Why did you decide to come to Poland and how did you find out about university?

Anthonio: I spent a couple of months researching universities in Europe. I did a thorough investigation and Poland was my last stop. I was very surprised by the affordability of the studies here.  It’s a beautiful country with a great culture. I was checking different universities in different cities and Opole gained my specific attention. The city is small, everything is within a walking distance. So I thought “this is a good place to be”.  Then I discovered the University of Opole and your web-page hello.uni.opole.pl. For months, I was checking the information on the web-page, the news on social media (Facebook, Instagram). The information there was very useful and helped to decide that I want to study at this university.

Coming to study at the University of Opole you get an opportunity to study internationally at the same time you have affordable tuition fees, costs of accommodation. So you get this international experience, a chance to discover a new culture, and yet it is affordable.

How was your trip to Opole?

Anthonio: To say the truth, it was the first time in my life that I was traveling on my own and my first time on the plane. The entire family was nervous, everyone was nervous that I am going so far away. But when you are young it is easy – you use technologies, uses Google maps, ask questions, and eventually, everything is fine.

What is your take on the online classes?

Anthonio: At first, it was difficult, because I was in Jamaica and there was a huge time difference –  Poland is 6 hours ahead. Every day I had classes for almost 9 hours and classes started at 1.30 am. So I was losing a night’s sleep for a couple of weeks. Online classes are definitely not the same as usual classes, especially for courses like Math, Accounting. We have to make equations in the notebook and then send a picture to our professor. I can imagine how many pictures our Professor receives!

The good thing is that because it started online, our group got to know each other, so when we arrived in Opole we already knew the people through the online classes.  Now when some classmates arrive in Opole we, those who are already in Opole, offer to pick up new students at the airport or train station or give other needed help. This way online classes provide a medium for us to develop a bond before we come to Opole.

What thing do you like the most about your studies so far?

Anthonio: The thing that I liked the most is that the classes are small. Back in Jamaica, we would have sometimes 100 students attending the lecture. But here the groups are small, so our group is more like a team.