edit: see post #50 for further question

I need to decided asap where I would prefer to study abroad through my university exchange program

So far i've narrowed it down to a few possibilities. I'm thinking of studying in either Canada, Sweden, or the Netherlands.

I'm currently studying business and my main goal is really just to have some fun and meet new people.

If I went to Canada it would be either Vancouver or Toronto I'd be going to uni at. Netherlands - I can either go to uni in Amsterdam or Maastrich (in the south...near belgium). Sweden - I can choose from unis in Stockholm, Uppsala, Goteborg, Lund, and Lulea.

So, if it were up to you, where would you go?


Interested in any info ppl might have on life and/or uni in these countries, pros/cons, etc, etc...

vancouver ftw. spent 3 months there, love it.

what sorts of things did you get up to? why is it so good?

i was younger then, but the feel of the city was great. almost every other place ive ever been to, never felt like the sort of place i could live, vancouver is a bigger brisbane with a bit of a colder winter, but just as friendly people and atmosphere

plus with whistler mountain not far away the skiing and snowboarding is awesome apparently, and its a short drive to seattle for some cheap ass shopping and some cool sights

Good choices!

I'd go Canada just because of the language thing. I've heard great things about Sweden though (worked with some awesome Swedish guys a couple years ago) and I really want to go there.

Deutschland.

yeah all great places, will be awesome no matter what.

i would choose sweden just for the cultural thing to mix it up. learn a bit of the language and root hawt blonde chicks. plus they have good net.

jag tuker du ar vaker

Whats the language situation in Sweeden and the Netherlands? Thats what might stop me from heading there (unless english is a fairly used language there).

vancouver?? As long as you don`t own a car you are fine. Car theft in vancouver is totally out of control. Some of the guys will do anything to get a car. Break into it just to steal a radio and sell it for $5 on the street. It`s f***ed up.

Have a look at this http://www.baitcar.com/ .

so the crime is completely isolated to car thefts? i find that hard to believe

No. But it`s the biggest crime

Want a rel life experience, hang out with a group of bikers for a year or so. You'll either Become or Belong

vancouver is ok. sweden is good. people are friendly and stuff, but it can get a bit lonley until you learn swedish.

netherlands, i didnt like at all.

For Canada I would go with Calgary or Vancouver.....currently living in Toronto and it's got too many shades of grey for my liking...feels like im living in an american city what with all the gang related shootings and what not... west coast canada ftw.....flying back there this saturday can't wait :D

i thought amsterdam would have been the clear cut winner here..

I've only visited Vancouver briefly and I love it. I definately wanna head back there. I guess cost is an issue - I'm guessing Sweden or the Netherlands would be a bit more expensive yeah?

yeah sweden is likely to be most expensive, canada will probably be the cheapest place to live (on the aussie $).

i understand that in both sweden and the netherlands a lot of ppl will speak some level of english, and the university courses will be taught in english

what paveway said.

Whats the language situation in Sweeden

im lead to beleive they speak swedish

The Netherlands are a good choice. Drugs, okay looking women, and snow

last edited by Kat at 09:11:54 11/Jan/06

The language thing wouldn't be an issue at all in any of those places. All swedes speak (almost) flawless english. Netherlands is much the same, though the standard of english isn't as high. But yeah, the language won't be a problem at all.

Amsterdam

Have a look at this http://www.baitcar.com/ .

ahaha, what an awesome site and concept by law enforcement

Video: I hope this isn't another bait car man!

The Netherlands are a good choice. Drugs, okay looking women, and snow

snow in the netherlands? opposed to sweden? swedes deal with snow alot better.

what you say korbs is true. however, if your in a bar with 2 or more other swedes they will often revert back to swedish when they talk. not being rude or anything, just reflex i guess.

Well i may be a bit biased but i say go with Sweden, prefferably Göteborg. You will have no problem with language here as eveyone under 40 speaks 99% good english and under 60 is about 80%.
Stockholm - you may as well go to any other large city in the europe.
Uppsala - Close to Stockholm, basically a student city.
Lund - To close to Målmo (you would understand if you lived there) on the plus side it is on the border to Denmark (cheap booze)
Lulea - Way up north, good if you want to freeze your ass off 11 months of the year.
Göteborg (where i live) - Same size as Adelaide, easy access to most of Europe and generally the place that made me want to stay in Sweden.

But seriously, any place in Sweden would be good to stay except Lulea... just to far away from anything and far to cold.
If you decide to come here, lmk and i can help you get to know the place and such.

cheers!

better make a decision then i spoze... :)

Also this may sound so stereotyped but, Swedes ADORE our accent. I just got back yesterday and my accent is back in full force apparently. Wifey and i can't hear it but the few people i have spoken to since have all said it.

china or japan to bone asians

So an aussie bloke has a pretty good chance of getting laid in Sweden, eh Merlyn?

Well, to put it that simply... yes.
Even with a wedding ring on i get hit on whenever i go up to a bar to order drinks. It is pretty amazing.
The wife was less than impressed once when i got chatted up at Av10(an ok club) once and she was standing on the other side of me :)

also Nat, if you have anymore questions about Sweden, feel free to ask away. Either here on on #ausgamers.

Don't go to canada. It's pretty similar to australia in terms of lifestyle and people.

Definately europe. If u go to sweden/nether, then u have like 20 other countries within a $40 flight.

Even with a wedding ring on i get hit on whenever i go up to a bar to order drinks. It is pretty amazing.

Very amazing,because i know what you look like =P
HAHAHA

oh LOL!

I'd be going to sweden, Göteborg (stealing merlyn's litle ö)...

I've always wanted to go to sweden, I don't know why... and merlyn says Göteborg so Göteborg.

hey merlyn, have u got msn? dcmc85 at hotmail.com

The only good thing about Sweden is that the band In Flames is from there :D

Sweden - would be an awesome place to visit!

anywhere in europe. It is cheap to travel and with just a few hours by train can take you to dozens of different countries and cultures.

Awesome to visit and live.
And train??...... these days with ryanair (and it's like) we just fly.
AU$20 to London, Prague, Frankfurt, etc.

oh LOL!

Keep trolling persay,with comments like that your only proving that you have nothing worth while to add to this forum.

I would say nothing to add to the human race, but meh..

=)

I'd go to prague... Not one in your list, but any of my friends that have been to Europe have come back and said it was one of the best bit.

All would be nice, but personally I'd go for Canada.

Know lots of people who have visited there and also dated a Canadian chick for a bit. They are similar to aussies, whereas your other choices you'd experience a much bigger culture gap, which could appeal to you, so either way, that might help you make the decision.

go to sweden and check out the metal scene (in flames \m/)

plus gothemburg has the dancing dingo

I'd go to prague...

czechs cool to visit, but i wouldnt live there. english is harder, and i the guys are a bit shaved head, stand offish.

i can think of about 1 000 000 better reasons to come to Göteborg apart from the "Dripping Dingo"

i've visited all three choices in the last year so i think i can add something resembling intelligence:

1. Vancouver: did an exchange to UBC had a fantastic time and would HIGHLY RECOMMEND IT AS AN OPTION. If ubc is your vancouver option then you won't be dissapointed they have a huge exchange program (300+ each semester i think) and you will meet a heap of europeans and mexicans 60+ out of my semester were mexican). You will party a lot and if you play your cards right you will make friends for life who live in exotic places that you can visit after your exchange finishes. If you go for the winter semester (jan to may) then you will also be able to ski at either of the 3 local mountains (40 minutes from campus by public transport) or whistler (1.5hours from campus). I can't stress enough how fantastic Vancouver is as a place to live if only temporarily, UBC is a beautiful campus and there are 3 half-decent bars on campus and a whole heap more a bus ride away. The only downer is the campus police will break up any half decent party before 1am probably

2. Netherlands: lived in rotterdam with a mate (from Vancouver!) for 10 days, while i didn't get down to Maastrict i met a fair few people who were doing an exchange there and loving it, it is apparently a real student city and a great place to travel europe from (being a bit more central than Amersterdam). Amsterdam i visited for 2 days and while it is nice enough it is too touristy and i can't imagine it is the best city to study in (Leuven and Maastrict have better reps in Holland as study cities). I liked the netherlands and it is probably a good place to study as most people have a fairly good grasp of english (even the lowliest server at a store will have passing english) so don't feel there is a language issue involved. Plusses for the netherlands is that you have more than a few ryanair hubs nearby with Eindhoven, Charleroi (belgium) and Dusseldorf (just over the border in germany). The train system is fantastic too and amsterdam is probably 2hours by train away at most. Smoking pot is legal in all of the netherlands, no need to go to amsterdam for your fix. Final note that the netherlands is one of the more expensive countries in Europe

3. sweden: 3day weekender to visit friends (from Vancouver!) only visited stockholm and even then the short days and early winter weather (0deg and first snow in november!) meant we didn't do much but drink and nurse hangovers. I have heard the cities other than stockholm can be much more fun but i have this only to say, the swedes have been embarking on some ambitious breeding program by which uggos can't mate because i have never seen so many ridiculously good looking girls and because of the cold winters they seem to lock everyone in the gym or at least the lack of fatties would seem to suggest it. Sweden: high hotty factor but f***ing expensive to drink.

Sorry for the lack of paragraphs, hope that makes your decision easier if you want more info hit me up on msn nick_denham@hotmail.com

still undecided on whether to go canada or sweden...i keep making my mind up, then finding out more info, then reconsidering...etc :S


can i ask you all another question - if u had to choose another place in canada besides Vancouver (they have very limited availability at UBC Vancouver), where would you go? The choices are:

Toronto
Montreal
Calgary
Waterloo
Edmonton

montreal, only spent 3 days there but it is a party town :)

haven't been to toronto, calgary is pretty quiet and you really want to stear clear of edmonton

Not wanting to hijack this thread, but can anyone give info on studying abroad in Deft, Netherlands or Copenhagen, Denmark? Looking to go to a decent eng uni in Europe for my 3rd year. I'd love to go to Sweden but the unis aren't as good and apparently not all courses are taught in english.

You have been misinformed in regards to Swedish universities.

Technical University of Delft ranks #15, while the available swedish unis don't even rank on the THES 'top 100 technology universities' list.

I hear that lecturers choose what language they want to teach in, then exchange students get english tutoring if swedish is chosen? Merlyn, how is Lund uni or Göteborg uni for engineering (I like the look of Göteborg)? How are there locations (night life, etc). I realise that the THES list is probably bias and these unis are pretty good; I'm still gathering information, thanks :)

From what i am aware of, Chalmers university is the tech uni here.
Kind of like
UQ - Göteborg Uni.
QUT - Chalmers.

And you are right in regards to the language part though, i was reffering to the quality. Though it seems (from what i have been told) that more and more classes are in english. Guess that is because the global market standard is english.