Eloïse Muir

Introduction

Kia ora koutou! My name is Eloïse, and I’m a third-year Health Sciences and Arts student attending the University of St Andrews in Scotland in 2024. My Arts majors, which are what I’ll be focusing on during my exchange, are English and History, and what better place to study them than in a country with as much fascinating history and literary tradition as Scotland? I was particularly interested in St Andrews because of its unique setting: located in the small town (population of only about 19,000!) of St Andrews on Scotland’s North Sea coast, it offers much more of a close-knit ‘college town’ experience than in Auckland’s city environment – which definitely has its pluses, but since I grew up here, I’m keen to push myself and experience a different lifestyle. St Andrews also has a very high proportion of international students and is within easy reach to the rest of Europe, so I’m looking forward to all the opportunities for travel I’ll have and connections with people I’ll be able to make, in a country very similar yet also so fundamentally different to Aotearoa.