Nye aftaler med universiteter i USA, Canada og Australien gør, at flere DTU-studerende kan komme på udveksling end tidligere.
DTU has devoted years to setting up contacts with elite international universities. This work has paid off, such that student exchanges are much easier to organize today than they were previously. In fact, the number of students that DTU sends off across the Atlantic Ocean has more than doubled in just a few years. While 59 DTU students spend a semester studying in Canada or the United States in 2013, the figure for next year is 143.
“Many people find this a hugely rewarding experience, and it’s often the chance of a lifetime,” says Jeppe Duus Dolriis, who is responsible for DTU’s international partnership with universities in North America.
One of the students who was delighted with the chance to live in Canada for half a year is Niels Juhl Svanik, who is studying civil engineering and spent a semester at the University of British Columbia at the start of 2016.
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“I got so much out of it. To start with, you have to take responsibility for everything yourself, and that was good to experience. I also learned to work with people from a wide range of cultures, which is an excellent skill to cultivate when you want to work all over the world,” he relates.
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“I got so much out of it. To start with, you have to take responsibility for everything yourself, and that was good to experience. I also learned to work with people from a wide range of cultures, which is an excellent skill to cultivate when you want to work all over the world,” he relates.
The experience was also academically rewarding for Niels. The University of British Columbia is a specialist in building dynamics, and this is an area he is keen to work with in the future.
“I didn’t want to travel simply to visit national parks and do the things tourists usually do. I wanted to come back with improved academic skills—and I certainly did! I was at a job interview the other day, and they were extremely impressed that I’d been on an exchange. So it’s already started to pay off ...”
Investment in the future
There is much to be gained from spending a semester abroad. Martin Bendsøe, Senior Vice President and Dean of Graduate Studies and International Affairs, concurs:
“We see time and time again how the business community appreciates students who have been on an exchange. Students gain all kinds of academic and personal skills, and this is something companies actively look for. Moreover, it’s simply wonderful to travel the world, encounter other countries and experience something new,” he says.
However, if you are thinking of spending a semester abroad, you need to start preparing in good time. The deadline for the academic year 2017/18 is 1 November this year, so Jeppe Duus Dolriis suggests that you make a start on the process without delay.