Exchange report - incoming students
Home university: University of Otago
Study programme: Dental Technology
Exchange programme: INK
Semester: Spring semester 2010/2011

Arrival and registration

The first day in Stockholm is all white and snowing. I have never see so much snow before, so I'm amazed by the whites. It's pretty sad that no one picked me up in the airport, it is really hard for me to get to the place I live. The introduction day was great, I met a lot of exchange students and finally meet a lot students who speak English. Language is biggest barrier when I first arrived. 

Acommendation

I think my accommodation is good, because it is close to the campus and it is easy to go the supermarket. Also, the price is alright. I find the accommodation on some of the websites. Before I came here, I contacted the person who want to rent the house.

Leisure time and social activities

I paticipated some of the global friends activities and dental association also arranged some activities for use. I met a lot of friends there. 

Pre-departure

Go on an exchange is something I really want to do during the study time as it is a great time to meet new people and learn different cultures. KI is a world famous medicial  center, so it is really a good oppotunity for me to learn more knowledge in KI. I think both my university and KI give all the help I need. But still, I need to fill up a lot of paper works and apply for the visa. There are a lot of small things to do, but it went well all though.

Courses during the exchange period

TTX004 : Fixed Prosthodontics 4
It is the hardest subject for me. Before came to KI, I have not made a bridge before. So I study from the beginning, however all my classmates are really good at what they do. After each work, Kalin would sit with us and judge our works which is fantastic, we can know what is good and what we should improve. When I compare my first work and the last one, I can see a big improvement in the 5 months.aNDAnd I never thought I will improve so quickly.
TTX003 : Implants 2
I always interested in implant, but I never know implant need a high requirement. During this course I know the basic ideas of implants and made on implant bridges.
TTX005 : Removable Prosthodontics 5
I have studied removable prosthodintics in Otago, so this course is the easiest one for me. We made a removable overdenture this semester and I think it is pretty interesting.
TTXX01 : Degree Project
For the degree project we work with two swedish students, we do the work and solve the problems together. Teachers helped a lot to solve the problem. For the experiment part, we are really happy to work with KTH, it is kind of a global cooperation.

Summary

I think my exhange life in KI is fantastic. Teachers and students in KI are great, they helped a lot and I really made a great improments. I love the enviroment in Sweden, although it was cold in winter, but when spring comes, it is so pretty. Another great thing of living in Sweden is that I can travel around the Europe. I visited a lot of places and experienceed different cultures. 

Language and Culture

I did not participate in any Swedish language course.

Studies in general

I think the study environment in Sweden is very precise and high standard. Both students and teachers work really hard. Because we have a quite small class, so students and teachers have a good communication, we can even call the teachers for help and sometimes they will come by and ask if you need  some helps.
In KI, we focus more on the practical work as they believe it is the base of dental technology and we will the theory through the practical work and the mixed idea will let us studied better. Also, they do not focus on the theory, we still need to read a lot of papers and learn by ourselves. Kind of they give us the inspriation and we learned by ourselves.
The most different thing in KI and Otago is the marking system. In otago, we study to get high marks, so we will calculate the marks we have. But in KI, we study for the knowledge, no one force you to study, but you will be affected by the study atmosphere and you will forget all the marks. Study in KI is kind stressful, as everyone studied really hard and they really good at the practical work, so I need to work even harder to catch up. During that stage, I'm really tired and stressed. But now, when I look back I can see how I improved all through and I'm really appreciated for all the pressures.
Study in KI drives me the desire to learn more. I know I have a lot of to learn.