20 Myths vs. Realities of Erasmus

Good morning everyone! Today I have woken up inspired to share with you some particular aspects about life on Erasmus that I have learned first hand during my year abroad. I am going to verify or debunk some cliché phrases about Erasmus, each and every one of these that I am about to tell you have been said to me both before and after my Erasmus year. Let's start!

1. You will eat badly. Myth!

This is something that was said to me before I went on my Erasmus year and at that moment I remember thinking: "how bad is the food in the UK?". Then they told me that they were not referring to the quality of food like I had imagined they were. If not the skinny recipe book that almost every student has. But I have to say, Erasmus is the same as time - time for, among other things, to learn how to cook well and dedicate time to your nutrition. Throughout my Erasmus year I learnt a lot about cooking, so much so that this phrase became irrelevant to me, and I hope it will do for you, too. I strongly consider this aspect about Erasmus a myth.

Yes, it is true that the quality of ingredients in the British supermarkets were not the same as in Spain, especially fresh products. But that isn't to say that you won't be able to become a master of food shopping and have the option of following a healthy diet. If you look at this in Birmingham (my Erasmus host city), you will find that there are Eco-food shops with loads of fresh ingredients and they aren't necessarily more expensive than those in the supermarket.

2. Get ready for an Erasmus Orgasmus. Myth!

How many of you have been victims of your friends saying "Erasmus orgasmus, yeah! "? let's see... Oh yeah, I remember now. The majority of us are young people, and the Erasmus bubble naturally has the topic of sex in it for people of our age. But it happens in our lives in general, it is not that Erasmus students arrive at their host cities as sexual predators looking for sex. No. We are all adults and going on Erasmus doesn't automatically mean we are having sex. Your Erasmus year can mean whatever you want it to mean, with or without sex.

3. There is always a party happening. Reality!

On Erasmus, parties are always happening, so much so that you could say they are omnipresent. Yes ladies and gentlemen, you can party every single day if you'd like. I wouldn't recommend that for your health, but if you're looking for one, you'll be sure to find it. There is always a plan with friends that will start by being casual, but will end extremely full-on. This won't be a bad thing if you know how to manage your time correctly.

4. The first week is horrible. Myth!

This is something that personally I was a little frightened of as many people said this to me before i left. I have to say, it doesn't have to be this extreme. It is true that the first week of Erasmus is a lot of paperwork which will overwhelm you a little as things will not be as sorted as you thought they were. But from this being a week to forget you must stay hopeful. I think it is a huge myth that the first week will be awful - during the first week I was in contact with my department at university but I made lots of new friends and I went to a lot of university activities and parties. My personal experience would never make me say that the first week isn't bad at all - it just involves a huge amount of paperwork, it is nothing to be scared of.

5. Your foreign language skills will improve. Reality!

I can happily say that this is the honest-to-god truth! it would be quite difficult for your language skills not to improve - you would have to live underground for this to happen. As a minimum, your interaction with the outside world is going to improve. If you are an open and chatty person, Erasmus will help you improve your language skills without a doubt. I won't tell you that you will return home with a C1, but the truth is that the difference is very obvious!

6. You won't study during your Erasmus. Myth!

This is easily one of the biggest myths of Erasmus. Of course you have to study! I'm not going to lie and tell you that it is the hardest academic year of university, because it's not. I might even take the risk and say it could be one of the easiest. But that has nothing to do with studying. The fact that the year can be the most easily managed is due to the method of study that British universities use. For me it seems like a system based on weekly academic achievement goals for each student and they are given small tests to verify this that do not involve studying, like how we do it in Spain (read and memorise), but it is more a process of achievement based on comprehension study and analysis. A method that I think is much more effective than the one used in Spain. Going to university in the united kingdom meant that I had to read and understand the same amount of texts I would have to in Spain, but here we explain our points of view each week, when in Spain we only do that in the final exam. Therefore, you have to study on Erasmus, but for Spanish students, it is a different type of studying to what we are used to.

7. You will get lost. A lot. Reality!

Sorry to be the one who tells you this if you have not heard it before, but yes, getting lost is something that is just going to be inevitable. Take into account that you are hearing this from someone who's orientation skills are quite good... But the amount of times I have gotten lost, not only by myself but also with friends who I doubt are as good as me also got lost. No later than the first day, we got lost on campus. I would advise you all to visit your universities before your first day so that you have time to familiarise yourself with your surroundings to avoid getting lost like I did.

8. Parties in England are the worst. Myth!

Another of the biggest myths! I'm telling you now that I have returned from my experience in the UK. Parties in England are nothing like the ones in Spain, no, but I wasn't expecting them to be. Also, that is not a bad thing, think about whether you have chosen to leave Spain in order to experience new things and what is the best representation of new things? A party. Parties are something which every single student in the whole world loves to take advantage of to the max. so in the UK it was not going to be anything less, and I assure you, they do it pretty well. Apart from the option of going to a club, which of course seems quite fun, there is the other option in England to go to what is called a "house party". yeah, I wish I could attach a video. it wasn't "project x" but it wasn't far off. It was an experience for those who love those nights that only Erasmus can offer and that deserves to be experienced first hand. Therefore, the claim that the parties in England are the worst, is another colossal myth.

9. You will make life-long friends. Reality!

Your Erasmus year is going to be an important period of your life. During Erasmus, we usually are treated as if we are temporary, like what is says on our university ID, and what it looks like quite a few people's heads. It is quite automatic that when we introduce ourselves as Erasmus students, people think that we are people who will only be in their lives for a short amount of time and then we will be gone again. But there are also other people who will not shy away from giving us their time (as well as us giving them ours) and will not be scared to share their limits with us and therefore make great connections that don't have an expiry date. Strong, generous and life-long friends.

10. The Erasmus grant covers all of your costs. Myth!

This myth is funny and sad at the same time. The Erasmus grant can in no way be considered enough to cover your costs during this academic year. To give you a bit of an idea, my average budget to cover my costs in the UK was about €800-€900 a month, including rent, food, transport, and leisure. My time in England was 10 months in total and my Erasmus grant was €2,500. See for yourself if that is enough to cover your costs. You can consider it a help, but nothing more. Although, keep in mind that England is quite a lot more expensive in comparison to most other places in Europe, especially in terms of rent.

11. You will do crazy things. Reality!

The excuse: "I am on Erasmus and if I don't do it now I will never do it", is going to be your best ally during your year abroad. I'm sorry to tell you this, but it will always make you do some crazy things that you wouldn't normally do out of this context. Like walking down a motorway in the snow wearing a bikini, to many other crazy things I could tell you. You will do lots of crazy things and I encourage you to do them all. Afterwards, they are going to be great memories that will make you smile from ear to ear and when you remember them you will realise that you learnt more about yourself than you thought possible and now they are a part of you.

12. Post-Erasmus depression exists. Reality!

Contrasting to the previous myth, I am going to warn you if you are yet to go on your year abroad, or confirm for you if you have already been, that the reality of post-Erasmus depression exists, and it is real. During our year abroad we see and do so many different things each day that we don't realise in the moment, but later on there is time to remember those little details and then we cannot get them out of our heads. Erasmus does not stop being a trip, a trip that you live before, during and after you have left. Do not let it depress you, as there is nothing better than having great memories to cherish, it means you have lived well and nobody can take them away from you. There are always things that can help you cope as well, if you need it.

13. You will gain weight. Myth!

This is something that happened to me, but I don't think it is a rule of thumb. It is something that can happen because the meal times can change your routine and alcohol and post-party snacks can all mess up your body. I think these things affect your metabolism, but in my case I think it was because my friends on Erasmus cooked quite well. I hate saying "quite" because I think it has a negative connotation but the dishes that I ate were quite bad for you. ha ha. But I suppose that my case was a bit isolated within my friendship group on Erasmus. Take care, there are also examples when people have lost weight, but I think this is linked with those who don't know how to cook!

14. Everyone loves Erasmus. Myth!

The majority of Erasmus students think about Erasmus and their eyes light up, but there is also a minority and yes, there are some people who do not love the experience. Inside my own Erasmus house I saw with my own eyes how this can look. Erasmus is a time for self-improvement, stepping outside your comfort zone, away from expectations and putting yourself at risk. We are not all people who like to do this, to experience more than normal, to be more sociable than we naturally are, and to live in a place so different to what we are accustomed to. and that is totally fine. It is understandable that there are people who dislike going out of their comfort zone. Take into account in your mind that the moment that you embark on this process, you are leaving it and your destination will not be the same as your home simply because you have decided that you would like to experience a change. For me, the change was great, but there are always people who do not like to be away from home (among other reasons).

15. You will travel a lot. Reality!

In this reality there is a lot of connection between the excuse "I'm an Erasmus student" and some other factors like your proximity to an airport where the flights are a lot cheaper. And that is how I found myself in Istanbul during my Erasmus year. Despite these factors, you also have to count the fact that you are already in a different country so you can say, "well, whilst I'm here... "! So I went to London, Leeds, Liverpool, Edinburgh, Warwick, etc. I can happily say that if you want to, you can travel quite cheaply.

16. Everyone loves Erasmus students. Myth!

Inside the beautiful people of Erasmus, there also people that are not from Erasmus. Once you return from you year abroad, you will realise that there will be some of your classmates who did not go on a year abroad like you did, and some of them will not be willing to explain to you what you missed whilst you were there. But don't worry, they will get over with it.

17. You won't go to class. Myth!

On Erasmus, of course you will go to class. It is certain that you won't have as many contact hours as usual and even some of those will not be obligatory, and it is probable that you will go to less classes than you are used to. But this is not to say that not going to class should become a religion. You should go to class.

18. British club music is the worst. Myth!

This is one of the ones I heard the most often before going to Birmingham. Obviously, you will have to forget about hearing reggaeton unless you go to a specific-themed party, but once you arrive you will realise that you're going to have a great time even with the music not being the same as in Spain. Also, the majority of clubs in the UK have different rooms inside the club that play different music like r&b, electric, grime and pop. There are also specific music and costume parties that were really fun, so consider this a myth.

19. Erasmus students don't do anything. Myth!

Another myth spread by the non-Erasmus people - they say that we a species of people that live crazy lives who do not lift a finger in their entire year abroad. But no, ladies and gentlemen. Erasmus students are brave, with a passion for discovery, learning, working and doing things.

20. You better yourself. Reality!

This time in our lives without a doubt marks a before and after in many parts of our personality. I love to say this because I think that there so many good things that we achieve and the best thing about it is that the majority of us could never have imagined them. Erasmus gives you the opportunity to face new situations and forces you to develop your coping skills, causing you to better yourself in so many different ways. And that is the thing I love the most.

Cheers!

Elena.

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