5 Reasons to do an Erasmus in Brisbane Australia

Let’s face it. Who would not want to travel halfway across the world to go on an Erasmus? Studying abroad is a great opportunity for any college student to experience. Figuring out what university and country that you want to study in, takes a good bit of thought and time. That is why I am going to tell you all about why you should pick Australia for your Erasmus.

                                             Image Source: Mine (Brisbane sign)

I spent five months living and studying in Queensland University of Technology (QUT) Brisbane, Australia and I can now say that it is one of the most beautiful places I have ever lived for numerous reasons. Reasons such as location, friends, travel, skills obtained and opportunities from the Erasmus. Studying abroad was something that I always wanted to do and it was one of my reasons for choosing to do Commerce at UCD.

1. Location

Brisbane is a lovely city to live in. It is a smaller city than Sydney to get around. This means that everything is close by and you can walk to the majority of the places around the city. Brisbane is a fantastic location as it is on the East Coast, and within an hour’s drive, you can be sunbathing at a beach. I would highly recommend wearing a lot of sunscreen if you burn as quickly as I do. Brisbane also has a fake beach near the city centre, which is refreshing on a hot summer's day. The weather in Brisbane is good all year round, but during the height of summer, it canbe scorching and humid. Brisbane itself is a very safe city to be living in, even as an exchange student and it is also clean as a whistle. The nightlife in Brisbane is something else too. You will always have a place to go as there are so many more nightclubs than in Dublin. I used to go to a different one each week. There is never a dull moment when you are there as there are so many different places to explore. One of my favourite things to do in Brisbane city was going to Eat Street Northshore. It has over one hundred different places to eat in and all in the one location, I went there a few times and I always found new and fantastic food to try.

2. Friends

I went over to Australia with seven other people from my course and shared an apartment with five of them. From the start, I would not have been that friendly with some of them, but as the months went on, we all became like a little family away from home, and now we cannot seem to get rid of one another. During my time in Australia, I also made some new friends that I will have for life. I become very friendly with two girls called Amelia and Zoe, who were both from Perth, and I plan to go back and visit her when I finish my final year. If it wasn’t for the Erasmus, I would not have been able to meet all these new people. Through the Erasmus and traveling it has proven to be a great way to get to meet new people.

3. Travel

If you want to travel plenty, then Brisbane is your ideal location as it has so many marvellous travel locations within close reach. As Australia is so big itself, there are so many places to travel domestically before considering going to other countries. In terms of travel, I would recommend trying to go to a new location every second week so as to see most of Australia before you have to leave, budget permitting. It is easy to travel around on trains, buses, airplanes, or renting a car. I rented a car twice during the semester, and let’s say there was a lot of unnecessary rerouting made doing those trips. Sydney, Airlie Beach and Melbourne are only a quick flight away and very convenient to get to with the low-cost airlines that travel throughout Australia. These airlines are ideal for a student budget. Sydney has so many famous landmarks to see like the Sydney Opera House, Sydney Harbour Bridge, and Bondi Beach. I went there for St. Patricks Day and was amazed at how many Irish people I met and the party was great. Two of my friends and I decided to go on a weekend away to Airlie Beach and it has to be one of my favourite travel moments with the stunning white beaches and breath-taking Tiffany-blue water. I did a sky-dive in Airlie Beach. I was screaming jumping out of the plane with my adrenaline pumping like no tomorrow. Looking out over the coastline from such a height was one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen.

4. Skills Obtained

During my semester in Australia, I have learned a whole new skill set that I can take into the working world with me. I have become totally independent as I was living in a new country and had to do everything for myself as I had none of my family present with me. I have become more social since moving to Australia, as I was pushed outside of my old comfort bubble. As Australia is on the other side of the world from Ireland, I had to become more adaptable as I have moved away from the Irish culture to the Australian lifestyle. In Australia, the day starts earlier than in Ireland and this is something I had to adapt to. Time management is a great skill that I have obtained since being on an Erasmus, as during my stay in Australia, I had to use my time more efficiently as I had to get all my college work done, make food for myself, while also fitting in time to travel. I have acquired the skill of being more responsible. I also now know how to handle stress and pressure better as all my family and friends were thousands of miles away from me..

5. Arising Opportunities

From my Erasmus, I have gained a lot of knowledgeable things that I will take into the future with me, whether it be into the working world or just in general life. One hope I have is to go back and explore the places that I never got time to go to. If I went back to Australia to travel again, I now have many friends in Australia that I can go visit and travel with. Being on Erasmus looks impressive on your CV, and is a great talking point during an interview or in any conversation. Also, some of the companies I have interviewed for when they saw that I had been on Erasmus in Australia, they were quick to say that I could get a transfer to Australia once my graduate training program was over which would be brilliant.

                                                                                                   Image Source: Mine (Brisbane Sunset)

Trust me when I say you will never have any semester like this one, as it is a life-changing experience. I love Australia even more now and cannot wait to go back someday. I am incredibly pleased that I decided to do my Erasmus in Brisbane, Australia. I hope you enjoy your own Brisbane experience as much as I had.