Mobility specification

Country:Netherlands

Institution:Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences

City:Amsterdam

Program:Erasmus+ for study

Activity type:Study

Academic year:2021/2022

MU faculty/department:Faculty of Social Studies / Department of Social Policy and Social Work

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?no

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

Are your credits converted?no

Was there anything in the teaching methods that surprised you?Small groups and young teachers. I didn't choose individual subjects in my studies, but I chose my study programme/course. The subjects within this program complemented and built on each other. I also spent the whole semester with the same group of classmates, half of whom were local students (a compulsory semester of study in English at Dutch schools). This allowed me to get to know the local culture a bit more.

Does the university offer international students' programs and activities outside of lectures and seminars to help them integrate more quickly?Yes, both the university and ESN offer many extracurricular activities. ESN is very well organized here and their orientation week is well developed. They also organize a lot of cultural events and trips throughout the semester.

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
Special aids and technologies (e.g., text-to-speech software, hearing aids)
Special examination conditions (e.g., extended time, quiet rooms)
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:18000 CZK/month

Did you stay in dorms?yes

What about unexpected expenses? Did anything surprise you?Amsterdam and the whole of the Netherlands is terribly expensive. You need to count that the scholarship provided will cover only housing.

Do you have any tips on how to save money?Even if you don't want to, apply for a dormitory. Amsterdam is going through a housing crisis, so it's hard to find housing. The dorms here are luxurious by our standards. Look for furniture at the dumpsters. If someone wants to get rid of excess stuff, they often put it by the bins outside their house. I recommend the local flea markets, they're all over town. Once every two months there is a flea market in the northern part of the city, ordinary people/students can come and sell their stuff there. Often for minimal amounts.
From the shops I recommend mainly Lidl, Dirk and Jumbo, Albert which we have here is one of the most expensive supermarkets there
Alcohol and entertainment in general in the centre is quite expensive
Amsterdam is a multicultural city, you will find lots of restaurants with Asian, African and South American cuisine, lots of markets, definitely check it out.

🗺 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?You can, search on google maps, they have apps for both public transport and out of town.
For me it is definitely worth renting a bike for the semester, the city is perfectly adapted to it. You can either rent it in specialized rental shops or buy it and then sell it again. In general public transport is expensive and nothing like student discounts badly exist. You can pay with a card or buy a ticket on which you load money that is gradually deducted.

Did you deal with any health issues during your stay?yes

How do you rate the availability of healthcare?perfect

🤠Help create the perfect bucket list

What is a must-see in the city?Red light distrect - definitely worth seeing how it works there, lots of museums, Anne Frank house, galleries, boating on the local canals.

What are the must-visit trip destinations?Neighbouring cities such as Utrecht or Rotterdam, during the summer semester in the tulip fields. The famous ZaanseSchans.

Share your best experience:ESN organizes an awful lot of trips to nearby towns and tourist spots. On a trip to the village of Giethoorn, which is famous for having a river running through the entire town, we were able to rent a boat that had a hole in it and almost drowned. So they always recommend checking that the boat is spotless.

💅A nugget of wisdom to make the life easier

Did you need to handle a visa?no

How did you get to the place?Plane
Bus

Is there anything to watch out for before the trip?I can't think of anything.

Can you pay by card?everywhere

🥳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?Despite being here during Covid, it's one of the best experiences of my life. It not only gave me a lot of learning experiences. The teachers here are different than what we are used to, they treat you more like a partner and a friend. I took away a lot of experiences and friends for life from Erasmus. Although poorer by a lot of money, I would sacrifice all my savings to have this experience again.