My Exchange at The University of British Columbia
When I first arrived in Canada I was lucky enough to be greeted by an old friend of my family which made the first day a lot easier. I hadn’t seen who I now call my uncle Bruce since I was 2 years old but I decided to reach out to him before I left NZ because I knew it would be good to at least have a contact over in Vancouver. He was super generous and offered to pick me up from the airport and help me move into my flat. If you are thinking of going anywhere I cannot recommend reaching out to anyone and everyone you know in that place before going, even if you haven’t seen them in 20 years!
I missed out on campus housing and placed on a waitlist. This sent me into a frenzy because I had been warned about how competitive Vancouver’s rental market is. I spent all day scrolling Facebook listings on the UBC housing group pages which the exchange partners at UBC. I found a flat after two days of searching and signed a lease only to get a housing offer on campus a day later. In hindsight I definitely got spooked and could have waited a little to see if I got in off the waitlist, if I can share any advice it would be to stay calm and take a breath and give the waitlist a decent shot. However, although I had to bus into campus every day, living off campus had a lot of perks. I lived in a suburb called Riley Park – Little Mountain and it was awesome. I was a 7 minute walk to the South Main St bars which are among the best in the city (try get yourself to the Shameful Tiki Room if you like cocktails). I was also right by a supermarket and it only took me 15-20 mins to get into downtown compared to 40-50 mins from campus. If you do miss out on campus housing it is honestly not the end of the world and there are a lot of great experiences to be had flatting in the suburbs. I also had a much better bathroom to flatmate ratio living off campus which was a plus!
Sadly I missed the orientation session because I had a class, BUT if you end up in the same boat make sure you head over to wherever the orientation was as soon as your class is over. I headed over about half an hour after the session was over and lots of people were still hanging around. This was how I met a good chunk of the friends I made.
Vancouver in general is an amazing city. Their food scene has really taken off in the past few years and there are some great restaurants across all price ranges. Your best bet for good eats is Kitsilano, Gastown and Main St (from around 8th Ave down to about 40th Ave). Canadians are amazing people and are really great at opening up and inviting people into groups, as long as you put yourself out there you should be able to make friends with some locals really easily. Vancouver’s nightlife was on par with Auckland’s (not the greatest) the pub and bar scene is really decent; there is a lot of really cool chill bars and some great pubs for a sing along. The clubs however aren’t the greatest and can be quite expensive, that being said I am more of a pub person than a club person to take this with a grain of salt! If you are heading to Van in the winter I will warn you there will be a lot of overcast and drizzly days. However, while they are more common than a perfect bluebird day it is worth waiting out the grey because I have never seen nicer spring weather. The cold is honestly not that bad provided you dress for it, so make sure to grab a few thermals before heading over. The cost of living in Vancouver is pretty high right now as it seems to be everywhere. In comparison to Auckland your daily spending will likely be about the same in a nominal sense, but once you factor in the exchange rate it will be slightly higher. Eating out is definitely a little pricier which may sneak up on you at first because just like the US the menu prices are subject to tax and gratuity. The most notable difference however is the cost of accommodation. Rent in Vancouver is really high, especially if you are trying to find a place for just one semester. Most listings are 1 year minimum which does leave a smaller pool to choose from if you are only going for one semester. Living off of campus was certainly more expensive (approx. $1700 all up) than living in campus housing.
If you are on the fence about heading to Vancouver or just on exchange in general please go. It will be the best experience you have during your time at university and you will meet some of the most amazing people you will ever meet.
Q&A
What were some of the highlights of the academic experience at your host university?
Really practical lectures, we looked at actual legal documents and contracts which was a change from UOA.
Really strong class attendance and great discussions in class.
Approachable lecturers/professors.
Would you recommend any particular activity/activities unique to your host country or university?
Go skiing/boarding/sightseeing in Whistler.
Do not sleep on the forestry deptartment building as a study spot it is so sick.
Try your best to get campus housing.
What are your top 3 tips for future students attending your host university or going on exchange to your host country?
Be ready to be approached by a lot of random people, Canadians are super friendly and will often just spark up conversation.
Dress for the weather and the cold/heat will not be so bad.
See as much of Canada as you can it is stunning.
How much did you budget for your exchange? Was this enough? Were there any lessons learned that would help future students budget for their own exchange?
$20,000 which included a budget for 1 month’s travel around the USA afterwards.
I came home with about a grand to spare so it was pretty spot on.
Keep a log of your spending, if you use Wise (currency app) it will track any spending you do via that debit card.
What are your most significant takeaways from your experience abroad?
Just to be open to new things and to not plan everything too much. The best experiences I had all came to fruition by chance. That being said, plan the important stuff!
I also learnt that kiwis are very well loved overseas and there wasn’t anywhere I went where people weren’t excited to be meeting a kiwi.
Do you want to share anything about travels you did outside your host city/country?
The USA gets a lot of flack but it is really cool and don’t be afraid to get deep into smaller towns and places, we met some really cool people on the road in small towns.