Is it Nice to be an Exchange Student in Bulgaria?

The opportunity to become an exchange student is tempting to many university students. However, it is a big commitment and a unique experience to visit a foreign country for a period of time and leave your home. 

Three exchange students currently studying at AUBG share how they have felt so far throughout their time away from their home countries. 

Before coming to Bulgaria, the main things that people knew about the country were that it was one of the former countries in the Eastern Bloc, which makes the country look aesthetically different from western countries, and also that it is relatively cheaper.

“I am amazed to see as small of a town as this is that is so reminiscent of a city just like where I am from back home,” said junior student Jack Cansler, who is from the University of Denver in Colorado, USA. He shared that cities here are very densely populated, whereas in the US it is more spread out, which makes Blagoevgrad unique to him. 

Another junior student, Tomás Ó Duinn coming from Maynooth University, in County Kildare, Ireland, had a different experience when it came to student life. Back home, he didn’t live on campus as he does now, and said that “there’s always something happening” here and also “because it’s a small campus, you get to meet so many people.”

However, being an exchange student isn’t the easiest thing to go through during your college years. Thea Kjelstad, a sophomore student from Volda University College in Norway, says, “it’s easy to talk to people, but I have found it hard to get good friends,” which made her feel lonely and sad a lot of times. 

Regarding the decision to come to Bulgaria, the consensus from the students was that it was a unique destination compared to other countries, which makes for a more distinctive experience. 

For Jack, courses and the overall structure of classes are very similar to colleges in the United States, because of the liberal arts system. 

On the other hand, Tom comes from a large university that teaches in an “old school” form of education, with lectures that take place in front of around 500 people. He said that he finds the lectures here “much nicer,” because of the smaller classes that allow for a more personal connection with professors. He noted that attendance is very important here, which is not the case back in Ireland, where they don’t even follow your attendance. 

Coming from a non-English speaking university, Thea said that being here is good practice for her English, but also that she’s spending “much more time on school here” than what she normally does.

Bulgarian culture is another new aspect to foreign students. At first, when interacting with Bulgarian students, Jack found them to be “a little standoffish and that they don’t look you in the eye,” which he feels that a lot of people perceive Bulgarians in that way, but “once you get to know a few of them, they become your most loyal friends.” 

One of the big differences for Tom in comparison to Ireland is that a lot of people socialize and converse on the streets, whereas in Ireland they would usually meet up in a certain location. About Bulgarian culture, he says that “it’s a very social culture.” 

“I really love that young Bulgarian people care about their culture,” said Thea, even though she isn’t a fan of everything about Bulgarian culture. One thing she was not a fan of was chalga clubs, which she said were a cultural shock for her. 

All students agreed that the experience as an exchange student, even though it can be more difficult for some than others, has been very beneficial to them. Thea even said: “it’s a good icebreaker when I say I lived in Bulgaria.” 

Jack said that he was initially supposed to go to Ghana, but due to planning issues, he ended up here. However, that didn’t stop him from having an enjoyable experience. He said, “I am super super happy this worked out! I’m truly a believer that you are where you’re meant to be.” He went on to say that the experiences that he has had here and the people he has met made it exactly what he was looking for when he wanted to travel. 

“I would certainly recommend it to anybody else to come to Bulgaria,” he said.