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International Student Exchange Program
Returned Student Report
Welcome back! The international experience you have gained while on exchange is a valuable resource that you will draw upon throughout your life. Your experience can also help other UniSA students when they are planning for their exchange. To make sure that prospective students have a chance to learn from your experience you are required to submit a Returned Student Report. Please note that your academic credit from your host institution will not be transferred to your UniSA academic record until your report is submitted.
This form has been developed to make submitting your report easier. Please complete the form and return by email to [email protected]. Returned student reports will be posted on the International Student Exchange Website.
When filling in the returned student report try to remember the sort of things that you wanted to know before you went on exchange, be honest in your responses and try to avoid simply giving yes/no answers.
Please do not hesitate to contact UniSA International staff if there are any issues you would like to discuss regarding your exchange experience.
Student Exchange TeamUniSA InternationalUniversity of South AustraliaM3-21A100 North Terraceemail: [email protected]
Name: Andrew Chown
UniSA Program Enrolment:
(eg Bachelor of Arts etc)
Bachelor of Urban and Regional Planning
Exchange Semester and Year:
Semester 2 (Study Period 5), 2nd Year UniSA, 3rd Year Ryerson Univerity
Host Institution: Ryerson University, Toronto
Country of Host Institution:
Canada
Do you give permission for prospective exchange students to contact you if they have questions?
YES
If yes, please give your preferred email address:
The Host Institution
What factors influenced your decision to select the host institution that you went to?I chose to go the Ryerson University, Toronto, Canada, because I have always wanted to go to Canada and I thought this would be a great opportunity to see the country and live the life style. Also, I chose Ryerson because in Urban Planning we have few choices of where we can go, but it worked out great because Ryerson has a really good course.
How would you describe your host institution?Ryerson is good. It has many “newish” buildings, but I found with the planning course that powerpoint presentations were not used very regularly by professors. The Ryerson exchange organizers and student committee are fantastic, and organize a lot of events for exchange students and are always there to help.
Please describe the location of the host institutionRyerson is right downtown. It is a campus that occupies quite a large area, probably bigger then a city block. It is very close to shopping, food, pubs and public transport (subway).
Please describe the courses that you took while on exchange? What were their pros and cons?Whilst on exchange I took 3rd year courses. They were:Planning Theory- I found this interesting and useful for decision making in the field. But found that without the use of powerpoint presentation systems it was a lot of writing and noting. Environmental Planning and Management- This course was informative and much related to planning. It outlined approached to managing the environment. It was good because it was a 3h course per week and it was all in one block. (Often didn’t go that long). I found that there was a lot of reading for this course and it required the purchase of a text book. (approx $70 can)Land Use Planning- This subject is a large group assignment project. It is intensive and requires quite a lot of work. I found this subject the least enjoyable.Health Promotion and Community Development- This subject is an interdisciplinary subject and was held between 6pm and 8.30pm Wednesday nights on my timetable. It is health related but has elements of planning in it. I found this subject to be quite easy but it required a weekly reading summary, but the content wasn’t too challenging.
How did course content, class size, marking, etc compare with UniSA?The course content was obviously of a North American, Canadian context. So this made it interesting as it was new and seemed quite foreign to me, but at times they talked about things that I didn’t have a clue about because of this. The class size is relative to UniSA. In core courses it ranged from approx 50-75. Then in electives it ranged from approx 20-30. The class size all depends on what subjects that you are taking.The marking was similar. It seemed a little easier at Ryerson, but the workload was higher. Planning at Ryerson is similar to UniSA in the sense that there are 4 tasks worth marks. The amount of work for these was varied; some were case studies of approx 10-12 pages. Another was a term paper of approx 4,000 words. All in all the work varied but was similar in the marking to UniSA.Also, midterm exams are often carried out in subjects at Ryerson, I had 2 and then 2 final exams for the same subjects.
Did you find the academic and international office staff helpful?Like UniSA the academic staff set office hours and they were all helpful. Whilst they set office hours it is always possible to email them and they generally reply promptly. The international office staff were outstanding. They helped us with everything that we needed and provided us with information required for life at Ryerson. The exchange committee that worked with the international office was amazing. This committee comprised of returned exchange students from Ryerson, all of which were friendly and they organized weekly pub nights and other events. They organized a baseball match, basketball match and general get-togethers for the exchange students. Both the international office and committee were always there if you needed someone to talk to.
Please describe the resources available to exchange students (ie computers, the library)?The resources available are much the same as regular students. There is a large library and various computer labs, with many computers. There is a huge cafeteria with many choices and you are provided with a student card which can have money put on it to be used for printing and buying food at various locations on campus and some off campus (residence and pub).
Did you experience any language or cultural difficulties at the host institution?At times there were issues where people couldn’t understand what I was saying (aussie mumble and talking to quickly), but if I slowed down, generally people understood what I said. Cultural differences were experienced on many occasions. Different meanings to words and different words for different things were found all the time.
Do you think that going on exchange contributed to your academic development? If so, how?I think that it did. I found that by going on exchange I obtained a different perspective on my education. I actually seemed to work harder while away, but still managed to do everything that I wanted to. I developed a better
understanding of various elements of planning, and experienced a totally different planning system, which in turn helped aid my academic development
Practical
AccommodationPlease describe the accommodation options available to exchange studentsAccommodation options for semester long exchanges are limited slightly. The university residences only accept year long students. But I stayed at a place called Neill-Wycik which is about 2 minutes from Ryerson. Neill-Wycik is a bit old and some rooms (mine) are a little dilapidated, but it is a good place to stay as many exchange and international students live here, as well as Canadian students. Other options would include renting a room, and in some cases a basement flat at peoples houses. At Neill-Wycik students cook for themselves, where as at the Ryerson residences you are required to buy a meal plan.
How expensive were the accommodation options?Neill-Wycik appeared to be the cheapest at approximately $1800 Canadian for 4 months, in the McGill wing (which has bigger rooms and 2 bathrooms, but is not ‘flashier’. I am not sure of the prices for rented rooms.
What type of accommodation would you recommend?I would recommend accommodation that allows you to be mixed with all sorts of different people. Neill-Wycik had a lot of exchange students and this was good as I got to meet people from all parts of the world experiencing the same things as me. As well as some Canadian students from surrounding areas and other provinces
FoodDid you have self-catering facilities or were meals provided with your accommodation?I had to self cater for myself
What sort of food was available?There was a supermarket very close to Ryerson that offered all sorts of food. Also all sorts of food was available on campus and off campus. There are many restaurants in Toronto, and most of which are not too expensive. There are also various fast-food outlets around.
Was food expensive?Food from the supermarket was in comparison to Australia. Fruit and Veg were about the same and meat prices were similar, but chicken seemed to be quite expensive. Most food from the supermarkets was prices similar to Australia
Where is the best place to shop?For food, I shopped at Dominion 24 hour supermarket and the process here weren’t too bad. But there is also another supermarket called no-frills and this is cheaper again. There are also various different supermarkets available.
How much does it cost to eat out at a local restaurant/café?Restaurant- approx $15-25 plus tax and tipCafé- approx 10-15/ plus tax and tipAll restaurants, bars, cafés and taxi’s expect tips. Generally you can tip the same amount as the tax, which is added to the ticketed price and in Ontario this is 14%.
TransportHow did you find the local transport network?The local transport network was great. The subway was quick, and cost $2.75 one way , a little pricy, with no student fares.
Was it expensive to use local transport?As said $2.75 unless you decide to buy a monthly pass where you can get student rates
Do you have any tips on types of tickets to buy?If you are going to be using the subway, buses and street cars (all part of the TTC) a monthly pass is probably a good way to go.
Personal SafetyDid you find the city in which you stayed safe?Toronto seemed to be safe, but with any city I would not walk alone at night.
Do you have any safety advice for other exchange students?Same as above
EmploymentWere there opportunities for paid employment for exchange students? If yes, what sort of work was available?I did not try to find any
Social
Life on ExchangeHow would you describe the way of life in your exchange destination?The way of life in Toronto was fairly fast paced. The people seemed to have many things to do, but it was still possible to relax in the city.
Did you experience ‘culture shock’?Yes, I would say that I did experience ‘culture shock’
Do you have any suggestions on how to cope with ‘culture shock’?Keep busy and make lots of friends, because in many cases other exchange students are experiencing the same thing.
What is the best way to meet people?Go to the organised events put on by the committee and seek to introduce yourself to as many exchange/international and Canadian students as possible.
Do you have any suggestions on what to do on the weekend?Look around the city, there is a lot there to see and do. Brewery tours are always good because it is free beer and you will also see many sights of Toronto at the same time.
TravelDid you travel before, after or during your exchange?I traveled to New York on the way. I also went to Quebec city, Montreal, Ottawa, Vancouver and Whistler whilst on exchange.
Do you have any travel tips?Book early and get an ISIC card, because it will save you heaps of money.
HighlightsBriefly describe the highlights of your exchange experienceMeeting new people from all over the world. Also traveling and experiencing a new way of life. Making good Canadian friends to go back and visit. Snowboarding in Whistler.
ProblemsBriefly describe any problems you experienced on exchange and any suggestions you may have to help others avoid them.You sometimes encounter problems where people will not understand you, so just talk slowly and clearly.
Other Comments
Do you have any further comments?Toronto was a great city with lots to do around university. Try to get a lot of things done whilst the weather is still fine, as it may not be to appealing to go sight seeing when it is minus 5.
Thank you for taking the time to share your exchange experiences in this report.
Please save your report as a Word document and email a copy to [email protected].
Date: 6 / 1 / 2007
Name: Andrew Chown
