Mobility specification

Country:Canada

Institution:University of Victoria

City:Victoria

Program:Faculty agreements

Activity type:Study

Academic year:2024/2025

MU faculty/department:Faculty of Economics and Administration

Study level abroad:Master

🎓Hit the books! How do you rate the university experience?

Can you enroll in a course where you can learn the local language?yes

Does the university offer enough courses in English?they have tons

Are your credits converted?yes

Can you give an example?1.5 credits per UVIC is 6 ECTS.

Was there anything in the teaching methods that surprised you?Lots of group projects, a lot of teamwork encouraged, no "buffoonery", exams easy, continuous work hard, lots of continuous work.

Does the university offer international students' programs and activities outside of lectures and seminars to help them integrate more quickly?Yes, the foreign department is great, the orientation days have helped a lot, the whole team is very nice and Miss Natalie is also very nice.

In which areas does the university offer support for students with special needs and strive to be inclusive?Psychological counseling
Barrier-free access to classrooms and dormitories
Crisis intervention
Support for LGBTQ+ students (e.g., safe spaces, counseling services)

💸Did you have to rob the bank?

Try to take a guess at what your monthly expenditures were:30000 CZK/month

Did you stay in dorms?no

Do you have any tips on how to find private accommodation?Accommodation is very difficult, I recommend to contact students who have been there and stayed with families, get references from them and then contact the family.

What about unexpected expenses? Did anything surprise you?Compulsory insurance from the university (about 600 CAD), paying for some textbooks so I could take quizzes and have a % towards my grade, 60 - 100 CAD/book (mostly it was just e-books).

Do you have any tips on how to save money?Buy a bigger pack of non-perishable food like spaghetti, flour, etc. if you like cycling, buy a bike through the marketplace and cycle (but public transport isn't bad or too expensive either) - Victoria is great for cycling.

🗺 Learn the ropes in a new city

How well did you manage to communicate in English?perfectly

How does public transport work in the city?runs like clockwork

And what about transport outside the city?mostly fine

Where to find connections? How to buy a ticket?Download the "Transit" app (green icon), it works almost everywhere in Canada to find out connections in real time (definitely don't use Google, it's not accurate), buy a UMO card at the beginning of the semester, prefer physical rather than virtual (virtual is fine but if your cell phone dies you don't have a bus). You can also buy a single ticket or day pass on the bus, but you have to be READY and especially ACCURATE, they never pay back.

Did you deal with any health issues during your stay?no

🤠Help create the perfect bucket list

What is a must-see in the city?There's a lot in there, I'll just mention a few places:
- Butchard Gardens
- Thetis lake
- Government house
- Empress hotel
- Fishermans wharf
- Cedarhill goulf course park
- Mount Tolmie
- Mound Douglas
- Hathley castle

What are the must-visit trip destinations?- Goldstream park and Mt Finlayson,
- Tofino
- Cowichan Lake
- Whistler
- Vancouver
- Banff

Share your best experience:The most beautiful trip to Banff National Park. We flew to Calgary for 4 days to explore the city. We rented this car and drove towards Banff National Park, it's a really charming place and the mountains are breathtaking.

💅A nugget of wisdom to make the life easier

Did you need to handle a visa?yes

Where can it be arranged?Online

What is needed?Just register, but beware of the various unofficial websites that charge much more than it costs, it must be the official Canady.gov website, I paid 7 CAD on this site: https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/visit-canada/eta/apply.html

How long does it take approximately?You'll get a confirmation email within a few hours.

How did you get to the place?Plane

Is there anything to watch out for before the trip?Don't go to Seattle, it's a little out of the way. You can't get to Victoria comfortably. It's cheaper to Seattle but when you add in the ferry and possibly a hotel for 1 night, because you can fly in so you can't catch the ferry, it gets quite expensive. Buy your ticket direct to Victoria or Vancouver if you have a layover in Seattle, it doesn't matter.

Make sure you have Revolut or a similar service. I recommend having more than 1 credit card though, don't rely on contactless payments in particular.

Can you pay by card?everywhere

What not to forget when packing?Don't pack too much, I packed too much. Leave space for what you buy there. Definitely take rain gear but also something smart. It's not too cold there, but if you're going somewhere like Banff, I'm sure you'll need winter gear.

🥳Summary

Whew, what a ride! 😮‍💨 Thanks so much for taking the time to complete our survey and for sharing your unique experience. Just one last thing. 🙏 How would you summarize your trip in one or two sentences?It was an incredible experience and I'm so glad I conquered my fear at the beginning and went, I didn't feel so far away at all, on the contrary I felt so close to home, thanks to the people I met there and discovered Canada. I definitely recommend it to everyone.