Hello interested people from Long Beach State University,
I’ll tell you a little bit about my stay from August 2009 – June 2010. So first of all it was for me and for you maybe the first time alone (whereby alone with my girlfriend means) in one I went to a foreign country to spend my life there for a long time and also to study. First of all, I have to say that the whole thing was definitely worth it for me and I would like to suggest it to everyone, whether in Long Beach or anywhere else. It is an experience that I definitely do not want to miss.
But let’s get down to all of the organizational stuff first. Here I have to say everything that had to do with the university was relatively easy. You just send an application to MicroEDU and they’ll do the rest for you. What is more time-consuming, however, is the visa (make it on time !!!). Unfortunately, it all takes time until you have the confirmation from the university and then run to the consulate, then get an appointment and then get a confirmation from them. Then you still need the language test and other organizational matters. It all sounds a lot more complicated than it actually is in the end, but it all takes time. I took care of everything relatively late (3-4 months beforehand) but everything went well (especially because MicroEDU helped me a lot). So even if you often hear that you have to take care of it at least a year in advance, you don’t necessarily have to throw everything away if you don’t have a year left. It also works with less time. If you really want it and take care of everything, then it works. Then everything is a little more stressful. But in the end you know that it was worth it.
Now we come to the university itself. The university is generally a very large one, but nicely furnished and basically equipped with everything you need to live. From living to shopping, to amusement arcades, hairdressers, dining options, sports facilities and clubs, everything can be found here. The food is American; fast, greasy, conditionally tasty. But there is also the possibility to cook yourself if you can;-). There is also its own shuttle service on campus, because it is relatively large and the people there are more of the cozy kind. Most of the time you are only in one building anyway, because each course has its own building. For foreign students there is an on-site organization that helps every student with choosing a class and with other problems that arise. Read more student reviews on Andyeducation.
The lesson itself is usually (and I can only speak of the computer science course. I heard in others it should be different) so that you have a lecture hour and then a practical hour in which you apply the previously discussed. The whole thing takes place in a rather school format size of 20-25 students. I always found it very pleasant because it made everything a bit more personal and the professor sometimes knew you by name.
In terms of level, it is about the same as in Germany, possibly a little lower. Which, however, suited me because it allowed me to concentrate more on the language.
What I also found very good are the sports facilities there. There was pretty much everything you can imagine. And in addition all kind of “club form”. So you train together and then compete against other universities. For example, I was in the rowing crew and I really enjoyed it there. But there is also a club for soccer, rugby, volleyball, lacrosse, beach volleyball, baseball, basketball and much more.
So that was it for the time being at university. we come live general. So my girlfriend and I had already looked for a place to stay (www.craiglist.com is generally a very good site for all kinds of things). That was certainly more pleasant, because you could be so sure that you will have a place to stay when you get there, but later it turned out that there were still cheaper and better accommodations to be found on site. We also bought a car there. Without it, you’re pretty much in a fix. There is a makeshift bus system, but it’s pretty bad. It’s also not that difficult to buy a car in America and then sell it again later. Even if you only want to go to America for 6 months, it is ultimately cheaper to buy a car cheaply and then sell it again later. However, you should take care of it very carefully. Not the same as the first company best. Compare and ideally take someone with you who knows something about cars if you don’t already know everything yourself. There is no TÜV or the like there and that’s why there are already a few cars there that are quite rubbish. Another option would be to rent a car cheaply. There are a few rentals that specialize in overseas students. Compare and ideally take someone with you who knows something about cars if you don’t already know everything yourself. There is no TÜV or the like there and that’s why there are already a few cars there that are quite rubbish. Another option would be to rent a car cheaply. There are a few rentals that specialize in overseas students. Compare and ideally take someone with you who knows something about cars if you don’t already know everything yourself. There is no TÜV or the like there and that’s why there are already a few cars there that are quite rubbish. Another option would be to rent a car cheaply. There are a few rentals that specialize in overseas students.
Last but not least, I just want to encourage you to take the step and decide to spend a semester or two abroad. It’s a very good experience !!!
