ERASMUS Background Information & Useful Links
Testimony Section Overview
Within this section of the webpage, as an ERASMUS student spending a year studying at the University of Strathclyde, A. Porras shall outline his experiences; detailing his year in both Scotland & specifically Glasgow and providing links to relevant information & groups. It is hoped that such information would be of use to prospect ERASMUS participants & will also aide in A. Porras' reflections on the project.
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In addition, for the benefit of those otherwise unaware, background information regarding the ERASMUS scheme is presented.
ERASMUS TESTIMONY
- Erasmus is a programme that supports students of European Universities to study abroad within another European University, such that students are able to gain experience undertaking around 6-12 months worth of teaching & learning within an differing environment.
- The primary purpose served by the ERASMUS scheme is one such that students participating can experience differing cultures, alternative study methodologies & syllabus demands and take advantage of opportunities other academic environments offer with a view to improving participant preparation for the hopefully long & fruitful careers within industry!
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- If you would like to learn more about the scheme, please utilise the icons below to be redirected to the relevant ERASMUS homepage!
A. Porras ERASMUS Testimony
- During my third year as a bachelor student I had the opportunity of asking my University to study abroad studying my last year abroad thanks to ERASMUS. I could have chosen between many Universities around Europe, but the University of Strathclyde gave me the opportunity to start my final project in their University & it would be held in group which was an offer I couldn’t refuse as this is usually done individually in my country and it would be something different to have in my curriculum and would be well seen by companies for sure.
Touring the Highlands!
- Ola, this is Alejandro & I am a member of the group that has developed this project. I would like to tell you my ERASMUS experience through a couple of words & I really hope they are helpful to you if you are intending to or are currently doing an ERASMUS trip or in case of curiosity.
- The first thing you should know is that I come from Spain and I am a student in Gijón Polytechnic School of Engineering which belongs to the University of Oviedo. The Polytechnic School has got a several range of undergraduate programs like bachelor of mechanical, chemical, electric, electronic and computer engineering with a total of almost 5000 students.
* KEY UNIVERSITY-BASED DIFFERENCES
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- During my stay in Scotland I have faced some remarkable differences between the University of Oviedo and the University of Strathclyde. The first one is that the Polytechnic School is placed outside the city, so although there are special buses to go to the University it is difficult to get there, while the University of Strathclyde is placed in the centre of Glasgow and you can go by train, subway or bus, having stops near the University.
- The second one is that in Strathclyde you can use their computer 24H per day, having rooms with hundreds of them so that you can easily use one when you want. However, in Gijon there are few computer available for students for letting them working on their own, since most of them can just be used during class time. The last one was the most shocking for me, although I have been studying the same degree in Spain and in Scotland, I have studied in two different ways. In Spain, we are used to study more theory and mathematical terms, while in Strathclyde students have more practice issues.
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* CULTURAL DIFFERENCES
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- The first problem I faced when I arrived Scotland was the language. English and Spanish are completely different languages and although at that time I had a level of B2 in English, it was difficult for me to understand Scottish people because of their strong accent. Nevertheless, with practice and time I was able to understand most of the issues I had to talk with my Scottish friends.
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- I also had to deal with the chance of variety of products in the supermarket. In other to enjoy Spanish products that are difficult to find in Scotland I asked my parents to send me a package with some typical Spanish food. In addition, we have different timetables for dinnertime, but I didn’t have any problem here as I kept having my Spanish routine.
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- Although prices are similar in basic products such as food, I had to take into account the difference in value between the pound and euro consistently. The biggest shock however was that rental prices for student accommodation in Scotland is twice that of Spain.
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* TRAVELLING & VACATIONS
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Trips are really important while doing your ERASMUS, so here I suggest you some of the ones I did:
- Edinburgh: it is a city with plenty of stories and with a completely different visual impact if we compare it with other European cities. Here you can find many museums and great restaurants were you can enjoy typical Scottish food.
- Stirling: in my opinion it is a city that doesn’t take too much advantage of its interesting history. There you can just find the monument to William Wallace.
- Highlands: it is an amazing place not just of Scotland but of the world. Some places are unique while in others you can feel that you are in the end of the world with a completely empty zones were you can be far away from the civilization.
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* SUGGESTED GROUPS
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In other to make easier the stay and enjoy Scotland in the best way possible I tried to have good contacts. If you are thinking of doing ERASMUS, I extremely recommend you to join and like the following Facebook groups;
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- VIVA Glasgow - International Parties & Trips
- ESN Strathclyde 2016-2017 (Erasmus Group)
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I hope you find this useful!
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- Alex
'16/'17 ERASMUS Student
