I applied for the Erasmus programme on the second year of my Master’s degree in Business Administration. My Faculty in Verona had agreements with several countries and many of them were part of my bucket list, so to be fair, taking a decision was not easy, but now I feel to say without any doubts that I did the best one!
WHY I CHOSE FINLAND?
I wanted to practice my English so I easily excluded half of the options available like Spain, France, Germany and Switzerland. England or Ireland would have definitely been my first choices but unfortunately they were just for Bachelor degree students. What was left then? I could still choose between northern countries like Finland, Sweden, Norway and the eastern ones like Poland, Czech Republic and Estonia. My gut told me to go for Finland for two main reasons. Firstly it was my priority to spend the full year abroad and some of the destinations were for only one semester, and secondly I was very attracted with the idea of spending some time living in the northern Europe since I imagined being pretty different from life in the south. And yeah I was right. It was definitely different and awesome at the same time.
WHAT’S THE CITY OF TAMPERE LIKE?
If you are picturing Tampere as a remote spot in the northern Europe inhabited by few thousands of people, let me tell you that this is one of the most populous inland city in the Nordic countries and one of the largest university town in Finland. It’s not located by the Baltic Sea but it’s surrounded by several lakes which definitely contribute to make the city very fascinating over all seasons. The centre of the city is small, compact and lively but safe and peaceful. Tampere is also surrounded by forests and untouched nature and it’s provided by a good public transportation.
HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR STUDENT LIFE IN TAMPERE?
My student life in Tampere can be described as the right balance between studying the necessary to pass all the exams with satisfying grades and still having enough time to party and enjoy my Erasmus life.
Studying in Finland is quite independent and the students can plan their weekly schedule quite freely. I had lessons three or four days per week which was pretty similar to my Italian timetables. After the classes I used to eat at the canteen that, by the way, was super cheap (2,70 euro for a full meal) and when the courses were over I still had time to go to the gym, to make a run outside or if there was an essay deadline coming soon, to go home and complete my homework.
Unlike to other destinations where it can occur that University becomes less and less part of the Erasmus life, in Tampere to pass courses you have to spend some time on the books. But that’s actually one of the reason I would recommend Finland as Erasmus experience. From my point of view studying a year abroad also has to mean grow under an academic prospective instead of just being in hangover every morning.
However, as I already mentioned you, the nightlife will be not missing in your Erasmus experience in Finland no worries. The University of Tampere (UTA) also has a student association, the ESN FINT who organizes several events like sport activities, trips or sauna parties every week for both local and exchange students. Therefore, believe me, you won’t get bored!
WAS IT HARD TO FOLLOW THE COURSES IN ENGLISH?
Following the courses was not particularly hard, all teachers speak a very good English and usually use slides that definitely help students to stay focused and better understand the lesson contents. What I found challenging though was interacting with local students in class during the several workshops. We were asked to discuss in group, provide ideas, create business plans, make presentations in public and honestly it all meant for me to get out from my comfort zone. Moreover the majority of Finnish have such a high English level which doesn’t help to rise your self-confidence when it comes to public speaking. But that’s the thing, Erasmus is a great opportunity to boost your confidence, face your limits and step out of your comfort zone!
WHAT ABOUT THE FINNISH LANGUAGE? SHOULD I SIGNED UP FOR A LANGUAGE COURSE AT THE UNIVERSITY?
You don’t need to. Nobody expects you will learn Finnish during your Erasmus period. Everywhere locals can understand and speak English better than you, sorry for that, but that’s actually true. Even the old lady living in a remote cottage in the mountain would be able to tackle a conversation in English without making too many efforts. After all, they don’t have doubled TV channels so I guess English is like a second language for them. Said that, attending a Finnish Elementary course is something you will probably never have the opportunity to do again so why to miss out the chance? I enrolled in one which lasted one semester. Obviously I never thought I would be able to understand locals after studying Finnish for 5 months but it actually turned out to be pretty useful at the supermarket. More than that, it’s an easy way to get extra credits!
WHAT ABOUT THE LIVING COSTS?
Before leaving I was warned by many people that Finland is too way more expensive than the most of Europe. But to be fair, I didn’t perceive such a big gap. Except for alcohol and cigarettes, the rest isn’t particularly overpriced compared to Italy. Moreover, students get a lot of discounts on almost everything: transportation, gyms, some restaurants and museums so if you take use of special offers you can totally survive on a rather low budget. Another way to spend little it’s also to purchase from the several second hand stores located in the city.
HOW TO FIND YOUR ACCOMODATION IN TAMPERE?
In Tampere there’s a big organization called TOAS which provides residence rooms or shared apartments to foreign students. This is the best way to find an accommodation but it’s important to apply as soon as possible because rooms are quickly rented. The residence mainly hosts international people that means you will rarely meet Finnish inside it. But this is not a bad news. Exchange students are all living the same type of experience so it’s easier to create a sort of family environment and get well along together. You will have hundreds of other occasions to make local connections like in class, at Uni events and parties. Three years ago there were four residences available for exchange students, some located in the centre and others a bit further but less expensive. I applied for TOAS city that was super close to my University (UTA) and few steps from clubs, grocery stores and all kinds of facilities you might need. I guess things have changed over the time though. Apparently the TOAS city is not available anymore (it was a very old-fashioned building indeed), but I saw that the Pinja residence is still on the website which is also a good choice if you are looking for a room in the heart of Tampere.
RELATED LINKS
WAS IT DIFFICULT TO GET USED TO THE CHANGES IN THE AMOUNT OF DAYLIGHT?
At the beginning changes in the amount of daylight can be confusing- in the winter the sun shines only for a couple of hours during the day, in the summertime it hardly sets at all.
The first day I experienced a sunset at two pm was pretty shocking, but I quickly recovered myself by going down to the supermarket and purchasing what I knew it would made me happier: CHOCOLATE!
Afraid to suffer some form of depression? Bullshit! If you hear people taking pills or some weird antidepressant drugs, don’t follow them please…It’s more likely to have some sleeping problems in the beginning but you’ll adapt to it pretty fast.
DID YOU TRAVEL DURING YOUR ERASMUS?
I’ve travelled but didn’t knock off my bucket list all the destinations I was intended to visit. Unfortunately I couldn’t afford all of them, so I had to make some choices. I went to Helsinki, Tallinn in Estonia, Prague, Lapland and then I did a wonderful cottage trip of four days outside Tampere. But two more trips I would highly recommend are Sweden and St. Petersburg. However, if you can only pick one destination choose Lapland. It’s unique and you’ll see a completely different side of the country.
WOULD YOU MAKE THE SAME CHOICE IF YOU WENT BACK IN TIME?
Absolutely. I would pick up Tampere as my Erasmus destination hundreds of times again. Why? Just to mention few things…
- Have you ever seen the Northern lights? Finland or better Lapland is the fifth of the best places to see them after Alaska, Northern Canada, Iceland and Norway. Witnessing this stunning natural phenomenon is priceless. For the best way to visit Lapland in Erasmus: have a look to the website of ESN FINT.
- Have you ever skated on a completely frozen lake? There are more than 200 lakes throughout the Tampere region who offer to both tourists and locals different sport activities. One of these is the popular Nordic skating. A must-do in your Erasmus experience. And if you are not a skate lover, why don’t you simply enjoy a nice stroll on natural ice?
- Although there are some usual misconception about Spain as the only country where you will have fun during your Erasmus, I can assure you that in Finland you can easily party every day. Depending on the city, I guess, there are specific days for student parties in the clubs. In Tampere they were mainly on Tuesday and on Thursday, but to be fair, I don’t remember to have spent one Friday or Saturday at home. Moreover if clubs are closed, you can still rely on residence parties that, as a matter of fact, are definitely the best ones.
But if this is not enough, here many more good reasons why you will not regret to live an Erasmus in Finland 🙂
