A New Sense of Myself and the World

My name is Daniela. I am an exchange student from Italy and I spent my Winter semester at Rheinahrcampus, in Remagen.

Location of Remagen is perfect to travel around Germany and around Europe as well. It is located between famous cities such as Cologne, Koblenz and Bonn and it is very close to some of Germany’s neighbouring countries such as Belgium, Luxembourg, France, Denmark, and the Netherlands. You can easily reach these countries by train or by bus. One more advantage is that Remagen is very close to the Cologne/Bonn airport, which offers cheap flights to travel to all European capitals.

The campus is small, but it has everything which is needed; a library, a cafeteria, and a good Mensa. I don’t know how many lunch breaks I spent there. It allows you to eat good dishes (most of the time), save money (it only costs €2,20 per lunch), meet and spend time with other students.

Regarding the courses, classes are more interactive and are more practical than back home. In Italy most of the courses are theoretical. Here, I took part to many projects, which helped me improving my organisational, IT, and presentation skills.

Another thing that really impressed me is that professors are always willing to help you and make you feel welcome to ask questions. Already before coming, Dr Rajah’s helpfulness impressed me; she made the application process clear and easy, helped me finding a private accommodation and filling in the Learning Agreement.

The environment of the class provides a platform to learn too. Being in small classes with so many international students, and having discussions and listening to different perspectives makes you think and grow. I have met many people coming from all over the world (Canada, Georgia, Spain, USA, Jordan, Portugal, or South Korea), made lifelong friendships, and learned so much about other cultures.

I learned more about myself too. I turned into a more responsible person. I learned the importance of punctuality and I applied efficiency to my everyday life, which the Germans are very known for.

This was the second time I decided to spend a semester abroad and, after this experience, I am sure there will be a third one. I really enjoyed my stay in Remagen. Thanks to everyone at the RheinAhrCampus!!!