- The polytechnic university of Mondragon in Spain, or as the basques call it: "Mondragon Goi Eskola Politeknikoa".
2. In what Study program are you studying at Centria?
- I'm currently an IT Engineering student at Centria.
3. What are the courses like at the host University?
- I'd say that the courses are quite standard in terms of the way they are planned to be and the way the teachers execute their learning. They are presential, and do not require the need of books as an obligatory back-up, although it i recommended to attend the library or use some sources from the internet to complement.
4. Describe the study culture?
- The study culture is a little bit more strict than in Finland. Students are expected to be not more than 5 minutes past the class starting time, and assist every day to class although they are quite flexible when something has popped up and you can't go to class.
Specifically at the Engineering department in Mondragon, mostly computers are used, with some slight use of notebooks and sheets of paper for note taking and paper excercises.
Exams are on Paper, usually, but sometimes, depending on the course that you're taking, use of computers is required.
Student life is very visible in the Basque country, as it is the young people, students, who are out in the streets living the student's life mostly.
5. What is your study group like?
- My study group, and all of them in this case, is a very closed one. Even though it was the Engineering campus, the "engineering is for men" stereotype was not visible at all. It was quite mixed in terms of the students.
They are pretty quiet and calm, although there are some moments when the energy in the atmosphere spikes. They are quite educated as well.
I can say that in general terms, students here are good (including my own study group).
6. Please describe what the everyday life is like in your host country? What do you like in particular?
Everyday life here in the Basque Country, is quite different to that of the rest of Spain. Although most of Spain is different in these terms, the Basque Country is special.
Although everyday life is similar the that of the rest of Spain, there are many things and details that are unique.
The scenery is very beautiful. Rolling green hills, miles and miles of pristine coastline, snow-capped mountains, lush valleys, lakes, rivers, forests… It really is beautiful!
Here they have what they call "Txikiteo" which is bar hopping for Pintxos and sips of wine. Pintxos consist of small slices of bread on which an ingredient or mixture of ingredients is placed and fastened with a toothpick, which gives the food its name "pincho", in Spanish, meaning "spike.".
 |
| La Kontxa Beach - Donostia / San Sebastian |
7. What has been challenging? Why?
- I'd say that the most challenging part of my exchange, was the language. Even though Spanish is one of my mother tongues, The accent in Spain, is very different. Sentences are phrased in different structures, different conjugations are used, and more. But not only that! In the Basque Country, and in Mondragon specifically, people most usually speak Basque, which is the official language, and yes, It is very hard to adapt around it.
The second most challenging thing was the classroom itself. The teachers and the students usually speak in Basque between themselves. The classes were in Spanish, but when someone asked the teacher a question , they'd usually do it in Basque. This made it hard to socialize with everyone. People there also are pretty closed between themselves and can get quite exclusive.
8. What has been the highlight of your exchange so far?
I'd say that, I am not able to highlight any moments of my exchange. Every part of it was a highlight. But if i would have to highlight something, I believe I'd say that the friends I made.
I got to meet people from all parts of the world. This helped me open my mind and grab a different perspective of the world. I killed stereotypes, and confirmed others.
No comments:
Post a Comment