Sebastián Cabezas

While I was doing an exchange at the University of Vienna I came to know that my home University, the University of Chile, had an agreement for academic cooperation with the Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, in particular in the form of Erasmus+ places to spend one semester at the UG. In my case, the whole application was run through the online platform, so that the process was really smooth. After getting accepted I was clearly informed about the main steps to take, specially concerning immigration issues, which is a great help when coming from abroad. Regarding accommodation, the UG also offers some places for international students, so that if you are not sure to be able to get one on your own, you can make use of this option.

Everyone is willing to help you with anything you might need

The first thing any new student at the Faculty of Philosophy of the UG is likely to observe is the small-scale character of the Faculty. The environment you will have here is quite familiar (gezellig, as Dutch people would say), since the number of students is relatively low in comparison to other Faculties. Apart from this, the staff gives everyone a warm welcome, with all kinds of events – both on academic and extra-academic topics – so that new students  feel at home from the first weeks on. These events are also great to get to know your fellow students. Here you will realize that despite the small size of the Faculty you will be part of an international atmosphere with students and academic staff coming from all over the world. Everyone is willing to help you with anything you might need: from learning how to use the printers to preparing your final essays.

Engage in current debates

As usual in European universities, the approach to philosophy in Vienna is largely continental, i.e. dealing with classical authors from the philosophical tradition and trying to understand what they mean. By contrast, at the Faculty of Philosophy of the UG, courses are usually more topic-oriented (thus not primarily historical-oriented). One of the major strengths I noticed here was the fact that – at least in Master's courses – students are acquainted with relevant contemporary literature on the subject of the course. This allows students to frame their final work into a scholarly discussion and engage in current debates. In this sense, coming here has meant for me becoming familiar with a different way of doing philosophy in which the dialogue with other scholars – thus not solely with the primary, classical authors – is an essential part of the teaching. Furthermore, the academic staff is always willing to help you and you can always arrange a meeting with them if you need to discuss any particular point.

The city of Groningen

Just like the Faculty itself, Groningen is small and lovely, it's a town with typical Dutch architecture. The Faculty is located in the very centre of the city, so that you have all you may need at a walking distance. It is very easy to get around and even though the city itself is not particularly big, there is always a nice place to discover. In my case, since I fortunately lived in the centre, I did not even need a bike. However, having one is very useful if you want to get to know also the surroundings of the city. People are willing to help you and almost everyone speaks English, so you do not need to worry if you do not speak Dutch. You can easily get by with English even when it comes to daily things such as going to the supermarket or ordering food at a restaurant.