Exchange report - incoming students
Home university: Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg
Study programme: Medicine
Exchange programme: Erasmus
Semester: Autumn semester 2012/2013

Arrival and registration

Before I arrived in Stockholm I was contacted by the KI pick-up service, which is beside the global friends organization a new facility which takes care of exchange students coming to Stockholm. They collected the keys for me in advance and escorted me to my accommodation. The introduction days were very well organized. All the essential informations I needed have been communicated.

Acommendation

I applied for housing through UAC, which worked quite well. I easily received a room at Pax at short notice. The room including the small bathroom was nice and totally satisfactory. The rent of course was quite high compared to what I pay in Germany, but I knew that before, so I saved some money before.

Leisure time and social activities

We did a lot of social activities. Some of them were organized by the global friends organization, but at the end you really don`t need any help to arrange social activities since Stockholm offers a lot to see and do. I also made several Swedish friends.

Pre-departure

I chose Stockholm and the Karolinska Institute because a lot of former Erasmus students who have been here before were totally stoked. I also heard a lot of good things about the university and the city itself. Apart from that I did several Swedish language courses before I decided to do the exchange, so that at the end my first choice was quite clear. All the informations I got from my home university as well as from the Karolinska Institute in advance were absolutely satisfying.

Courses during the exchange period

D8XX01 : Clinical Medicine - Surgery
During my stay I did the International Basic Course in Clinical Surgery at the Karolinska University Hospital in Huddinge. The course, as I mentioned it before, was very well organized. Our course leader as well as our course secretary and all the teachers have been very nice and motivated. The complexity of the course and the examination have been absolutely appropriate.

Summary

This half-year was a fantastic experience. The Karolinska Institute, Stockholm itself and all the people I`ve met during my stay made this an unforgettable adventure. I can totally recommend to come here as an exchange student.

Language and Culture

I did several Swedish courses before I went to Stockholm. Before the surgery course started I did another language course at the "folkuniversitet" which was very good. Unfortunately I didn`t get any grant from Karolinska for it. It was also a little bit disappointing that during the introduction days Karolinska only offered a beginner`s course free of charge, an intermediate or advanced Swedish course for free wasn`t available. 

Studies in general

Studying medicine in Sweden is lot more practical and less theoretical compared to Germany. The relationship between students and teachers is very personal and friendly. We also had a lot of more contact with patients compared to Heidelberg. I really enjoyed the nice atmosphere in the hospital which contributed to the fact that studying also was a lot of fun. Due to the fact that we were divided into small groups during our rotations (2-3 students) the education was very intensive.