My study abroad experience only lasted six months, however I did so much in that time and I would definitely say it was the best six months of my life so far. I did a bit of travelling before flying into Brisbane a week or two before lectures started. Living in the University colleges was a major advantage as you met Australian students and my college organised lots of social events which home and international students could attend.

Studying at UQ was about the same or easier (depending on what modules you took) than studying here at Nottingham. University over there is much more flexible than in the UK and also much more laid back. Saying all this, I believe I gained far more useful skills in Australia than I would have done here in Nottingham and feel I am much more employable due to the experience.

The big advantage of studying abroad is travelling, before, after and during the experience. Having not had a gap year, travelling all around Australia and New Zealand during my six months away was amazing and so rewarding. If you get organised, you usually have time to see some places while studying, at weekend and semester breaks for example. Transport in Australia with a student card is dirt cheap and so we regularly went up the east coast of Australia for 3 or 4 days to take in the many of the sights Australia has to offer. UQ also organises trips to a few famous tourist attractions, I went on the Frasier Island trip early on in the semester and had a great time and met loads more international students. I met so many people out there from so many different countries and made loads of life-long friends. I spent this summer, travelling the western coast of the United States and Canada meeting with around 15 people whom I studied abroad with, which was almost as good as the semester abroad itself. From my personal experience and from talking to others that studied abroad, I can’t understand why anyone wouldn’t want to be part of the U21 programme.