CROSSING BORDERSA glimpse into the lives of International Students at Thomas More

T H O M A S M O R E M E C H E L E N

F o r m e r l y k n o w n a s L e s s i u s M e c h e l e n

Thomas More, not only an English lawyer, social philosopher, author and humanist, but also a university college!

THOMAS MORE MECHELEN

Editorial

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Have you ever dreamt of living abroad, experiencing a foreign culture, meeting new people and learning a foreign language? Have you ever thought of enriching the period of your studies and having better chances for an interesting job in the future? Then Thomas More is your perfect match!

For several years now, Thomas More has been welcoming not only Belgian but also foreign students. Thomas More offers an education which is perfectly in tune with each student’s individual needs and characteristics.

Thanks to our International Office, both Belgian and foreign students find their way around the exchange program every year. Personal assistance is gladly given by our i n t e r n a t i o n a l i z a t i o n c o o r d i n a t o r s throughout the entire process. That’s how we guarantee a successful study or work period abroad.

For Thomas More students, the list of global possibilities is inexhaustible. Each training has its own fixed internships and college partnerships in different parts of

Life in Belgium as a

Foreigner

Maude’s Story

“Everything Fried? That’s

not my cup of tea!”

the world. You are, however, free to suggest your own internship as long as the task package is relevant to your studies.

As a foreigner, you do not only choose for our school. You choose for Mechelen, and Belgium. We will help you in getting acquainted with the Belgian culture and customs. Our Student Information Point (Stip), for example, organizes plenty of activities in or around Mechelen. You can enjoy the introduction game and the tours to discover the cosy places in the city.

Do you feel like joining us on your (future) adventure?

In this magazine, you can read the stories of Trix, Jenna, Maude, Yapeng, Zhen, Jingjie, Bijun and Thang. They all took the challenge this year by taking part in an exchange program, offered by the school. After you have read their testimonials you will have a better insight in the way this university college operates, the differences between cultures and how to deal with this challenge.

Free festivals and sparkling Ice Tea!

Life in Belgium as a Foreigner

Hello everyone, Yapeng, Zhen, Jingjie, Bijun and I, Thang are exchange students from China. We came to Mechelen to study interior design for a whole year. In this article we are going to share how we experienced our life in Belgium as a foreigner, how we experienced our exchange programme and what we think about the education.

O u r C h i n e s e t e a c h e r recommended this college

The first day at college was a really nice experience. The college of Mechelen has separate campuses spread throughout the city, which is very different from our college in China. Our school in China is three or four times the size of Thomas More Mechelen. The relationship between teachers and students is completely different here. Teachers and students are equal here, whereas in China, we have to worship our teachers. Students are so lucky to have teachers like them. Now we do understand why our teacher in China recommended this college for our exchange program.

Belgian people are quite friendly

At present we have already spent 2 weeks in Mechelen. At first we were scared because one of our friends told us that Belgian people don’t like Asians, but now we don’t think like that anymore. On the contrary, we think Belgian people are quite friendly.

Another lifestyle

A thing that still really strikes us is that people over here eat a lot of potato chips. We tried it as well at a festival organized by school, called ‘Festipal’. The taste was good but we can’t consider it as a meal, but just as a snack. We must admit that we have not adapted to eat Belgium food every day. We need rice! We truly miss our Chinese food. Luckily, we have our own kitchen, so we can easily cook Chinese food there. We recommend other Chinese students to bring a rice cooker with them. It doesn’t mean that we don’t like Belgian food. I love Belgian ice cream. Zehn just loves the

baguette. We all adore Brussels waffles. We don’t have this kind of food in China.

In less than 3 weeks we have already visited the big cities such as Leuven, Antwerp, Brussels and Bruges. We had lots of fun. Students ask us why we don’t spend our time in the bar. To be honest, we don’t like that kind of lifestyle. We need sleep at night! During our spare time we really enjoy the fact that we are allowed to use Facebook and Youtube. In China these websites are forbidden.

Our parents are really proud

Of course, we all miss our family. If we want to talk to them we use QQ messenger. Our family told us to enjoy each and every minute in Mechelen. They are so proud of us because we are studying here. We really love Mechelen and when we are back in China, we will definitely recommend other Chinese students to do an exchange program here in Mechelen.

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Free festivals and sparkling Ice TeaIt’s the end of August, and an adventure begins for the 21-year-old Jenna from Finland. This is the day she sets foot in Belgium, a country she knows nothing about. She’s here to study Tourism Management at Thomas More College Mechelen. As she leaves the train station in Mechelen, a young man helps her carry her bags, which makes her feel more at ease. Here’s her story from the last few months.

No regrets

When I was given the opportunity to study abroad, Belgium wasn’t my first thought. I used to think it was certain that I was

going to Germany, but then I thought, why not start something new? Why don’t I

surprise myself by going somewhere I know nothing about? And that was one of the best decisions I have ever made, because I

love it here! I love the fact that Mechelen isn’t a huge city, it’s nice and quiet. Belgian

people and Finnish people are so alike, they aren’t loud and extraverted, but more quiet and introverted.

A free festival?!

Because I came here in August, I had the opportunity to go to Maanrock. It was so

great! In Finland we only have festivals

in the summertime, and they are never free.

The course selection at

Thomas More is great!

I like studying Tourism Management at Thomas More, because I have some

great courses. I have also noticed that the relationship between students and

teachers is totally different. In Finland, when we talk to teachers, we both use the last names, but here in Belgium, they

always use the first names. .The only thing I don’t like is when I have classes

from 7 PM to 10 PM. I would definitely recommend Mechelen to students in Finland. It is a small city,

but easy to get to, everything is accessible, and there is a lot to do.

I have grown to love

Belgium

This is the first time I have gone abroad for so long, and I knew nothing about

Belgium. The first thing that surprised me was when I bought an Ice Tea from

the vending machine, there were bubbles in it! In the past few months, I have

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Finnish for Dummies

I love you

Minä rakastan sinuaHow are you?

Kuinka voitte

I don’t know

Minä en tiedäMy name is ...

Minun nimeni on ...

I’m fine, thanks

Olen kunnossa, kiitos

noticed some things that I miss about

Finland. I miss the Finnish food, the rye bread and the sour milk “Pima”.

However, I have grown to love some Belgian things, such as the Belgian beers!

I love studying here in Belgium. And after this I want to travel the world and

discover different cultures!

-Lynn Vermeulen, 9th November 2012-

Maude’s Story

Maude decided to leave Brussels behind this year and came to study in Mechelen. Over here she takes the same courses as she did at Isalt – her University College in Brussels – namely, Tour i sm and Lei sur e Management. At the moment she is in the third and last year. Her motive? Improving her Dutch and having a personal challenge. But she didn’t come alone, one of her classmates is studying in Mechelen too.

Why Lessius Mechelen?

Brussels doesn’t offer a lot of Erasmus destinations, Maude could only choose between Flanders or Tenerife. Since the bachelor degree in Tourism and Leisure Management in Mechelen has a good reputation, she chose to come here. On top of this she heard a lot of students who had the same experience last year. Living quite near Mechelen was also interesting, as she can go home every day.

More work isn’t necessarily a drawback

There is only one parallel, namely the teachers. Teachers are teachers and there is no difference between those in Brussels and those in Mechelen. A big difference is the city. She doesn’t have a lot of time to discover it, but in general Mechelen is – as

you might expect – a lot more quiet than Brussels.

Another big difference is the quantity of work, in Mechelen you have a lot more work and the students are more serious and better organized. Since Maude is in her final year, she works a lot more on practical experience than the past years. She has a lot of assignments, presentations and projects and works often in team. And all this work started on day one! All other Erasmus students had a guided tour in the city, while she was already working for her final project, which consist of a small business project. Nobody likes a lot of work, but actually it has its advantages too. Maude learned to schedu le and hav ing prac t i ca l experience prepares her for the real job next year.

A warm welcome

As she started from day one on the final project, Maude was immediately obliged to get to know the other students better. Groups were made and the ice was broken. Until now the cooperation has been passing off fluently, and even though she hasn’t

made real new friends, she feels accepted and good in the group. In fact, the biggest problem was the administration and the technology. It took a while before her registration was completed and also connecting on Toledo, the school’s e-learning environment, wasn’t immediately possible. But fortunately, in the end, everything went smoothly.

The biggest challenge: speaking Dutch

After a few weeks Maude could already manage very well in Dutch, but still, she has to make a big effort. It asks a lot of energy and it is exhausting. To say it in Maude’s words: at night an aspirin is more than often welcome. But it is worth it!

STIP does offer help

STIP, the school’s service to help students will definitely offer its help to Erasmus students. Also Maude was helped when she was looking for a student’s room, but in the end she decided to commute, so the help was no longer needed. She still receives emails from time to time to invite her to different activities. Unfortunately, she has too much schoolwork and no time left for this.

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A whole bag of social skills

Three cups of the city in which you are staying!

Five slices of friends

A pinch of activities and hobbies

200 kg of experiences

Now stir all these ingredients together, and you get what we call a perfect experience of studying abroad!

If you get the opportunity to go and study abroad, do not hesitate, just do it!

Recipe to a good experience

How to .. .

“Everything Fried? That’s not my cup of tea!”

The United Kingdom is a popular destination for students who wish to travel abroad. England is just around the corner – if you don’t take the sea into account- and its culture doesn’t differ that much from ours in the end. Besides, you get to experience the wonderful English language in all its glory.

West Yorkshire in northern England, 1 pm. Trix van der Mark, who aspires to be an Interior Designer, gets home early from her college campus. Suddenly, she hears a continuous buzz coming out of her laptop. It’s an incoming Skype call from us, eager to find out how she manages in Leeds Art College and its surroundings. And we were in for a treat. Despite some lag on the call here and there, we were able to grasp exactly what living and studying in that part of England is all about.

Flexibility all around

Typically, a college day in Leeds starts at ten in the morning and ends at four in the afternoon. The homework she gets doesn’t compensate for the few contact hours she has. She struggles to keep herself busy. A huge contrast with college life in Mechelen according to Trix, but she recalls why. The costs of higher education in the United Kingdom are enormous. Students therefore often work three days a week so the contact hours and actual workload need to be in tune with that.

Life outside college

Due to her flexible schedule, Trix has had quite some opportunities to enjoy life outside Leeds Art College. Leeds is one of the four biggest student cities in England, so the food is catered to students and comes at a relatively low price. Beware though, because most of the things you buy will be fried. She acknowledges that you should cook your own meals every once in a while in order not to gain thirty pounds.

Your everyday shopping will be a bit more expensive than in Belgium, but the prices are comparable. The same goes for beer. In general, the British love to go for a drink after a college day. To end the day well, there’s always a football game to watch in the UK. As an alternative, you can attend one of the many college parties or go to fancy discotheques, but remember: night life ends at 2 am.

The last one standing

Not every fairytale has a happy ending. Leeds Art College has been cutting some courses. As such, Trix had to find a solution and star t attending some workshops. Moreover, the Interior Design course will be completely cancelled next year so students who wish to tread in the footsteps of Trix will be disappointed. Don’t worry, though, because there are still tons of other colleges to explore in the UK for students of different courses!

A final message from Trix

“Going abroad is an enriching experience. People are so welcoming and kind and you get to know how others envision the world. In my opinion, going really far or staying close to home isn’t that much of a difference. In the end you’re away from home and you learn incredibly much. You create a second home and meet interesting new people that you wouldn’t have met otherwise. And that’s what counts.”

Do you want to learn more about Trix and her trip in specific? Read her blog at http://trixishier.waarbenjij.nu/

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Want to represent our school?

You are ambassadors! Whether it’s representing your school here in Mechelen, or representing Thomas More University College elsewhere around the world, you are ambassadors. But you’re not alone, and you shouldn’t be. Being an ambassador is quite a burden, and we’re aware of that. That’s why we want to be your sidekick.

We aim to turn your visit into a rewarding international experience.

Did the four stories of these students, who are all participating in the wonderful exchange program between Thomas More and other schools, make you want to pack your bags and leave right now? Then you should

want to know where to turn to with any possible questions you might have. The world is open for you, and so is the door to our International Office. Contact us with anything, and before you know it, you’ll find yourself

treading into the footsteps of our interviewees.

International Office

Zandpoortvest 31

2800 Mechelen

Belgium 

International Education Officer

Isabel Deprez

Phone +32 15 369 117

In this task, we’re not alone. Our student services stip will have an answer to all of your questions regarding life in Mechelen. They know the hot spots, offer financial advice, help you integrate and much more.

Thomas More University College gets you further in life (and you may take this pretty literally). Can’t wait? Surf the web for the following websites for more information on the topic:

www.thomasmore.be

www.lessius.eu/internationaal/erasmus-belgica

www.galilee.be

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Articles by : -Yoni De Lauw- Lynn Vermeulen- Sharon Aerts- Salima El Yaghoubi- Gitte Hoe"ens- Berthe Maes- Sara Chotiraja

Designed by: -Hamza Essfia