Once upon a time...

Hello all!

Before I start enumerating bizarre periods and superlatives about what have I just been going through these days: the so-called Österreichisches Phänomen, let me introduce you shortly to what happened in my life the past 6 months.

I am a 22 year old physiotherapist, freshly graduated from Semmelweis University, Budapest. Once upon a time, a brand new opportunity of Erasmus Scholarship raised my attention in February, while I was in the middle of my thesis writing on a quite usual and boring winter evening. The name of this little 'treasure' which arised is Erasmus After Degree Programme. At that moment, it was something absolutely resonating with my life-frequency, so I didn't wait a second, and I was already filling out the application form.

Why did I choose ADP? Because it has the following advantages:

1. First, and most important: it doesn't influence someone's studies. The whole programme takes place after final exams and graduation, in the summer.
2. You don't have to attend classes, go to university, have exams or research, because it is a much more practice-focused experience. It's about useful and enjoyable work, practice, internship in your specialisation and field of interest.
3. You don't have to fight for good grades or marks because you don't need to get any.
4. It lasts maximum 2 months, so than you can go home and continue with what you've left back. Consequently it's not a huge breakaway of your usual life.
5. Last, but not least, you can choose any destination in Europe.
6. The university supports you with fair budget.

Did I encountered any difficulties in applying for ADP? Yes, I did, because:

1. You have to find your own host-institute/hospital/workplace/company, etc. by searching on internet and writing tons of e-mails.
2. You have to find for yourself accommodation by searching on internet and writing tons of e-mails.
3. It takes quite a hard work and responsibility to organise everything on your own.

My advices/tips for your application:

1. Even if the deadline is April, start to find yourself a host place in February-March, because it's not easy to get admitted or accepted anywhere.
2. I wrote circa 40 e-mails all over the world, and got only 2 positive responses, so it's a struggling work, but worth it.
3. Involve friends (1 or 2 maximum) in the application process, because organising together is easier.

After planning all, and turning my plans into practice, I'm here in Graz, Austria, and can't wait to share with you as much interesting and breath-taking scenes as possible.

P. S. Sorry for the quality of the pictures, I'm not a professional photographer.

Thank you for reading. Bis später! Dóra.

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