Prior to my arrival I found out that there would be no one from Global Friends to receive me at the station. This was unfortunate as I had to get my keys, but the UAC was closed. Also, I had no idea where I had to go to. Fortunately, some of my friends had already arrived in Stockholm, so they knew the ins and outs. Also, it turned out that someone from Global Friends had managed to pick up my keys for me and was able to hand them over. I think it would help students travelling all alone if the arrival arrangements were better coördinated, as these people won't have a clue what to do and where to go - especially if they arrive late in the day.

The introduction day was nice and it gave us a nice opportunity to meet other international students immediately.

I met so  many people and made so many new friends during my stay in Stockholm. It was nice that Global Friends organised some activities, that helped, but I feel they could have done more. They organised a weekend in Solvik, which was so much fun, and it would have been nice if they had these activities more often. In the end, it was more out of our own initiative that we international students got together. It helped a lot that most of us were living in the same building. Some of us also got to know each other through the language course. Maybe Global Friends could also have informed us more on what there is to do for students in Stockholm. We had a bit of trouble in the beginning findng out what the best places were to go out etc.

Regrettably, I did not make many Swedish friends. There were those living in my corridor, but on my course there was hardly any interaction. I do feel I tried in the beginning to communicate, but it didn't seem anybody was really interested in getting to know us. It would have been very nice to have more contact with Swedish students. 

Our university has an agreement with KI, which means that every year tne second year bachelor students of Biomedicine can study for one semester at Karolinska. When I first heard about this opportunity, I was keen right away. The idea of studying in an international atmosphere and experiencing a different culture greatly appealed to me and I was therefore very happy to be selected. With regards to enrolling and arranging accomodation, I cannot say I have any complaints.

There is quite a contrast between the way of studying in Sweden and in Holland. To be honest, I found many aspects easier in Sweden than back at home. I only had one seminar during the whole semester, while in Leiden I usually had at least one every week. There were also hardly any assignments given and the practicals were of a considerably lower level. We weren't even required to write reports most of the time.

I find the examination strange at Karolinska. The questions that were asked were literal. What I mean by that is that we had to memorize exactly how some processes worked and had to describe them. In the Netherlands the questions were formulated such that you had to apply your knowledge to work out a problem. I cannot say one way is easier than the other, because at home we can keep our books with us during the exam since we are tested on our understanding of the material. In Sweden on the other hand, the questions themselves were easier, but it was difficult anyway, because we had to memorize a whole book. Also, the formulation of questions in an exam here and the point distribution are not correct. Often I did not receive full marks for an answer, because the examiner wanted me to mention some things which were not asked for and sometimes quite irrelevant to the question.