Study Stories

The best testimony for anyone considering studying abroad is, without doubt, from a fellow foreign student. Here is a short report by Leslie Sams from Raleigh, NC, USA, who is studying at the University of Stuttgart in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Leslie gives a detailed account of her studies, her life here and why she opted for Baden-Württemberg.

A round trip in education:

"Before I started studying for my degree at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, I had actually spent a year abroad with the Congress-Bundestag exchange. It was a wonderful year with a family in Germany, and so I decided that I wanted to take the opportunity to get to know students and to live with students in Germany.

My majors in college were International Studies with a concentration on the EU region and German language and literature. Therefore the decision to come to Germany was just a logical step so I came over for an exchange year during my undergraduate studies. I really enjoyed Stuttgart and studying in Germany and so I returned as a full-time student after completing my Bachelors when I decided to switch directions with my studies. I was already familiar with Stuttgart, and I thought returning here would give me a little more flexibility with my studies as well as with my social life and work experience during my studies.

The entire state of North Carolina has an exchange program with Baden-Württemberg, so I knew a lot of German students from universities in this region before I came to Stuttgart. Having a direct exchange program and several universities to choose from made Baden Württemberg quite appealing to me. Of course, on top of all that, the location is also ideal for traveling to other regions and countries in and around Europe. A dream come true for an American!

The curriculum here is different to that in the US and I really appreciated having a little more free-time during my studies. Even in the semesters when I had a heavy course load in Germany, I was always able to take an afternoon off and take some time to do some extra reading or travel around and get to know the culture a bit more. Since my classes in the US were mostly at least twice a week and required more preparation, taking even one day off is nearly impossible. I think the German university system, with its flexibility and practice semesters, allows for more internships during your studies. Bulletin boards all over campus advertise potential jobs and internships. Of course, there is competition for the different positions, but I see this as a benefit of studying here in Baden-Württemberg with so many global players in the region.

During my exchange year, I lived in a student dormitory. The rooms were quite nice compared to my US dorms. I had a single room and shared a kitchen and bathroom with three other students. The dorms were also quite affordable compared to normal apartments. I am currently living in a WG (shared apartment) in the city. I loved living in the dorms because it made it easier for me to meet other students and to keep busy.

I find the people in the region fairly open. Many people I have met are curious to learn how many of their stereotypes are true and how well they fit the region I am from. It is always good to talk about stereotypes and deflate them. If I had not found that people were open, I probably would not have returned for an indefinite period of time."

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