Janna Bauermeister spent a semester at Mumbai University - one of the largest universities in the world. Hyo-Jei Cho from Seoul is studying for an international Bachelor's degree in Engineering Physics in Oldenburg. Two testimonials.
"My goal is to have lived on every continent for six months." Janna Bauermeister has been pursuing this ambitious plan since she was a teenager. At the age of 15, the Master's student went to New York for a school year and to Johannesburg for a semester during her Bachelor's degree. When she found out about the new co-operation with India through her job as a student assistant at the International Student Office (ISO), she immediately knew: that's where she wanted to go next. No sooner said than done: together with two other Oldenburg students, the 24-year-old spent four months at Mumbai University.
In Oldenburg, Janna is studying English and subject teaching for a primary school teaching degree. After being accepted, she rented out her room and applied for a visa. The start in India was uncomplicated: "They organised everything for us, even the flat," she says. Mumbai University has an incredible 770,000 students, and the city has 22 million inhabitants. Janna lived with four other German students in a flat on the Kalina campus. "It's one of the nicest. The buildings are older and not as magnificent as the Victorian buildings in south Mumbai, but the campus is green. The largest green space in the city!"
"I have become much more relaxed"
Although Janna is already approaching the end of her degree programme, she was able to take a lot away from the seminars in Mumbai. "We looked at online courses, what they are and how they can be used in the classroom. That was new to me," she recalls. The experiences with a foreign school system were also formative. Janna taught in a remote village for one project. "Despite seven years of English lessons, the children could barely handle the language. That's when I realised that it really is a foreign language. In Germany, we take it so much for granted. Since then, I've been more understanding with pupils."
In any case, she has become much more relaxed. "Before India, I was always really punctual and very strict. That has changed." When travellers in Germany get upset about a train being 20 minutes late, the Wolfsburg native can only smile: on her travels, she has often been on the road for 15 hours or longer. Communication with the lecturers was also more relaxed. "Everything was via WhatsApp. If a course was cancelled, the lecturer wrote to the group. It was totally uncomplicated."
As one of nine exchange students in the relatively small year group, it was easy for Janna to get to know the locals. "We went out to eat together, had parties and were invited home by the Indians." She spent Christmas in Goa with a friend's Catholic family. "To experience how they live in their small village - that was something completely different." Her lecturers also encouraged her to travel, encouraging her to get to know the culture and the country. "Back in Johannesburg it was different, I was completely focussed on university."
After graduating, the next continent on Janna's agenda is Central and South America. She hasn't had enough of India yet either: "Although I was there for so long, I still haven't seen everything. India is as big as Europe and has just as many cultures and languages."
From Seoul to Oldenburg
Two years ago, South Korean Hyo-Jei Cho came to Oldenburg to study - despite being only 24 years old, he already had plenty of experience abroad. As a teenager, he attended high school in the USA, after which he began studying environmental sciences at the University of Oregon. However, he had to interrupt his studies to complete his military service in his home country of South Korea. This gave him the opportunity to look around for alternative places to study. "Studying in the USA is extremely expensive and I was also dissatisfied with the course content," explains Hyo-Jei. He found out about what was on offer in Germany through a counselling agency. He searched for degree programmes in the field of renewable energies on the website of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD): Only two universities do not require proof of German, as the degree programme is largely taught in English. One of them is Oldenburg.
He is now in his fourth semester of a Bachelor's degree in Engineering Physics with a specialisation in Renewable Energies. "Studying in Germany is more difficult than in the USA. But I think that's exactly why it's better," says Hyo-Jei. After all, the content here is not just learnt by heart, but also worked out by the students themselves. "The material from the first semesters comes up again later. So you really have to understand it," he says.
Hyo-Jei also likes student life in Oldenburg. Thanks to the orientation week for international students, it was easy to arrive at the university and get to know people. "We did a lot together, went on excursions or simply went out for a drink," he recalls. During term time, the International Student Office (ISO) regularly organises games evenings, karaoke, group dinners and other events. The events are a great place to socialise, "many German students also like to come along," he says. "As I'm not an exchange student, it's naturally easier to establish more intensive contact with German fellow students." He can't confirm the prejudice that Germans are reserved or even cool: "It sometimes takes a while until you open up, but then you've made really good friends."
"A great city to study in"
Hyo-Jei now feels right at home. The only thing that bothers him is the bad weather - especially in winter. Otherwise, Oldenburg is a great city to study in. Neither too big nor too small and, above all, very relaxed. "In a larger city, I probably wouldn't spend so much time on campus," he smiles. He is also pleased that Oldenburg is a cycling city: "I know that from Oregon - one of the best cycling cities in the USA".
But what he appreciates most about Europe are the travel options: "The infrastructure is better than in America, the flights are very cheap or you can travel across Europe with an Interrail train ticket. The easy accessibility is very cool." Hyo-Jei definitely wants to see more of Germany in the future - so far he has only made it to Bremen and Hamburg. There is still a lot to discover alongside his studies.
