Greetings from Scotland!
In Finland I study IT-engineering at Centria UAS and for the past four months I’ve been studying Computing at University of Highlands and Islands in Scotland. When I first arrived here, I had no idea what would be ahead. It has been great experience so far and a lot of fun.
Studying here has been different compared to Finland. We’ve had fewer lectures and most of them are video conferences. UHI has campuses scattered all around the north Scotland and there isn’t a lecturer for every module at every campus, which is the reason for the video conference sessions. Scattered campuses is also the reason why my study group is quite small. Most of the studying is self-directed, which is not a problem as long as you know how to manage your time! Usually a course work consists of a wide research topic, moderately big project and an exam. Because the studying is so flexible, it has allowed me to organize many trips around Scotland.
Everything has gone well so far, and there has not been any major difficulties. Some projects have been tough but nothing impossible to overcome, and the lecturers are ready to offer help. At first the Scottish accent and their dialects were somewhat hard to understand but I got used to it quickly.
The everyday life differs from Finland in a sense that I hang around with people a lot more than I would in Finland. We get together to cook, go out or find something to do almost every evening. Also, getting to know new people is quite easy and I’ve had chance to try new activities. For example, I had no idea Scotland would be such a great place for surfing!
The houses around here are different from houses in Finland. Usually there is carpet (except in the bathroom and kitchen), shoes are worn inside, the sink and the bath have both hot and cold water taps, and almost all houses are built of stone.
There are multiple little differences in almost everything but it doesn’t take long time to get used to them, and I’d say I didn’t have a big culture shock arriving here. It has been great to see all the differences in how everything works and the cultural differences. Especially the Scottish traditions and events have been interesting!
I cannot pick only a one thing to be the highlight of my stay here as all the trips we’ve done have been great. We’ve gone hiking at places like Isle of Skye, Isle of Mull and Cairn Gorms, visited a whisky distillery and checked out bigger cities. I eagerly await how the spring semester will unfold!
