University: San Jose State University
City: San Jose
Country: United States
Continent: North America
Field of study: Business administration, mechanical engineering, economics
Study type: semester abroad
When I boarded my flight to San Jose in January, where I did the spring semester at San José State University this year, I was very excited because I didn’t really know what to expect there. But I wasn’t disappointed. From the front…
Preparation:
If you have met the requirements (TOEFL), it is sufficient if you apply about 6 months before your planned semester. The rest of the process is actually pretty simple. Both MicroEdu and the SAL Institution staff in San José are available to answer any questions, so the whole application process etc. is child’s play. And so, as long as you meet all the deadlines, you shouldn’t have any major problems. Visit mcat-test-centers.com to get information about University of Birmingham.
I slept my semester abroad in Campus Village in a 6-person apartment with double rooms. If you don’t mind sharing your room with a roommate during your stay, I highly recommend this type of living. You are right on campus, so the distances to your lectures are very short. You’ll also quickly find a connection to student life there, because everyone, at least that’s what I’ve experienced, is very open to you. Otherwise there are also the slightly more expensive single rooms. The apartments are all very well equipped and very modern, as the campus village was only completed 5 years ago.
It’s not the cheapest solution, but it’s definitely the most comfortable, because you can clarify everything in advance and thus have security when you arrive in San José that you have a place to sleep and don’t have to look for one first.
How you feel about the food is up to you. Either you choose the meal plan in the Dining Commons, or cook yourself. I opted for 2nd. It may not always be the most comfortable solution and sometimes annoying, but you can cook what you feel like, while the meal plan (as I’ve heard from a lot of people) is pretty one-sided and also expensive. And if you don’t feel like cooking, you can always go to the Dining Commons or one of the many food outlets on or around campus, which are often very cheap.
University:
Many have told me in advance that it is very difficult to get the courses that you want to take, especially in the business area. From my experience, I cannot agree with that, even if the exchange students are at a bit of a disadvantage because they can only register for the courses in the first week of lectures, while the “normal” students did this weeks ago. Nevertheless, I have them all courses (business, engineering, economics) that I wanted to attend. If a course is full, the first thing I would do is talk to the professor, because they are often quite happy to have an international student in their course.
SAL:
The SAL office is virtually the MicroEdu replacement in the USA. The employees will help you with all problems, if you should have any, answer your questions and help where they can. At the beginning you will receive academic advice and all other important information regarding your studies at SJSU, so that you can start your semester abroad without any problems. SAL definitely made it a lot easier for me to start at SJSU. In addition, the SAL office regularly offers excursions and other events.
Leisure:
Now we come to the most pleasant part of the whole semester abroad – free time. And you will have enough of that. Because on the one hand, most of the courses are not very demanding, so you don’t really have much time to study and etc., and on the other hand, at least that’s how it was for me, there are no SJSU courses on Fridays. That means you always have a long weekend, where you can go on longer trips from time to time. Cities like LA, San Francisco and Las Vegas are all quick and cheap to get to (by car or train) and definitely worth a visit. You will definitely enjoy your time there. Especially San Francisco, one of the most beautiful cities I’ve seen there, is easy to get to by train if you don’t have a lift. San Francisco is a great place to go but also enjoy your time in other ways. You should definitely spend one or two weekends there.
In addition, Santa Cruz, a beautiful coastal town, is only about an hour’s drive away. A bus goes there directly from the campus. When the weather is good, Santa Cruz and its beaches are a good place to be.
Conclusion:
Especially because of the location I can only recommend San José. In San José itself may like. not much to see, but the convenient location in the heart of California keeps your options open. Use this, you will definitely have the time for it. I got to know many beautiful cities and saw a lot. You will not regret it.
In addition, the people in the campus village and in your courses are all helpful and open, so that you quickly make friends and don’t get bored.
The semester abroad at SJSU was definitely worth the money. That brings us to the biggest negative point, the money, because you should take some of that with you. Because all the trips and free time have to be financed somehow. But I can’t say right now that SJ is more expensive than other places in the US that I’ve been to. Whether you want to go to work to earn some extra money is up to you, but I personally think that you should enjoy the short time abroad. You can also earn the money back at home.
Overall, my semester abroad was a great experience and I learned a lot. I can only recommend to anyone who has the opportunity to do a semester abroad, because it will shape you for the rest of your life.
