Before my semester abroad:
It has always been clear to me that I wanted to do my semester abroad in California, and through my internet research I quickly chose Fullerton.
Here I would like to say again that I think it’s great how well your website took care of me, especially if you were unsure and had questions, they were always answered by your website. I think it’s great that there are such organizations!
My accommodation: I was in the University Village (UV), it is relatively expensive. About $ 1000 for your own room, the bathroom is shared. There are three of you living in an apartment and you have the opportunity to eat in the cafeteria twice a day. (from Mon-Fri). Very good, varied food. Always a salad bar and fruit (which is very expensive in the US). The UV is very well maintained and the people are super, super nice. Most of the internationals came from Germany, Sweden, Colombia and Saudi Arabia.
The university: A super beautiful university, huge, numerous clubs. Didn’t have time to join one himself, but was registered in the ultra-modern gym. The classrooms are super modern, around 12-40 people per class. Check iamaccepted to see more reviews from current students.
Have attended FIN courses, ECON course, and MGMT course. .JECON was not a multiple choice, but I found it even easier However, I’ve never done so much for the university. You ALWAYS have homeworks, quizzes, midterms (2-3 in each subject), presentations, and at the end the final.
Traveling:
IT WAS THE HAMMMMMMMMMERRR !!!!
I met super cool girls in the UV (from Germany). .JAnd we were everywhere I’ll leave out the small towns like New Port Huntington.
Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Hawaii, New York. It was phenomenal.
LA is about 40 minutes by car, 30 minutes by train and costs only 8-9 dollars. (and you have no parking problem).
SD: about 1.5 hours drive, very beautiful city, should be seen.
SF: We were on Thanksgiving vacation, also a dream. MUST: Buy the CItyPass !!! Saves a lot of money and you don’t have to queue anywhere;).
LV: A dream for every girl, free entrance fees, free drinks. Stayed at Avicii and Kalvin Harri and was the cheapest ride as the hotels are very cheap in Vegas.
Hawaii: was a very spontaneous action because we found cheap tickets. If you have domestic flights with or without a hotel. ALWAYS check cheapflights.com. I went to NYC for $ 120, SF for $ 70, and $ 500 to Hawaii including a hotel!
Hawaii is a dream and has always been a wish of mine. Super beautiful beaches, but I would have imagined it to be more rural. Waikiki is a bit reminiscent of Las Vegas. MUST: rent a scooter and drive around the main island of OAHU.
NY: I went to NY for Christmas and spent New Year’s Eve there with my family who had come to Germany. SO NYC is totally overrated. New Year’s Eve there was just junk. The price for a meal is $ 200, Times Sqaure can be bent, unless you want to stand in the cold for 12 hours without toilet, food or drink. I prefer to go to the jungle camp.
But here too I recommend the CityPass. You save 3 hours in line for each attraction, this pass was really great.
Conclusion:
It was a very exciting semester, you learn a lot beyond your own limits and grow beyond yourself.
However, the costs were much more expensive than calculated. I spent about $ 12,000 on my travel and accommodation and food for 5 months. But it was worth it. I already miss Fullerton and the people I met there. I also brought home good grades A, A, B +, and a C +. Some write in their reports that all people get A. It is guaranteed not to be like that. Everyone was happy about an A like crazy. Standard was a BC. Like in Germany, and as I said, I’ve never had to do as much for the university as I did in Fullerton, but I’ve never had as much fun at the university as I did in Fullerton.
I would do it again, but the only thing I can advise everyone is to look for American friends, with Germans you only speak German in the end. And if you want to improve your English, you shouldn’t go to the Homestead Apartment, which is also called Little Germany, because every second person is German.
