Take it Easy in Norway Past Review

By (English/Education, Cardinal Stritch University) for

Østfold University College: Halden - Direct Enrollment & Exchange

What did you gain/learn from your experience abroad? Was it worthwhile?
Yes. I learned so much about myself and my culture which was awesome. Also, I always find myself thinking, "In Norway..." and comparing it to the US which shows that it really affected how I view things.

Personal Information

How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? 0-2 weeks

Review Your Program

* Overall educational experience

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

The courses were very different from what I am used to at Stritch. The workload included suggested reading but very little else during the semester. At the end of the semester there were either big papers due or an exam to be taken. I felt like this made the semester overall easier than it is at Stritch, but it was harder to really gage how much I was learning. It was also harder to get a good grade in the class because of that. The Norwegian as a Foreign Language course was very difficult. I felt like to do well, I had to seek out Norwegian students to help me practice. We rarely practiced in class and we often did not understand what the professor was teaching us or what we were supposed to do because she did not explain things in English, nor did she give us time to ask questions. Additionally, her English was very poor so communicating with her in general was a great challenge.

* Host Country Program Administration

On-site administration of your program

The international student program at Osfold was excellent. They paired each student with a buddy who was there to answer questions and pretty much take us out partying every day/night for the first two weeks. It fostered friendship and made it very easy to get questions answered and problems solved.

* Housing:

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

I lived in Remmen which was student housing about a hundred yards from the University. The houses had 8 bedrooms each and a kitchen/dining room with a sofa inside. There were 8 houses in the complex. We felt very safe in Remmen for the most part. In fact, the doors were all wide open during warm weather. As the semester went on, there were some problems with sanitary items and food or alcohol being stolen from the houses; rumors were that some Albanian vagrants in the area were notorious for that. It was about a 25 minute walk to downtown Halden which was no problem at all. Most of the time we partied at Remmen though. I was given sheets from the housing department at school but I did need to buy a few other things when I got there just to make my room more homey including a mirror, a trash bin, and a lamp. I eventually bought a coffee machine as well.

* Food:

I usually just shopped and cooked with my friends. Grocery's were about twice as expensive as they are in the US which was hard to get used to. Eating out was also about twice as expensive so I rarely did it. There are some excellent pizza places in Halden though. You have to try the onion sauce on the pizza!

* Social & Cultural Integration:

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

The school took us on a trip to Bergen at no cost to us. It was amazing.

* Health Care:

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

* Safety:

There is a hospital in Halden. I did not visit it personally but a few other students went there over the course of the semester for medicine and they seemed to have an easy experience with it. The city itself is very safe. I could walk home at night with one other girl and not feel threatened in any way.

If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? Yes

Finances

* Money: How easily were you able to live on a student's budget?

(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost)

Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? I spent between $40 and $80 on food and personal expenses per week. There was always some other expense arrising too.
Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? Make sure to bring money for traveling! Ryan Air is cheap but getting to the airport never is.

Language

* Did your program have a foreign language component? Yes
How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? None
Language acquisition improvement?

I rarely had to use the host country's language. Almost everyone spoke English and in shopping situations all I needed to understand was prices and "Do you want a bag?"

If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition?

Direct Enrollment/Exchange

* Did you study abroad through an exchange program or did you directly enroll in the foreign university? Exchange

Other Program Information

* Where did you live?

Select all that apply

  • Other
* Who did you live with?

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  • International Students
* Who did you take classes with?

Select all that apply

A Look Back

* What did you like most about the program?
  • Living with other international students
* What could be improved?
  • The Norwegian course
* What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? If you want to experience a culture different from our own, but easy enough to fit into, this is for you. The pace of life is a little slower so it won't be too stressful.

Individual Course Reviews

Course Name/Rating:

Science Fiction: The Future as History

Course Department: xx
Instructor: Robert Mickelsen
Instruction Language: English
Comments: Really great material and often the discussion was interesting. It was a good overarching picture of the genre of sci fi.
Credit Transfer Issues: n/a
Course Name/Rating:

Comparitive Politics and Political Theory

Course Department: xx
Instructor: Paal Foss
Instruction Language: English
Comments: This is a high intensity six week class taught by two professors. Very informative and interesting. I'm glad I took it. Here's a warning though: Foss may be too intelligent to actually teach.
Credit Transfer Issues: n/a
Course Name/Rating:

Norwegian for Foreigners I

Course Department: xx
Instructor: Anni Olsen
Instruction Language: Norwegian
Comments: This class was not easy at all. If you want to learn Norwegian it will be helpful but just expect to do a lot of learning on your own with other Norwegian students. The instructor's English was not strong so her instruction was very hard to understand.
Credit Transfer Issues: n/a