Open-minded teachers, dynamic city, and an American degree, an exchange student shares her study abroad experience

Thinking of studying abroad in Prague? At UNYP? You can google pretty much all the basic information about private universities without too much effort: study programs, information about possible extracurricular activities, events organized by students. However, there is one precious thing this data can never replace – a shared personal experience.

Therefore we interviewed one of our exchange students, Soline Danger from France. Read her personal experience with Prague, UNYP and the decision to go abroad itself.

Hi Soline, can you briefly introduce yourself? 

Hello, my name is Soline, I am 20 years old and I come from Paris. I am in the third year of business school in France. Currently, I am studying as an exchange student at UNYP. After I finish my bachelor studies, I aspire to specialize in the field of accounting in order to work for a financial group after graduation. 

How did you come to study in Prague? 

As a part of the program in France, at the Paris School of Business, students need to spend one semester to study abroad for a year. UNYP happens to be one of the partner universities and I decided to it would be a good option for my study abroad experience. Prague caught my eye as a dynamic city in the heart of Europe with affordable prices. It is as great opportunity to improve my English because there are not many French students and the university is American. However, the main reason is the dual degree opportunity made possible by UNYP at the end of the year. 

Are you still happy with your choice? Are you enjoying your experience abroad? 

Of course, I am still happy! I have met some really interesting people who come from all around the world. The teachers are open-minded and they want us to have great success at school as well as our professional life. In addition, the university provides a gym membership and access to a swimming pools for free, and many other benefits to the students. 

Moreover, the city of Prague is really beautiful and I enjoy traveling around other cities of Europe.

What has surprised you about Czech culture? 

I haven’t been surprised by Czech food because former exchange students told me about it! But I have to say, I liked the Christmas and Easter markets and I really am impressed by the public transport, which runs all night too. 

Good point. You have mentioned Czech Easter. Have you personally experienced the force of “pomlázka”? 

What a joke! Luckily, no one tried it on me. I preferred to eat some chocolate crepes at the market instead of “pomlázka”. 

Now to your studies. Why did you choose UNYP? What appealed to you and what do you appreciate about studying there? 

As I said, the dual degree is a great opportunity for me. Moreover, because it is an American university, I am surrounded by many native speakers. This experience is great in order to improve another language and to get to know yourself better. I had never been to the Czech Republic before and I wanted this year to be an entirely new experience. I also heard many great recommendations from previous French students of UNYP. 

What’s your favorite course at UNYP so far? 

My favorite course has been statistics. I was interested in learning mathematics through another culture. The teacher was really passionate about the subject, and it made the course even more interesting.  

If your friend told you he or she is thinking of studying abroad in Prague, what would be your reaction? 

As a delegate for French students from the Paris School of Business at UNYP, I have already had the opportunity to speak with future students. I was happy to talk about this year abroad and give my personal opinion and share my experience. Most of them liked what I said and chose Prague. So now, I can say that I said something good! 

Really glad to hear! Thank you for sharing your experience and best of luck in your studies!