Studying Abroad at The University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill – A Blog by Katie
Katie is a third year student who is currently abroad at The University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill. She has kindly shared her experience abroad so far with us.
My name is Katie Symes and I am a third year student studying abroad for the academic year at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. I am originally from Fife so the move to America was daunting but very rewarding. To be honest I had never heard of the university. After some research and speaking to Americans at St Andrews I discovered that the academics and sports facilities were renowned at UNC, this has been proven from my experience.
I found it super easy to make friends abroad. Americans are typically very outgoing and are interested in anyone without an American accent. I decided to live off-campus in a shared flat with two girls. I would highly recommend doing the same. I have made a friendship group with Americans due to these connections. I have also made great friends with the other international students. Specifically Chapel Hill welcomes many Australians who have been fantastic. When making friends I would highly recommend playing club sports. I have been playing tennis and field hockey since being away. It is a great way to meet people and fully submerge in the culture. I would say the culture at Chapel Hill is not too different to the UK. The university has 30,000 students from all over the world. This allows it to be a very diverse and accepting town. It is a campus university that offers on campus accommodation to all exchanges, so not to worry about accommodation.
I was lucky toexperience an American thanksgiving with my flatmate’s family in Charlotte, North Carolina. This was an amazing experience allowing myself to fully live the American dream! I have also done some travelling around the states. I visited Outer Banks, Florida, Tennessee mountains and New York this Christmas which was an unforgettable trip. Next semester I am lucky enough to have booked spring break in Cancún, Mexico. I have heard this will be one of the best ways to experience the American university experience. Along with these trips I also got to visit the mountains in North Carolina with my work. I am a student on an F1 visa and therefore I am allowed to work on campus. I have been employed with Carolina Adventures on campus, this is a zip line centre. They have the longest zip line on the east coast along with the friendliest staff members. With this job I attended an outdoor education conference in the mountains. I would recommend working on campus as it is super enjoyable but also opens many experiences and exposes you to meeting more people.
My advice would be to apply for a year abroad. It has been the best experience and I wouldn’t change a thing. If you are studying abroad, I would suggest being very organised. There is a lot of admin needed with visas and learning agreements. It will make your life a lot easier staying on top of this. I would also recommend taking advantage of the different educational opportunities offered. They provide a wide range of subjects that offer alternative ways of learning. This includes many multiple-choice quizzes and presentations that I enjoyed.
Overall, I couldn’t have had a better semester at North Carolina Chapel Hill. This is a university for fun, sociable students who also want to combine this with a university renowned for academics. Please feel free to get in contact with myself if you have any questions!
Thank you to Katie for sharing her experience with us. If you would like to know more about Katie’s experience, or about study abroad in general, please email [email protected]