All about Erasmus experience

What does such an experience involve? It is all about hope because, first of all, you are going to put up with the bureaucracy, e-mails, certificate of language assessment and so on and so forth. Although the entire process will test your patience for a couple of months, it is worthwhile.

Find out more from Jose Torres and Leandro Vega Palma (students from Spain that study in our faculty this entire year), from Antoine Philippe (a former Erasmus student from France) and Bohdan Vaskan (a former Erasmus student from Ukraine).

Ioana: For how long have you been staying in Romania and how has it changed your opinion about it?

Jose: For two months. Actually, my image of Romania is changing a lot, the people, the government, the nature is different from what I expected.

Leandro: I came to Romania in the last week of September. I viewed Romania as not so developed country compared to Spain and I thought that the differences between these two countries would be significant. The truth is that Romania is way better that I had expected and keeps getting better every day I stay here.

Antoine: I stayed in Romania since October 2017 to June 2018. At first I had no real opinion about Romania except for what I saw on the TV or on the Internet, it was more about adventure than anything else. And it was a damn good adventure, I will never regret it, this country is full of wonderful places and people.

Bohdan: I have lived in Iași for around 4 months. Staying here definitely changed my opinion about Romania. I was not expecting such a huge level of society and mind opening. Keep it up, Romania!

Ioana: Have you made any good friends yet?

Jose: I’m meeting a lot of people, I like some of them, I don’t like the other, but I found really good people here. In fact, I want to keep in touch with them when it finishes.

Leandro: For sure. The Erasmus experience provides an excellent opportunity for making friends. So far I have met wonderful people from several different countries (some of them Romanian, of course).

Antoine: Hahaha yes, my Facebook friend’s list blew up between all the Erasmus and the Romanians! The best ones are, of course, my flat mates and a few other that I’ll never forget and stay forever in contact with.

Bohdan:  Fortunately, I did. And I’m grateful for that. I could not say I made a lot of Romanian friends. But those with who I am familiar are wonderful people.

Ioana: What is/was your favourite way of spending the free time in Iași?

Jose: We like to travel, we plan a trip for somewhere every 2 or 3 weekends.

Bohdan: Besides homework, I was cooking and shopping. Sometimes jogging in Copou a bit almost every weekend hanging out with friends: La Bază (each Wednesday), Hunters, Taverna, Meru. La Balenă was a usual place to chill.

Ioana: Have you visited any famous place from our country?

Jose: I have visited Brașov, Bran Castle, Bucharest and Suceava.

Leandro: So far I’ve enjoyed nice walks in the Botanical Garden, nice meals at Palas and bowling time in Iulius mall.

Antoine: La Bază and the Beer Zone.

Ioana: Have you ever had any Erasmus experiences before?

Jose: No, it’s the first one of this kind.

Ioana: Would you recommend the Faculty of Computer Science Iasi?

Jose: I didn’t have so much time to see how it works in all the fields, but right now I think the level is not so different from my faculty in Granada, Spain.

Leandro: Sadly no. So far the University’s internet inside the building is non-existent and many subjects require the connection. On the other hand, the professors have been incredibly nice. All of them have helped me and treated me nicely.

Antoine: As a foreign student it’s pretty hard to adapt to another way of teaching. I had hard time with the Faculty’s Administration, even though Mister Rădulescu was my guardian angel! I think you need to improve a few things in order for us to feel like home in your building.

Bohdan: No doubt, absolutely! In my opinion, the Faculty of Computer Science in “A. I. Cuza” University is the best faculty in the university with a huge number of highly educated, intelligent and open-minded people.

Ioana: What is your favourite subject here?

Jose: My favourite subject is 3D Animation.

Leandro: I’m having a great time in Computer Networks.

Antoine: 3D Animations! But also Artificial Intelligence, the teacher is really interesting and talking to him is a blessing.

Bohdan: English language IV with Paula Onofrei.

Ioana: You are an Erasmus Student, you are a volunteer. Tell us more about this experience. Would you recommend it?

Jose: Yes. Actually, before coming here I was really stressed and nervous. The first days here were so stressful, but right now I feel a bit like it is my home. The weather here (not much sun) is making me a bit low energy. I’m used to having more sun.

Antoine: Do. Not. Hesitate. If you have the opportunity to travel the world, just do it. There are a lot of potential friends, loves, stories that you’ll tell to your friends, family and kids in the future. Don’t be scared. Ask, talk, be curious!

Ioana: Thank you so much for making time for this interview!