Today marks one week before I leave Australia and end my semester studying abroad. This will be my last post, summing up my experience, final exams, and saying farewell to the students that became my closest friends throughout my four months here.
Final Exams
I'll start with a quick review of final exams for any future students that study here. This blog is, after all, being given to my home university to give future students a better idea of the opportunities and experiences they'll have studying abroad in Melbourne. All students are given a week off before any finals can be scheduled, giving much more free time before hand to study than I am used to at home. Additionally, finals are generally scheduled pretty far apart. I had a big break between each of mine (June 11th, 14th, and 17th).
I wasn't taking my normal engineering courses (intro level business classes instead, using up all of my electives so I wouldn't have to study much while here) so my exams were much more essay based. They were also much more open ended than I am accustomed to - most professors gave little direction as to what to focus on or how to study. My International Business professor did narrow down the essay topics that will be in the final to a list of possibilities, which knocked out some stuff I didn't have to worry about so I could study those more. But on the other two exams, very little direction was given. As a suggestion to future students, I'd try to pick up on hints in the last lecture for each class.
Other than that, the test taking procedure and set up was similar. They're worth more than I'm used to (final exams here can be worth up to 60% of your total grade, probably even more in some cases) and they're test taking procedure is more strict (you're assigned seat numbers, they come around and check IDs) but other than that, the rest is the same, a test is a test. Good luck!
My Experience, Overall
Studying abroad in Melbourne was one of the most unique and new experiences I've had in my life. Even looking at it as a list of things I've done, it's remarkable. I've:
- Held a koala bear, even spotted them in the wild
- Pet and fed wild kangaroos
- Gone camping miles outside of the city in the Grampians National Park, even partying at night and ending up covered in paint next to a bonfire with kangaroos hopping around in the dark
- Gone hiking in the Grampians, hiking down waterfalls or up enormous mountain peaks, sitting at the top and hanging my legs over the edge
- Drove the Great Ocean Road, seeing the Twelve Apostles, the London Bridge, Lorne and more
- Saw an AFL game, and a fantastic one at that
- Taken a cruise through the Melbourne Harbors and into Phillip Bay
- Toured Sydney, entered the Opera House and heard a full orchestra play in the concert hall, walked across the Sydney Harbor Bridge, sat on both Manly Beach and Bondi Beach, watched fireworks over Darling Harbour, partied in Kings Cross. I even took a nap on the Opera House steps
- Scuba dived the Great Barrier Reef
- Bungee jumped over the northern Queensland tropical rainforests
- Toured those tropical rainforests, spotting venomous snakes and "the stinging plant"
- Explored Cairns including Palm Cove, riding bikes to the botanical garden, swimming in the Lagoon and partying until we saw the sun coming up over the hills to the east
- Eating vegemite (could have gone without doing this one)
- Walking the Kadoka Walk
- Surfing in Ocean Grove and Torquay
- Visiting the Queen Victoria Night Market, eating kangaroo burgers, emu burgers, and all sorts of other oriental foods
- Partying in clubs throughout downtown Melbourne
- Wrapping native Australian snakes around my neck
- Enjoying the warm weather and beaches around Melbourne like St. Kilda or Brighton Beach
- Experiencing one of the largest music festivals in Melbourne, White Night
- Meeting friends that I'll have with me for the rest of my life, from all over the world including Finland, Germany, Italy, Canada, Mexico, Bolivia, France, Venezuela, the U.S. and of course Australia
But even better is the experience of doing something so culturally mixed, where you learn more intimately the differences between Australian, American, Latin and European cultures, the differences in languages, and how classes and education are done differently in another country. When the friends I had met just a few months ago had time off, we'd find ourselves showing each other things we see all the time in our home countries but other's never even heard of, or how to correctly pronounce words in another language, or how to play a sport I never even really knew about before, or trying a food a friend cooked that I didn't even know existed. There's so much more that you get out of it that I couldn't get onto paper if I wanted to, and I'm glad I was able to do it. I don't think I'll ever be able to experience international travel in this way, with dozens of other likeminded, open students that also want to have fun, explore, and share.
Farewell
So with that, farewell to all of the students I've met in the last four months of my life here in Melbourne. The word "bittersweet" comes up a lot when we talk about going home, knowing we'll miss the people we've seen every day here while we're excited to see the ones we left in our home countries. Thanks for all the times you've left me crying from laughing so hard and the once-in-a-lifetime adventures we've gone on together while we're here. And if I ever get a chance to travel to your country, thanks in advance for letting me crash on your couch. Studying in Australia wouldn't have been the same without any of you.
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