University Life Down Under

University life is a bit different here than in Finland. First of all, you have to remember that the locals pay huge tuition fees whereas in Finland studying is practically free. So the locals are far more motivated, they read a lot of books and take studying really seriously. Whereas me, if it’s a sunny day, I go to the beach and skip the lectures. I’ve got 12 hours of uni a week.

The university is also a ‘bit’ bigger than my home university… It’s the biggest university in Australia with 8 campuses, with 2 of them located abroad. There are around 26,000 students on my campus, Clayton, and 75 buildings!!! Monash Uni is also ranked as one of the top universities in the world.

Clayton campus

Lectures are pretty much the same as in Finland – boring. Tutorials are more like being back in high school. They consist of about 10-20 students and the tutor. They are used to consolidate what we have covered in lectures through discussions and presentations and that sort of stuff. 

Generally speaking, there is more work to do than in Finland. Here people actually read and BUY (!!!!!) the books. And they’re about $100 a book!!! There is about the same amount of work to do, a couple of assignments and an exam per unit.

The circumstances, however, are way better than in Finland. I actually enjoy hanging out on campus. In Finland I always escape when I have the chance and spend the minimum of time at uni. Here on the other hand, there is so much stuff to do and always something going on. Like today, free bbq’s, music and because of the St. Patrick’s Day, people were boozing since noon on the lawn. Good times.