Preparation

Since I was just about to graduate from my business studies and had not yet had any experience abroad, I looked around for ways to change this situation. I came across the MicroEDU website on the Internet and found out about the summer sessions. For me there was actually only the USA to choose from, especially the east coast, as I have already traveled to the west coast several times. I didn’t have to think about it for long, and the choice fell on Boston, THE university city in the east of the USA.

I started to deal with it relatively long before the start of the summer session (about 6 months). That was the right decision, because I imagined the matter of mandatory vaccinations for the state of Massachusetts to be easier. But with great help from MicroEDU, I overcame this hurdle as well. Since I decided to take two courses and wanted to travel to the USA as a full-time student, I also had to apply for a student visa for the USA. This was done without any major problems (filling out forms, paying, interview at the consulate). According to Abbreviationfinder, BU is the abbreviation of Boston University.

At some point I received my documents and my official registration documents, including the Boston University matriculation number (BU number), and was able to register for the housing.

Due to the fact that I would like to experience American university life up close, I decided on accommodation in the “dormitory style”. Due to my choice of “Dormitory Style” accommodation, I also had to take part in the university’s dinning plan. I decided on a 10-meal plan, which turned out to be the right decision on site.

I arrived on a Sunday in May, and since the rooms were only ready for occupancy on Monday, I had to spend one night in the hotel. However, that wasn’t a problem.

When you arrive at Boston University, you still have to take care of a few formalities, wait a moment for the keys to be handed over to the rooms, and then you can start with the summer session, and an experience for a lifetime…

Since after a few days of eating in the cafeteria you are happy if you can eat “out” from time to time, I was glad that I only opted for the 10 Meal Plan. This meant that I ate breakfast and lunch or dinner in the cafeteria (dinning hall) Monday-Friday, and on the weekends I mostly ate in the surrounding restaurants / shops or in downtown.

Room / house

As mentioned above, I lived in a dormitory style single room on Bay State Road. The location of the houses is stunning. Very close to university facilities, just off the Charles River (where all kinds of sports are practiced) and even Boston’s shopping streets are within walking distance. When it comes to the house, I have to say that these are currently being renovated, but step-by-step. In my case that meant that I unfortunately lived in an “older” one. Other students lived in very nice modern houses. My room was simple, functional. Wifi didn’t work in the room, but in many places on the university campus. You have to bring an Ethernet cable for the room or buy it on site. Then nothing stands in the way of enjoying the Internet (including Skype). Only one gender lives on each floor and there is a shared bathroom on each floor. With 4 rooms per floor this is acceptable. I was the only German-speaking resident in my house. Otherwise: Chinese, Americans, Italians

University life / university

Boston University (they only say BU) is huge! The green line of the subway runs right through Boston University and connects it with downtown. There is a state-of-the-art fitness studio on the campus, which you can use for free as a full-time student, otherwise it costs, but not much. Even if you are only there for 6 weeks, you still get a good impression of typical American university life, as many American students also attend summer courses there.

Courses

I have taken two courses:
Introduction to Advertising (College of Communication) and Principles of Marketing (Metropolitan College). Both courses were ok. The advertising course was a lot more demanding. If you are used to the level of Austrian / German universities, you will have no problem completing the courses very well or well. And because of the English language: Don’t worry! In one course I was the only German-speaking student, in the other there was still a German student. Otherwise mixed. Brazilians, Italians, Hong Kong, China, Moldova, USA, Spain, etc

Boston

Boston is a cool, beautiful, and safe US city. It’s quick to get to New York (some of my fellow students also visited NYC), you can take the subway to the beach and watch a baseball game by the famous Boston Red Sox (but I haven’t become a baseball fan!)

Summary

As has been written so often, I agree that a summer session in Boston at Boston University is a first-class decision. Boston is a great city; Boston University is a cool university and MicroEDU is a great partner!