By Elsa Langill
From the colorful world famous houses in Nyhavn to the sprinkling of many castles throughout, Copenhagen is a beautiful city and has become one of my favorite places. Doing a semester abroad in Denmark has been a life changing eye opening experience. The different style of schooling with only 2 classes per day but for 4 hours (2 hours of lecture + 2 hours of tutorial) allows you to really focus and gain a deeper understanding of the material. The tutorial sessions have been very engaging and hands-on. We have used some specialized software and programs designing models and determining contamination risk assessments.
Besides school, getting to meet other exchange students from all over the world has led to some great friendships and memories being created. The Danish culture thrives on biking, social interaction and a sense of community so there is always some kind of event going on at the university or in Copenhagen. DTU also offers so many unique clubs and there is literally something for everyone. I enjoyed playing basketball for DTU’s women team as well as learning Danish from the free language classes offered during my semester abroad.
Another huge benefit of being in Denmark is the accessibility to other countries. By the time I return home at the end of May, I will have had been to 13 countries! With budget airlines such as Ryanair you can buy a flight to London for the cost of dinner in Vancouver.
Traveling really does force you to step outside of your comfort zone by losing sight of the familiarity of home. Most people know someone that has studied abroad and the usual benefits they hear in relation to it. Honestly, for myself though, studying abroad has helped me grow academically as well as personally. It has taught me about different viewpoints not only in regards to engineering but for life in general. I have learned to be more resourceful and a better problem-solver (for example, what to do when your phone dies and you can’t use google translate to communicate). Overall though, I am extremely grateful to have had the opportunity to continue my environmental engineering degree while traveling, making new friends, feeding my foodie habit and seeing some of the beauty the world has to offer. I highly recommend studying abroad. For more information on Coordinated International Experience, please visit their website.