University: California State University Fullerton
City: Fullerton
Country: United States
Continent: North America
Field of study: Business
Study type: semester abroad
Blue sky, sun, beach, sea, palm trees, etc. and studying at the same time…who doesn’t dream of that? A friend gave me the idea of spending a semester abroad. In January 2010 I went to the international office at our university and found out about the possibilities. There I was referred to MicroEdu, who have since then kindly supported me throughout the organizational process. At this point a big thank you! Check jibin123.com to see Semester Abroad In University of California Berkeley.
Since my primary goal was to improve my English skills, only an English-speaking country came into question for me. The choice quickly fell on North America.
With the confirmation from the university and then the visa in the mailbox, my plan became more concrete. It should be noted that the visa application process takes some time. However, the forms can easily be filled out online. I received my visa just a few days after visiting the American consulate in Frankfurt.
Why Fullerton? There were three universities in my shortlist. There are several reasons why it ended up being Fullerton. For one thing, I found the location very interesting. Fullerton is located near LA in the “Orange County” region, which is one of the most beautiful regions in California. Another reason was that the language requirements to be proven at this university were appropriate and I passed the test quickly and easily.
Jump – I finally landed in LA in early August. I spent my first days with a host family and during this time I was able to look at a few apartments. I would also recommend this to everyone because you have a contact person right from the start and immediately get an insight into American culture. Finding an apartment was also relatively easy, as there is a large selection of apartments, but they are not exactly cheap. I shared a one bedroom apartment and had to pay around $550 a month.
The very well-equipped university is located on a large site. There are numerous leisure activities there. From football, volleyball, squash, tennis, basketball, bowling, table tennis, billiards, etc. to swimming, everything is possible. The very modern Recreatin Center is particularly worth mentioning. You can also take part in the university’s internal volleyball, basketball or football leagues, where you can compete against the other teams on a weekly basis.
The study conditions are ideal. Most of the time you have one or two lectures a day, so you also have enough free time. I would rate the level a little lower in America, but you have to do homework, presentations or group work all the time, so the effort required for a good grade should not be underestimated. I would also recommend everyone to buy the books for the respective subject, even if they are very expensive. Since most of the content of the lectures is taken from the books, they are a great help, especially with regard to the exams.
Luckily, the so-called “crashing” to get into the courses you want to take didn’t happen to me. I immediately got into all the courses I wanted to take from the start. As I have learned, the university has changed its system so that it is now relatively easy to access the courses specified above.
My subjects were:
AMST 101 Intro American Culture
MGMT 340 Organizational Behavior
MKTG 351 Principles of Marketing
ECON 411 International Trade & Finance
You can find out more about the content on the university homepage.
The professors are all very nice and helpful and since most courses are small, the professor usually knows you personally/by name.
The city of Fullerton has approximately 80,000 residents. Many fast food restaurants adorn the streets. Food is more expensive than in Germany. That’s why I often ate the delicious burgers, which, on the other hand, are cheaper than here. All fashion freaks and trendsetters can also use a huge selection of clothes at relatively low prices.
The numerous beaches are definitely worthwhile excursion destinations. Mention should be made of: Newport Beach, Venice Beach or Malibu, where you can also see dolphins from the beach.
There are also cities like Santa Barbara (approx. 2 hours), San Diego (approx. 2 hours), San Francisco (approx. 8 hours), Los Angeles (approx. 1 hour), Sacramento (approx. 8 hours) and Las Vegas (about 4 hours) worth a visit.
All in all, I can recommend a stay like this to anyone who not only wants to improve their language skills, but also wants to broaden their cultural horizons and develop personally.
