Columns It is always worth leaving for a student exchange

While the corona situation may make exchange studies more difficult, at best it can even deepen your understanding of local culture, writes HS journalist Roosa Welling in her column.

Finns The interest of university students in going abroad decreased even before the Korona period, but as a result of the corona, the number of people going on an exchange collapsed, according to statistics from the National Board of Education.

This is understandable, as the idea of ​​being tied to a computer alone in a foreign country hardly attracts very many. The same can be done in Finland.

I am in the rare sense that I have seen what exchange study is like both during and before the Corona. Therefore, I dare say that starting an exchange is worthwhile in both situations.

I left for a six-month student exchange to Aarhus, Denmark’s second largest city, in January 2020. Although the first information about the new coronavirus was already underway, I headed to my exchange destination optimistic and blissfully unaware of what was ahead.

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The first couple of months went as smoothly as any student exchange. I met new people, saw new places, drank a liter of beer.

I mainly spent time with my fellow students who had come to Denmark from all over the world. The intention was to travel around Europe during the exchange, and we expected to experience unforgettable adventures.

These however, the plans were allowed to be thrown in the rubble when a coronary virus pandemic around mid-March closed borders and locked us inside four walls.

Most of my new friends quickly returned to their home countries. Soon we experienced strange situations when one attended a remote lecture in the morning from the United States, another in the afternoon from Germany, and a third in the early evening from Hong Kong.

I myself had to make one of the most difficult decisions of my life so far. Would I stay in solitary confinement in Denmark or return to Finland as soon as possible?

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I finally decided to stay in Aarhus. The decision turned out to be the right one, as I experienced a more wonderful exchange than what might have been possible without the coronary virus.

Fortunately a total of 13 roommates, most of them Danes, shared a cell home with me. Before the pandemic hit, I wasn’t exactly dealing with them, but suddenly we spent all the time together.

We became incredibly close, and at the same time I got to learn deeply about Danish culture. We took day trips around the neighborhood, learned to speak each other’s languages, and spent hours discussing various issues related to politics, culture, and life. We are still friends.

It is not possible to know in advance how wonderful an exchange period can end up being. That is why I think it is always worth going to it.

However, a tip for all those who go for an exchange: although cell housing is not the most Finnish, it is worth striving for. My experience would certainly have been quite different when living in a studio apartment.

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The author is an editor of HS.

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