The application process turned out to be completely problem-free for me, even if a lot of formalities had to be complied with. However, MicroEDU proved to be very helpful and took over the complete contact with Swinburne – including student loan form, etc. After copies of the bachelor’s certificate, a current transcript, etc. I received my eCoE within a few weeks to apply for the visa.

In terms of accommodation, I didn’t want to embark on any adventure and therefore applied in advance to Swinburne Housing for a “deluxe” apartment – and was accepted. Applications for this should, however, be received early (approx. 4-5 months in advance), as the places are very popular. The apartment has proven to be a real stroke of luck. 1) I had 2 very nice and communicative Australian roommates who taught me “Aussie Slang” and integrated me into their circle of friends. On the other hand, the apartment was only a 3-minute walk from the campus and almost directly on the main shopping street of Hawthorn, Glenferrie Road, where there are all kinds of restaurants (Asia, McDonalds, Pizza Hut, Italians. . . ), shops (Safeways, Coles), Juice bars etc. there. In addition, the apartment was very spacious (2 floors, huge living room, flat screen, upstairs the respective bedrooms + bathroom).

Other people went there by chance and sometimes spent a few weeks looking for a decent and affordable apartment. In the beginning, however, you actually have enough stress with language adaptation, a thousand impressions, finding your way around the new Swinburne University of Technology, etc. Although the Swinburne apartment wasn’t exactly cheap ($ 280 per week), I was happy to be a constant on site from the start to have no orgasm with bed, kitchen utensils, internet etc.

According to toppharmacyschools, Swinburne University of Technology is very well equipped. Be it the bib with a lot of PCs for the various departments, countless electronic magazine subscriptions (which can also be accessed from home), but also the seminar rooms (all with air conditioning, good projectors, plenty of space, etc. ). On campus there are a few cafes, a bookstore, and meadows with green hills to linger.

The organization was more than exemplary, especially in the early days. During the orientation week, you had the opportunity to make many contacts and to arrive there carefully. In terms of the program, there was a scavenger hunt through the central business district of Melbourne, a trip to a zoo, wine tasting, etc. There were an incredible number of nationalities, Indonesians, Iranians, Brazilians, from the Ivory Coast, Indians, etc. and of course some Germans. I consciously stayed away from the latter because I was interested in the different cultures + wanted to improve the English language and didn’t want to revive “Little Germany” there. You don’t have to go to Australia for that;) But some seemed to see it differently and formed German cliques, which I found a little, well, “strange”. . .

In terms of general difficulty, the courses in the master’s program were equivalent to those in Germany. However, the pure workload was many times higher than I was used to from Germany. So I had around 25 exams for 4 courses with 7. 5 credits each. After a short “puppy protection phase”, I actually had an online test, (short) presentation, case study report, research report (with interviews), interim test etc. every week.

Oral participation was also assessed in some courses. The advantage of the whole thing was that you dealt very intensively with the matter and at some point the editing in English was nothing special anymore. The disadvantage of the story was that (if you took the whole thing seriously and wanted good grades for credit in Germany) you had almost no free time. For example, I had to do a marketing during the course, just work through a 600-page book (since the online tests + exam related to it), also prepare a group research report (again with interviews, evaluate, etc. ) and, as an addition, there were case study discussions in the classroom. There was something similar in the other courses as well, so that there was little time for travel etc. As far as I have noticed, the whole thing applies more to the master’s area. The bachelor’s degree programs probably had significantly less to do and therefore also had more normal study conditions. In terms of grades, they have a system that only differentiates between HD (up to 85%), D, C and P. HD is usually counted as 1. 0 in Germany, D as 2. 0 etc.

Melbourne itself is a very relaxed and liveable city. Despite the many tourists, the city center is also very relaxed, there are many skyscrapers with “historical” buildings in front of them, nice parks, cafes, bars etc. If you like street art, you shouldn’t miss the laneways, these are the narrow streets between the skyscrapers.

All in all, the time at Swinburne University of Technology was definitely worth it, both professionally and personally, but it was much more intense than expected and the Swinburne University of Technology load often reached its limit – skills in time management were definitely required and encouraged. In the master’s program in particular, you should reserve a few weeks after the end of the semester in order to be able to travel to the country. In the semester there is not really time for it if, as I said, you take the whole thing seriously and don’t just want to get through somehow.