Starting from 2019/2020 academic year, 6 students of the French-Azerbaijani University will be studying at the University of Strasbourg (France) as an exchange student within the Erasmus+ program.

Now that the first classes kicked off, we are sharing warmest feedback from our students, starting from UFAZ fourth-year Geophysical-Geoscience student, Zhala Aliyeva:

1. What were the first adaptation/challenges you faced upon your arrival (at university and in general)?

One should consider that studying abroad is not easy as it comes with challenges and of course problems. I am glad that I did not face such problems that I cannot resolve. But of course being used to studying in English, French is a bit hard to get used to.

2. What are in your point of view the main differences between the education process in UFAZ and Unistra?

Well, the education system is quite similar to the one in UFAZ because most of the professors are the same. The main difference is that classes in the University of Strasbourg last 2 hours, while in UFAZ they lasted 1h30.

3. How is your student life going? Did you join any student clubs, activities?

Student life is very rich in Strasbourg. There are various activities available for students. We have events special for Erasmus students that I enjoy a lot. Other than that there are many things you can discover in the city. We also have a Sport Center that offers more than 50 different activities.

4.What are your general impressions on this exchange program?

I think it is a wonderful opportunity to make new friends, get to know about French culture and learn the environment in here.

5.What are your future plans?

I have been planning to pursue my Master’s degree in France. Therefore, this program is a great opportunity for me, since I will have an opportunity to study in French before starting my graduate education, and I am sure it will help me to prepare myself for my future endeavors by familiarizing me with the French studying environment. Moreover, my field, Geophysical engineering is an evolving profession which is based on discovering, though not limited to only geological discoveries. Throughout my whole career, I will be traveling to different regions of the World in order to explore, discover and research. I need to get used to living abroad and experiencing different cultures as my profession might require me to live in different environments. Taking this into consideration, studying abroad is an important milestone for my personal development.

UFAZ fourth-year Geophysical-Geoscience students, Zhala Aliyeva, Murad Ildarov and third-year Geophysical-Geoscience student Elmira Hasanova will receive one-semester of the exchange student experience, while fourth-year Chemical Engineering student Maryam Sideif-zada, fourth-year Computer Science students Maryam Ismayilova and Ali Mammadov will be staying in Strasbourg for one academic year.

It should be noted that they all will be receiving their education in the French language at the University of Strasbourg in the specialties followed at UFAZ.