My 4 months in Guelph, Canada!

Hi! My name is Anna, and I’m a 3rd year BSc Psychology student at the University of Southampton. This is a blog about my semester at the University of Guelph, in Ontario, Canada. I will talk about some of the most important experiences I had, how I felt, and what I’ve learned from them.  

Getting there 

The days leading up to my departure were nerve-wracking. I had read so many blog posts like the one that I’m writing right now, talking about how much everyone loved their time abroad and how amazing it was; but for some reason I couldn’t stop thinking: “what if my experience ends up being really different from these?” I was jumping into the complete unknown and I just didn’t know what to expect. 

After a really long flight (7hr 30), I found myself in Toronto with no idea of how to get to Guelph. Getting lost in the airport whilst trying to figure out my way, then taking two buses with all my luggage and having to drag it for 15 mins from the bus stop to my accommodation, all alone at 9pm didn’t feel like the best way to start my semester abroad. But looking back on it I am so proud of myself for doing it without getting overly stressed. 

The day after I arrived I had the first of 3 days of START International, a workshop that the university put together for exchange students and international students. This opportunity is something that I am extremely grateful for. Just getting there and talking to the people on the table where I sat helped me feel at ease and realise that we’re all in the same boat. The workshop included activities like exploring different parts of campus, having dinner together downtown, and playing human bingo. I made lots of friends during these 3 days, during which a groupchat for all exchange students was made. 

Friendships 

Just a few days after START,  a group of people from the exchange groupchat got together to rent 5 cars and drive to Niagara Falls, and I must say it was one of the best things I’ve ever seen. 

This groupchat became a great resource, you’d always be able to just pop a message on there and find someone who was up to doing something, whether it be going to the library, grabbing lunch on campus, or something bigger, like organising a trip to Banff, a national park in the Canadian Rockies. Overtime, we even started to have weekly group activities, like going to trivia at the campus pub every Tuesday night (which we actually won a couple times), going out on Thursdays, and going to the market downtown every Saturday morning.

The fact that we all lived at the same residence massively helped. The University of Guelph housed most of the exchange students in the same accommodation, which made it extremely easy to get together.   

Being part of such a diverse group of exchange students was my favourite thing about this experience. By the end of the semester we were a really tight-knit group, and it was really hard to leave each other. I now have friends all over Europe, as well as all the way in Australia. And we are already planning to meet up somewhere in Europe over the Easter holidays! 

Banff was my favourite trip of the semester by the way. We flew from Toronto to Calgary,  hired 3 cars, and stayed about 1hr from the national park for 3 nights. Each day we did different hikes in the snow, and even went to Banff’s hot springs one evening. The views were just incredible! 

Studying 

I was lucky that my course in Southampton only required me to pass my modules in Canada, and their assessment format was almost completely MCQs, so this aspect of my time abroad wasn’t too stressful. 

I was really happy with my choice to study in the city of Guelph. It was a relatively quiet city, but it still had a lot of activities to offer, such as canoeing in Spetember. Its proximity to Toronto meant that it was perfect for someone like me, who wanted to experience the big city without being there all the time. 

The campus was really nice, and I loved walking through it during ‘fall’ (autumn), as the leaves on the trees turned all sorts of amazing colours, something that we don’t get to see in the grey English autumns. It was also really fun to experience the North American university life, with homecoming, varsity games and buying lots of university merch. 

Learning to be independent 

Although it was generally really easy to find others to do things with, it wasn’t always possible, due to different people having different timetables, etc. This sometimes forced me to go out of my confort zone and do things by myself, something that I would have never imagined doing before going to Canada. So I went city-exploring and to an NBA game in Toronto alone, which I actually really enjoyed. From now on, I know that if there’s something I wanna do, I’ll be able to do it even if it means doing it alone. 

Overall 

Four months later, here I am writing a blog post that sounds exactly like the ones I read before leaving, so I guess there was nothing to worry about. 

My advice for anyone who might have similar worries to what I had before leaving would be to not have any expectations on what it should look like. Be proactive and do the best you can to make the most out of it, especially because the semester will go REALLY FAST. This really forced me to go with the flow and say ‘yes’ to as many things as I could, but this is exactly what made this such a highly rewarding experience. In just 4 months I saw Niagara Falls, hiked in the Canadian Rockies, visited Toronto, Ottawa, and Montreal and much more. Having said that, it can get overwhelming trying to balance school, with your desire to do all these other activities, whilst feeling like you’re up against a clock, so don’t put too much pressure on yourself.  

And if you’re someone who is worried about getting homesick, don’t be. I was really scared of it before leaving, but once I got there I was enjoying myself so much that in the end, I really wished I could have stayed for longer!

Overall, I’d say that this has been an incredible, life-changing experience! I’ve done so many things that I’d never done before, and learned a lot about myself in the process; I’ve realised how much I like travelling and exploring new places, and how courageous and resilient I can be. I’m reall excited to see what my next travelling experience will be!

If you’re thinking of studying abroad, DO IT!!!