within two to three hours of Freiburg, including Strasbourg and Colmar, France, and Zurich, Switzerland. These are very cool places that I would recommend checking out. 

The cost of living in Freiburg was quite good in comparison to Montreal. Despite the fact that the Euro is used in Germany, everything seemed to be cheaper than it is here, expecially groceries and phone plans. 

Top Five Tips for going on exchange:

1. Be open to new experiences and say yes to new opportunities.
2. Travel (P.S. A cheap way to travel in Germany is by using the bus company MeinFernBus. They have connections all over the country and abroad for very cheap prices.)
3. Speak the local language as much as you can. 
4. Make friends with the locals.
5. Get lost in your host city. Pick a point on the map and walk/bus/tram there, and just explore. That's how you really get to learn about a new place.