This will be our first Thanksgiving with Jenn in several years. Perhaps it was one too many years of dry turkey and runny mashed potatoes at my family’s place in downstate Illinois that soured her on the holiday… I think the real reason she’s spent the last 5 Thanksgivings visiting schools is because it’s such a great week to travel internationally. The international terminals of the airports are empty, since most US travelers are travelling domestically. International air fares are generally reasonable at this time, as well. It’s a better time than summer, since you can get a feel for…
I have much to report about my visits to colleges in Italy! I stayed in Milan, visiting schools in the city as well as in Bologna and Turin. It was my first time in Northern Italy and I really enjoyed it! I have always loved to visit Italy, but these northern areas feel much more livable and less touristy than the other places I have been. Milan is extremely easy to get around-both as it pertains to the city and getting elsewhere in Italy and Europe. I was able to get to Bologna and Turin in an hour by train.…
I was really excited to visit Groningen again. When I visited last year, it was just for a few hours. This time I was there for 3 days exploring the town and meeting with administrators and students from Groningen University College (UCG). Since so many of you have expressed interest in Dutch universities, particularly the university colleges, we are bringing you what we are calling a “deep dive” into UCG. Let’s start with the city. Groningen is located in the northernmost part of the country, about a two-hour train ride from Amsterdam. It is the youngest city in the Netherlands,…
I really love train travel. It’s just so easy and comes without all the stressors of air travel. Little things make it easy-like not having to worry about where my liquids are and arriving at the station just shortly before the train departs. More than any other city in Europe, I was struck by how many places one can easily get by train from Vienna. In under 2.5 hours, you can get almost anywhere in Austria, or to many cities outside of the country, like Bratislava (under 1 hour), Budapest (just over two hours), Brno (just over one hour). The…
“You get what you pay for” is a response I sometimes see posted on Facebook about the college costs in Europe.Why people feel compelled to respond to something that they know nothing about-and state it as fact-is beyond me. It’s also simply not true-even about higher education in the US! Does a student paying out of state tuition receive a substantially superior education than the student paying in state tuition? No! It’s similar in Europe, one of the reasons tuition is so reasonable is because it is subsidized by the country. One of the schools I visited a few months…
As I mentioned in my last blog, Brussels is not my favorite city in Europe. Recently, I spent some time with Jared, and his friends, Sebastian (from Luxembourg) and Lisa (from Atlanta) to find out their opinions on student life in Brussels. They all appreciate the offerings of the urban atmosphere. Of course, no car is needed and they are able to get anywhere they need to go on foot or by train. Though Brussels is known as a somewhat ugly city, the Grand Place is truly beautiful. In some cities, it is hard to find student residences in the…
As many of you know, Beyond the States was formed in response to my concerns about the state of higher education in the US. Of course, ever rising tuition and the high stress admissions process were my two greatest worries, but I was also troubled by the post-graduation prospects for many grads these days. For recent college graduates under the age of 25 has risen to 9%(compared with 5.5 percent in 2007) and nearly half of college graduates in their twenties are underemployed, meaning the jobs they can get don’t require a bachelor’s degree. I read these facts in There is…
We’ve told you about one of the students we worked with last year in our previous blogs. Theo impressed me from the start and I have really enjoyed our interactions. He is attending Leiden University College The Hague, the honors liberal arts program connected to Leiden University in the Netherlands. I recently checked in with Theo to see how his transition has been going. University colleges in the Netherlands have a required residential component (1-3 years depending on the school). As I’ve mentioned previously, student housing at Leiden University College is nicer than any apartment I had until I was in my 30's…
You probably have a few questions about how earning your bachelor's degree overseas works. Here are answers to some common questions. I’m not fluent or proficient in any other language. Can I still get my degree in Europe? Yes! We have information on over 7,000 degree programs (master's and bachelor's combined) at more than 750 schools in non-anglophone European countries. These programs are conducted entirely in English. No foreign language is needed for admission and all of the classes and classwork will be in English. That said, you will be living in a country that isn’t English-speaking so you will…
I was listening to one of my favorite podcasts recently, 99% Invisible, and then I realized we've never really focused on one of my favorite subjects, architecture. If you're interested in learning about the options for architecture masters degrees in Europe, you're in the right place! The podcast episode talked about kidney shaped swimming pools, the birth of skateboarding, and concluded with an interesting connection with education in Europe that I won't spoil. I'll also plug another favorite episode from 99% Invisible on La Sagrada Família in Barcelona. The story of this building combines intrigue, adventure, the Spanish Civil War,…
