CHARM-EU: gain international experience already before your Erasmus studies
What course did you take?
“The Nordic Model of Welfare”, which was offered by Åbo Akademi University in Finland.
How did you learn about the opportunity?
Through a Neptun message sent to the students in January 2024 inviting students to apply for CHARM-EU online courses in the spring semester.
What motivated you to sign up for your online course?
My goal had long been to travel and study abroad with Erasmus. In the second semester of my studies, however, I found the exchange to be too early, but through the CHARM-EU online course I could gain some international experience and was able to see what other university courses looked like.
What made you choose this particular course?
I chose it because of my future Erasmus choice. I have been interested in Finland and Finnish culture for a long time and, thanks to Erasmus, I will be studying there in my second year. The course I chose helped me see how the Finnish system works in an international environment.
What exactly did you learn?
I participated in the course entitled “The Nordic Model of Welfare”. The course was based on academic articles and helped me better understand the economic and social benefit systems of the Nordic countries.
How did the course go?
There were four online classes using Zoom, and each of these meetings was approximately four hours long. We also had to write 3 essays of 3 pages each and a longer (approximately 10-page) final comprehensive essay on the subject studied during the course. Each written assignment had a due date, which we had to meet.
What learning materials did you receive?
The materials were understandable and easy to access. They consisted of articles and short guides on academic writing, which I am sure will be put to great use in my later studies at ELTE GTK.
What was it like to go abroad virtually?
In one world, interesting. Even in this online environment, the differences in thinking and attitude could be felt, which is great because this way I could get a broader perspective on the topics taught in the course.
How were the teacher, the tasks, and your classmates?
They were all very friendly and helpful. If there were problems, the lecturer was open to discussing them and also to new solutions. My classmates added a lot to the course as well, because we had extensive discussions during the online meetings.
How big was your group, and what nationalities participated in the course?
Around 12-15 people were in my group, mainly from Finland, Hungary, and England.
How much time did you have to invest into the sessions + self-study + assessment?
The online meetings were approximately 16 hours altogether (4x4 hours) and were in a given timeslot every time. The assignment, however, took more time to write than that. To complete the course, attendance in the online classes was mandatory, and the assignments had to be submitted by the deadline.
How and where can you utilise what you learned here?
I hope to use this new knowledge in my Erasmus studies later in the year. In addition, the reading and writing academic essays are skills that I am certain will be useful in my later university years.
Why would you recommend participation in the Charm-EU online courses to your fellow students?
Because such a course presents a great opportunity to learn and can be completed from home. I would specifically advise people who want to study abroad with Erasmus to look at CHARM-EU’s online offer and see if there are any course in their chosen Erasmus country.
Is there anything else you think is important to share?
At the beginning of the course, I was surprised to see how different the study levels of the participants were, but in fact, this was by no means a disadvantage, but rather a way of enriching the discussions and broadening our perspective.
Photos: Zoltán Csorba