I’m Max, a 3rd Year Politics and Economics student, and I spent my exchange semester studying at UNSW in Sydney. From the very start, the experience felt pretty surreal. I kicked things off the day after I arrived by going to the third Test of the British & Irish Lions tour, a genuine bucket list moment for me, and later that night ended up partying with the players in Coogee Pavilion. I lived in Coogee, right on the beachfront, and waking up by the ocean, walking to the beach daily, and having Coogee Pavilion Sunday nights as a regular part of life are core memories I’ll always look back on – a spot that never got old.
One of the biggest highlights of the exchange was living in a house with 35 other exchange students. The social side of it was one of the best parts, there were always people around to chat to and always something going on. Whether it was grabbing schooners, going for coffees, heading down to the beach, or going for morning dips in the sea (which quickly became a regular habit), everyone was always up for doing something. Living like that made everything feel easy and spontaneous, and it’s one of the things I’ll miss most. It genuinely felt like being part of a huge international community, with people from all over the world sharing the same experience.
Alongside uni life, I travelled as much as I possibly could. I did trips to Fiji and New Zealand, both of which were incredible, and spent time travelling up the east coast of Australia, visiting places like the Sunshine Coast, Brisbane, Noosa, and plenty more along the way. I also rented a campervan with friends and explored Melbourne and the Great Ocean Road, which was easily one of the best trips I’ve ever done.
Sydney itself was amazing, with standout moments including seeing RÜFÜS DU SOL live and going on boat parties out on Sydney Harbour, while the rest of the time was spent checking out cool restaurants and cafés around the city. Between studying at UNSW, living by the beach, travelling constantly, and being surrounded by such a great group of people, the semester flew by. I’ve made lifelong friends from all over the world, and we’ve already started organising trips to go and visit each other in the future, which says everything about how special the experience was. If I had one piece of advice, it would be to absolutely go on a semester abroad, make as many friends as you can, and just say yes to everything – that’s where the best memories come from.
