University: San Diego State University
City: San Diego
Country: United States
Continent: North America
Field of study: business administration
Study type: semester abroad
Since there are already some reports on the semester at SDSU, I will be brief and report a few things that I would like to pass on to future semesters. See liuxers for 8 masters programs for forestry engineers in Europe.
Housing:
I can recommend Craigslist.com, that’s how I found my American (!) roommates. I can only recommend living with Americans because I had the best roommates ever! However, some of the roommates there weren’t that great either, so you just have to be lucky. However, since many Germans are now doing a semester at SDSU, you should think carefully about how much English you want to learn. At the university you automatically deal with Germans, so it’s better to live with Americans, otherwise you’ll end up only knowing Germans. : -)
As a residential area, there are only two options. Close to the beach (Mission or Pacific Beach) or as close to the university as possible.
Pacific Beach and private parties! If you are not lucky enough to live in Mission Beach or Pacific Beach, you can have a lot of fun at the (private) parties near the university. Important: Contacts to Americans! Find the best party-friendly roommates!
University:
Great campus! Great library. Courses vary greatly depending on the teacher. Just sit in at the beginning, you can usually tell after the first lesson whether the professor is strict, easy-going, funny or boring. Then decide.
Courses are all manageable, especially the exams are easier than you think at first. You have to work, though, it’s very schooled. Attention, graduate courses are a lot more stressful than undergraduate!
Costs:
Danger! Staying in SD is very expensive because the rents here are very high! In addition, a car is actually necessary. Renting saves stress, but it is also more expensive than buying and then selling it again.
Otherwise I can only say: It was an absolutely great time! The main reason for this was the great people I dealt with, both Americans and Germans! In any case, don’t make the mistake of working too much, enjoy the time!