Zoe Ambrus (above) discovering the magic that England has to offer.
Zoe Ambrus had the trip of a lifetime when she went on our Cambridge International Summer School program in July 2011. Zoe's AIM Overseas experience was so life changing that she transferred universities when she got back to Australia as a result! Zoe shares her awesome experience below...
Hi Zoe! Could you please introduce yourself? (what degree and where
you're studying)
Hello! My name is Zoe Ambrus, and I am currently in the third year of my
Bachelor of Arts degree at the University of Melbourne. In July 2011 I
travelled to the University of Cambridge and completed Term I of the
International Summer School. I also received credit for the Cambridge course at
my home institution, which was great!
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Why did you choose this AIM Overseas course?
Because it gave me the opportunity to study Shakespeare at one of the
best Universities in the world, and AIM Overseas organised practically
everything for me!
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Did you have any fears/concerns before doing the program?
Yes! Travelling to England last July was only the second time I’d ever
travelled overseas and the first time I’d ever been on a plane by myself. But
it was all fine. Harriet, Jooliet and Rob all prepared everyone really well and
gave us heaps of great advice and travel tips : )
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Tell me about a typical day at Cambridge.
During the week we would go to our classes and
lectures. Because I was a student at the International Summer School, I had to
choose 3 classes which I would attend every day (history, literature, science
or politics). I chose 2 literature (Shakespeare) classes, and 1 history class.
As well as attending these 3 classes daily, we were also required to attend a
daily plenary lecture (which was compulsory), and a night lecture (which
wasn’t). The university organised several guest speakers to visit us –
scientists, historians, literary professors, and even Margaret Thatcher’s
political advisor!
After our afternoon classes, we were free to
explore the city, go shopping, punting, or catch up on our homework and
required reading. After the night lectures the students would take advantage of
all the activities organised for us by the program (including folk dances and
music performances). Many of my friends went to see Shakespeare plays in their
spare time, too. The Cambridge Shakespeare festival is held in the summer in
the college gardens. If you like Shakespeare, go and watch one!
On the weekends we didn’t have any classes or
lectures, but the university organised outings for us which we could attend if
we wanted to. I went on their trip to the Globe Theatre and saw the play ‘Alls
Well that Ends Well’, and I went to Stratford-Upon-Avon and saw ‘Macbeth’
performed by the Royal Shakespeare Company (and bought lots of souvenirs!). I
also went on a London River cruise. The planned trips were great because they organised the tickets
and transport for us, and gave us time to explore the various cities we
travelled to. I had fun shopping, visiting St. Pauls Cathedral, the London Eye and
Buckingham Palace, and sneaking under the velvet rope barrier and getting a
photo with the Madame Tussauds wax model of David Beckham (I got told off but
it was totally worth it!). Carpe Diem!
How has this program affected you? (Personally and/or professionally)
After I completed the course, I felt a real sense of accomplishment and I was very proud of myself! After I came back to Australia, I changed universities and decided to major in English. Also, I went to visit a family friend who I hadn’t seen since a few months before I went to England. She told me that it must have been a while since she’d seen me, because ‘you looked like a child the last time I saw you, and now you look like an adult’. Huh! I am now also motivated and inspired to travel overseas again, and I tell everyone that I went to Cambridge! (The looks on their faces are priceless) ;)
What was the highlight of the program for you?
I woke up every morning in a seven hundred year old college and could
see several other colleges (they looked like castles!) from my bedroom window.
My teachers were bestselling authors, the guest speakers were world renowned
academics. The apple tree which Isaac Newton sat under when the apple hit him
and he discovered gravity was right around the corner, and the pub where Pink
Floyd performed for the first time was just down the road. DNA was discovered
in another pub (there are lots of pubs). I love Shakespeare, so the excursions
to Stratford-Upon-Avon and the Globe Theatre were definitely a highlight! Also,
the spectacular architecture was so impressive, as was the quality of the
teaching, the Universities reputation, the guest lecturers, the food, the
shopping, everything was wonderful!
Because I was part of the International Summer School, I made friends
with students studying science, politics and history, as well as literature,
and I still keep in contact with many of them. I made a lot of friends from all over the world who I still keep in contact with. While we were in Cambridge, we went to the
cinema to see the new Harry Potter film in 3D, and later in the week we
travelled to Oxford and saw where the movies were filmed! Ahhhhhh! Exciting!!
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| Outside 'Gonville and Caius', the college where Zoe stayed |
Do you have any funny travel stories you’d like to share?
Yes! On one of our excursions a couple of friends and I decided to visit St. Paul's Cathedral because we had a bit of spare time. We were paying the admission when my friend noticed the employee’s name tag. “Jesus”, he read aloud. “Is that your name, Jesus?!” The man nodded. “Well you work in the right place, then!” Later, on our way out, my friend wanted to say goodbye to Jesus, but he wasn’t there. “Excuse me”, he asked the lady who was now at the desk. “Where is Jesus? He was right here!” (remember, we were at ST. PAUL'S CATHEDRAL). The lady looked at him like he was insane. “Jesus is dead”, she gravely told us. We all started laughing. “But wasn’t he resurrected?”. I think ‘Jesus’ was on his lunch break.
Yes! On one of our excursions a couple of friends and I decided to visit St. Paul's Cathedral because we had a bit of spare time. We were paying the admission when my friend noticed the employee’s name tag. “Jesus”, he read aloud. “Is that your name, Jesus?!” The man nodded. “Well you work in the right place, then!” Later, on our way out, my friend wanted to say goodbye to Jesus, but he wasn’t there. “Excuse me”, he asked the lady who was now at the desk. “Where is Jesus? He was right here!” (remember, we were at ST. PAUL'S CATHEDRAL). The lady looked at him like he was insane. “Jesus is dead”, she gravely told us. We all started laughing. “But wasn’t he resurrected?”. I think ‘Jesus’ was on his lunch break.
Zoe in front of St Paul's Cathedral where she met Jesus!
-BRING AN UMBRELLA. English weather is weird.
-When you get to
Cambridge University, for the love of God, DO NOT STAND
ON THE GRASS!
-DO NOT BUY A TRAVELSIM, they are a TOTAL waste of money. Texting and
calling in England is so cheap, so buy a simcard when you get there. I wish
someone had told me this before I left!
-You will appreciate the lessons so much more if you do the required
reading.
-Bring some of the local currency with you just in case. There was a
time when my EFTPOS card wasn’t working, so it was good that I had some extra money
that lasted until I got the problem fixed.
-Also, if you see a cool, expensive souvenir you would like to buy, or a
tourist attraction you would like to visit with a high admission price (or
whatever) just pay the money! You may never visit that place again. You only
live once! :D
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| A selfy with Big Ben in the background |
What would you say to somebody who’s thinking of doing the program?
The people who run and organise the program really look after you, so don’t worry if it’s the first time out of the country on your own! Everything is very well organised – the classes, the assessments, the accommodation and the outings. If we had an excursion planned and the bus was scheduled to leave early in the morning, our resident tutor even organised a packed breakfast for us! Everyone has such a great time, and I met many students who told me that they came back to do the Cambridge course every year. I’m already planning my next AIM Overseas trip, if they will let me do another one... : D (You sure can Zoe! We love seeing returned students doing another program!)
This program runs every year in the July uni holidays. To find out more about this program or to apply, please go to our website: www.aimoverseas.com.au or email us on info@aimoverseas.com.au
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