Getting closer

Well, the letter of acceptance as a Campus Europae student at Latvijas Universitate arrived early this week; yesterday I got the e-mail describing accomodation options (and answered immediately with my choice).
Looks like we're really getting there...

In time, I'll be switching this blog to be about my experiences as Campus Europae student in Latvia (for the time being), and hardly anything else.
Although, issues of positive ecology may actually get even more interesting in a rather different context such as Latvia provides...

The Waiting Game

I'll be going to Latvia (University of Latvia, Riga) for an academic year with the exchange program Campus Europae, to continue teacher training there.

Formalities for application are long since over with,
now the week(s) of exams is (are) drawing near.
Not being at the home institution means that any test not taken at the first possibility will probably not be taken.
After all, the next chance would be in fall, when I'll not be here…

The colleague also going to Latvia has received some first information about the intensive language course offered in August, before academic session starts. Gave me quite a shock because I'm not on the list of participants he got.
Except when I applied for such a course, I don't think the university he's (now) taking the course at (Riga's Technical University) was even mentioned as offering it, so I applied for such a course, but at University of Latvia where we'll also be studying.
Here's to hoping it will just be a little while until I learn I'm in, at the LU. - Three days later: Indeed, that is the case. I must have been a little quicker in sending in the application documents...

Classes that I suggested taking are fine with the academic coordinators of the respective subject areas at University of Vienna.
The system is pretty different in Latvia, however.
For example, in Austria you must combine two subjects in teacher training, in Latvia you study one. So, whether it will even be possible to combine courses from two subjects, let alone from different levels of study (I'd be supposed to take classes which are meant for master's program students at LU…), is an open question.

Final formalities are to take place 45 days prior to the start of the study program abroad (I wonder if that does or doesn't take into account the 30 days of language course). So, there obviously has to be more time in which to wait, not despair - and not to forget about the tests that should be taken at the home institution...

Studying. On a weekend?

Met with a few colleagues last weekend to organize a group project.
Got kicked out of the university building at 1 pm. It was Saturday, after all.

You wouldn't think that any student might want to work on his studies, as in: use the PC rooms, do some research at the library, on a weekend, would you…?

We may have to pay tuition now (still not all that much, I freely admit), but the realization that it would also be worth it does not gain support in fact (that was one of the reasons given for why tuition were a good idea after all). Nor has the argument that the university would therefore have to work like a service-oriented organization rather than a bureaucracy held up.