Erasmus Experience in Jyväskylä, Finland by Carolina

Why did you choose to go to Jyväskylä, Finland?

Well, I must confess that I was not completely sure about choosing Finland neither Jyväskylä to do my exchange program at the beginning, but once I talked with people who had lived the experience before I became more and more curious about coming here. I always wanted to experience something absolutely new, totally different and challenging to improve my social skills (I am a little bit shy), to practice a foreign language and to make new friends from different parts of the world. In that sense, I feel that I made the correct choice. Finland for sure is the country that provides you with all those requirements and more, because there are no countries like the nordic ones.

How long is the scholarship? How much money do you receive to help you with living costs?

My scholarship is for 6 months. It was provided by the Ministry of Education of my home country (Chile), and even though Finland is an expensive place to live in comparison with the country where I come from. However, the amount of money I received from the scholarship is fair enough to live and enjoy the whole experience.

What is the student lifestyle like in Jyväskylä?

The student lifestyle is something crazy. Everybody is totally friendly, so you make new friends every day. There are lots of parties that you can attend where you always find the people you have been meeting. There are also lots of other activities different to parties that are perfect instances to share with friends and learn from different cultures, for instance: Pub Quizzes.

Would you recommend the city and the University of Jyväskylä to other students?

Even though the Finnish winter is something really different and in some cases extreme, is a once-in-lifetime experience. You will be able to tell your friends that you survived the -20 degrees! Moreover, the Finnish system of education is something that you must go through, you will realize how different and effective can be. You manage your own time! If that does not sound enough for you, the university is beautiful as well as the city. If you truly love nature, this is the city for you.

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What is the food like?

To be honest, I do not really enjoy the food in Finland because the flavors are quite different from the ones we have in my home country, but when you are abroad you have to be open-minded enough to try new flavors and new things! Furthermore, if you cannot get used to the food, there are always alternatives around the city with Mexican, Chinese, or Italian food, among others.

Did you have a hard time finding your accommodation in Jyväskylä?

Finding accommodation was pretty easy due to the university provides you with the possibility to apply to the different student villages. The prices are accessible and the appartments are great!

How much does it cost to live in Jyväskylä?

Well, for sure that only depends on each person, but in my case and because I was saving money to travel I could say that you can easily live with 500 euros monthly (including accomodation, transportation and food).

Is the language easy to get to grips with? Are there language courses available at the University?

At the beginning was really challenging even the simplest things like going to the supermarket to buy your stuff, but it takes too little time to get used to the language and even though I never learned Finnish I can surely survive only using English and also using basic words to be polite like: Moi (Hi), Hyvä Kiitos (Thank you very much), among others. If you are interested in learning the local language or other languages the uni offers many courses depending on your time available and your interests, for example: Survival finnish, Finnish I, etc. One that is really interesting is Each One Teach One, because you can teach your own language while you are learning from a native a different language, is funny because you learn, you teach and you make new friends!

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What's the easiest or most economical way to travel to Jyväskylä from your city?

Actually I do not know that information, I received the tickets and everything related to the travel from my scholarship.

Where would you recommend to go on a night out in Jyväskylä?

There are many great places, I could not recommend only one, but there are excellent bars, discos and karaokes. The best thing is that they are all one next to the other, so you cannot get bored.

And for eating? Can you recommend some good restaurants in Jyväskylä?

There is a Chinese buffet that I really love because for only 11 euros you can eat as much as you want to and is really good, even though is not Finnish food everybody loves chinese food! And is just in the city center!

What good cultural sites are there to visit?

The greatest place that I have visited in Jyväskylä is the Natural History Museum of Central Finland. Is absolutely cool, you can see many typical animals and many other awesome things. Besides, there is a big tower right there where you can see the whole city, is beautiful.

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Is there any other advice that you could give to students going to Jyväskylä in the future?

Do not be shy when it comes to meet new people, that is all you need: many friends, the rest will happen. Bring as much enthusiasm as you can and be prepared for several adventures. Choose Finland!