exchange report australia scu_daniela vanessa bermadinger
TRANSCRIPT
-
7/28/2019 Exchange Report Australia SCU_Daniela Vanessa Bermadinger
1/20
EXCHANGE REPORT
SOUTHERN CROSS UNIVERSITY
LISMORE,NEW SOUTH WALES,AUSTRALIA
TOURISM &LEISURE MANAGEMENT
JUNE NOVEMBER 2010
DANIELA BERMADINGER SABINE HANDL ANDREA STIENDL
0910311005 0910311022 0910311059
-
7/28/2019 Exchange Report Australia SCU_Daniela Vanessa Bermadinger
2/20
Exchange Report
SCU Lismore
Bermadinger, Handl, Stiendl 2
CONTENTS
1 Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 3
2 Destination & Institution ................................................................................................................. 3
2.1 Lismore .................................................................................................................................... 3
2.2 Southern Cross University ....................................................................................................... 3
3 International Department ............................................................................................................... 4
4 Courses ............................................................................................................................................ 4
4.1 Food & Beverage Management .............................................................................................. 5
4.2 Contemporary Tourism Issues ................................................................................................. 6
4.3 Outdoor Education .................................................................................................................. 7
4.4 Tourism Planning & the Environment ................................................................................... 10
5 Practical Hints ................................................................................................................................ 11
5.1 Journey to Australia ............................................................................................................... 11
5.2 Visa ........................................................................................................................................ 11
5.3 Insurance ............................................................................................................................... 12
5.4 Accommodation .................................................................................................................... 12
5.5 Internet .................................................................................................................................. 13
5.6 Prices ..................................................................................................................................... 13
5.7 Cell Phones ............................................................................................................................ 13
5.8 Shopping ................................................................................................................................ 13
6 Reflection on Cultural Issues ......................................................................................................... 14
6.1 Daniela ................................................................................................................................... 14
6.2 Sabine .................................................................................................................................... 15
6.3 Andrea ................................................................................................................................... 15
7 Trips & Travelling ........................................................................................................................... 16
7.1 Trip to the Outback ............................................................................................................... 16
7.2 Road Trip ............................................................................................................................... 17
8 Personal Evaluation ....................................................................................................................... 18
8.1 Daniela ................................................................................................................................... 18
8.2 Sabine .................................................................................................................................... 19
8.3 Andrea ................................................................................................................................... 19
9 Useful Links .................................................................................................................................... 20
-
7/28/2019 Exchange Report Australia SCU_Daniela Vanessa Bermadinger
3/20
Exchange Report
SCU Lismore
Bermadinger, Handl, Stiendl 3
1 INTRODUCTIONWe, Daniela, Sabine and Andrea, spent our 3
rdsemester in Lismore, Australia, and had an amazing
time at the other end of the world. In this report we talk about our personal impressions and
experiences in Down Under, but also hope to help future students in deciding whether they can
imagine going for an exchange semester to Australia.
When we started studying at the IMC Krems it was clear for us that we wanted to use the possibility
of an exchange semester to go abroad and explore a different country and culture. Everyone had
their own expectations and hopes for the semester, but we can say that they have all been exceeded.
The semester has not only supported our professional development, but also our personal one and
we hope that this will also be the case for every other student that decides to go to Australia.
2 DESTINATION &INSTITUTION2.1 LISMORELismore is a small city (about 44,000 inhabitants) in New South Wales,
the most populous state of Australia. It is about 2.5 hours south of
Brisbane and about an hour west from Byron Bay, the easternmost
point of the Australian main land. The Wilson River passes through
Lismore and sometimes causes flooding in the summer month. Lismore
lies in the area of a former rainforest and some parts of it are still
conserved.
Lismore lies in the Northern Rivers region that has a sub-tropical climate. In summer the
temperatures lie between 16 and 30 C and in winter between 7 and 23. As Australia is located in
the southern hemisphere the seasons are changed, and therefore, we started our exchange semester
in the middle of the Australian winter.
In the city centre there are a lot of shops and some restaurants and bars like Cocktails and
Tommys, a bowling centre, a cinema and a visitor information centre. There is no public bus
service, but the university organised a free shuttle bus that runs in the evenings during the week until
8 pm between the colleges, the university and the shopping square.
2.2 SOUTHERN CROSS UNIVERSITYThe Southern Cross University (SCU) not only has a campus in Lismore, but also in Coffs Harbour,Tweeds Head and even Sydney. The campus in Lismore stretches over about 75 hectares and consists
of several blocks that are allocated to different studies and a lot of natural areas (woods, meadows,
streams and even a small lake). During our time in Lismore it also happened that wallabies, koalas,
wild turkeys, rabbits or iguanas crossed our way.
The centre of the campus is the plaza where the student support centre, a book shop, food and drink
outlets, photocopying services, a cash dispenser, a doctor and further student services are offered.
There is also a student travel agency that offers trips to the whole country and tries to keep the
prices as low as possible for the students.
The universitys library is pretty big and offers lots of resources like books, journals, databases, DVDs,
CDs, newspapers and more. There are a lot of computers which can be used by the students, but
-
7/28/2019 Exchange Report Australia SCU_Daniela Vanessa Bermadinger
4/20
Exchange Report
SCU Lismore
Bermadinger, Handl, Stiendl 4
there are also areas where you can use your own
computers and the universitys free internet.
Furthermore there are printing and scanning facilities
which can be used for a small fee.
Next to the plaza there is a gym and swimming pool thatoffers a lot of classes like Zumba, kick boxing, yoga,
Pilates and tai chi. The UniBar, where concerts, theme
parties and other events are held throughout the
semester, is located in the same building.
The name of the university origins from the star constellation Southern Cross, which can always be
seen on the night sky of the southern hemisphere (like the Pole star in the northern hemisphere) no
matter if it is summer or winter. In former times this constellation was used to navigate and today it
is also displayed on the Australian flag.
3 INTERNATIONAL DEPARTMENTThe caring staffs of our host institution has been summarized by the term International
Department and its head, Karen Jessen, was and certainly still is an extraordinarily friendly and cool
person who exactly knows how to build up a good relationship with the students. Due to her relaxed
and entertaining appearance already on the first day, we knew right from the beginning that there is
nothing we have to be afraid of. They did a great job in helping all the international students in
making themselves comfortable in this completely new environment.
In the course of the Orientation Week, introduction courses were held in which the staff explainedthe SCU guidelines to us, outlined the various courses and briefed us on all the special activities the
university offers for all its international students, like sports activities, trips, get-together parties at
the UniBar and so on.
In the beginning, they were a great help in finding our way about the university premises, selecting
our courses and getting integrated on college. As the semester went on, they assisted us in getting
along with our tutors and courses, while staying physically fit and making more and more new
friends. The Outback Trip in the study break was also organised by them and was only offered for
international students to cement the social bonds between them.
To put it in a nutshell, they could not have been more helpful we could go to the International
Department and ask them for information or help any time and even if we did not do so, they would
let us know all the important stuff.
4 COURSESAs we had to fill out the Learning Agreement before we actually arrived in Lismore, we looked up
several courses on the homepage of the SCU, hoping that we could take all of them. When we
arrived in Lismore it turned out that some of the courses were not offered in this semester so we had
to choose different ones. It was no problem at all that we changed some of the courses and we soongot the confirmation that we could take the units we finally decided on.
-
7/28/2019 Exchange Report Australia SCU_Daniela Vanessa Bermadinger
5/20
Exchange Report
SCU Lismore
Bermadinger, Handl, Stiendl 5
The International Department organised an information session in the orientation week about the
courses that were held during this semester and this helped us to get an overview of our course
possibilities. In the end we decided to take the units Food & Beverage Management,
Contemporary Tourism Issues, Outdoor Education and Tourism Planning & the Environment.
4.1 FOOD &BEVERAGE MANAGEMENTDANIELA
Within the scope of this unit, we applied practical application of key food and beverage management
concepts to food and beverage operations. We learnt about operational controls and procedures
used in food and beverage establishments and critically evaluated their impact on product and
service quality and business profitability. Furthermore, we went through a number of key
management controls relating to sales, costs and labour used in food and beverage establishments to
achieve budgeted results. Therefore, I understand the correlation between certain control
procedures and sales figures now. This course, furthermore, also pointed out legal obligations and
health issues relevant to food and beverage operations.
It was split into three modules which were represented by strategic, operational and managerial
issues for food and beverage operations. The first module gave us an insight into food and beverage
establishments and their environments in general and into developing the food and service concept.
The second module gave more specific attention to the different stages in operating such a business,
i.e. Menu Planning, Purchasing, Receiving, Issuing and Storage, Food and Beverage
Production and Service and Sale. The third and last module dealt with the financial control for
food and beverage management, menu pricing and engineering, labour cost control and legal issues.
The assignments consisted of two papers and a final exam. The first report was a practical menu
analysis of a real menu which we could individually and freely choose. The second report was a case
study about 2000 words and much more complicated. With both of the papers we had to apply our
previously gained knowledge, and therefore, could better see how the concepts and procedures
would work in practice. I liked the first one more since it was much more fun and less complicated
than the second one, but overall I can say that I was quite satisfied with both of them. The whole
course was pretty straightforward, i.e. well-structured and recited; we had a good relationship with
our Italian tutor and could ask him everything anytime.
SABINE
Gianpierro, our lecturer is really open-minded and funny. He is Italian and therefore he was pleasedto have 3 Austrian girls in his course. He explained everything in detail and had nice presentations.
His lessons were clearly structured and he knew what he was talking about because he owns a caf in
Lismore. The lecture included some accounting as well. But this was not a problem for us because
most of it was already covered by Mr. Wagner in the first and second semester at the IMC.
We had to write 2 big papers and at the end of the semester we had an exam. One of the papers was
a case study where we had to improve the F&B situation of a congress centre and the other paper
was a menu analysis of a restaurant or pub in Lismore. It was interesting writing these papers
because both of them were practically orientated. I would take this course again because I learned a
lot.
-
7/28/2019 Exchange Report Australia SCU_Daniela Vanessa Bermadinger
6/20
Exchange Report
SCU Lismore
Bermadinger, Handl, Stiendl 6
ANDREA
In this unit we learned how a food and beverage organisation is managed and which measures must
be taken to operate it successfully. We covered topics like financial, marketing and catering policies,
how to manage the purchasing, storing and preparing of food and beverage items in a business and
different measures to control the effectiveness and efficiency of a business. The power pointpresentations that were used in the class and further information about the class were available to
us over the internet. We also received a CD with all the readings that matched the topics, so we did
not have to download them separately.
Throughout the semester we had to write 2 papers, a menu analysis (20% of the grade) and a case
study (40%), in which we had to apply the knowledge we gained in class and through the readings.
Furthermore there was an exam (40%) at the end of the semester that covered all the topics covered
in class.
The unit was held by Gianpiero Battista, an Italian that moved to Australia more than 10 years ago.
He was really nice and helpful whenever we had questions about our assignments or the covered
topics. Although I was a bit sceptical at the beginning I really liked the class, because it was clearly
structured and Gianpiero presented it in an interesting way.
4.2 CONTEMPORARYTOURISM ISSUESDANIELA
Contemporary Tourism Issues concentrated on basic theories and models relevant across tourism
and hospitality industries and introduced several current topics from the media concerning
ecotourism, sustainability and authenticity. Special focus was drawn onto the ethical aspect of
different forms of tourism. The objectives included a developed level of knowledge about tourismand associated themes relating to tourism industries, places in itineraries and environmental
interactions; improved skills in applying theories to a range of issues affecting or stemming from
those mentioned above; and to demonstrate abilities to critically compare and evaluate ideas from
different writers. This unit helped me in developing my critical thinking, independent/self-directed
learning, reflective practice, information literacy and essay writing. Furthermore, I am now more
aware of global, cultural and social responsibility and ethical practice.
With regard to the assignments, we constantly had to contribute to this unit by taking part in
classroom and online debates, participating in a group wiki and by writing annotations to a bunch of
articles, an essay outline and a big final essay for which we had to read a lot of different academicarticles. Then again, we did not have to complete an exam in the end. This unit was being
redeveloped while we were taking it and therefore, it was designed to be quite open. On the one
hand, this was positive for us as we could kind of take part in the decision-making, it remained
exciting until the end and the topics were always up-to-date; but on the other hand, there was also
the disadvantage of not really knowing what to expect and a lot of confusion about specific
requirements. The female tutor was very creative and enthusiastic which I liked a lot; however, I
could not completely follow her marking. Overall, it was a quite interesting course though.
SABINE
This unit was really interesting because Mieke, our lecturer really knew a lot and she choseinteresting topics. She undertook the task of the CTI lecturer from the Australian Neil Leiper (famous
-
7/28/2019 Exchange Report Australia SCU_Daniela Vanessa Bermadinger
7/20
Exchange Report
SCU Lismore
Bermadinger, Handl, Stiendl 7
for the tourism model) who was her best friend. They did a lot of research together and wrote
several books and articles about different topics. She told us a lot about Neil, who died last year.
We did not have an exam but we had to write a paper about current topics in the tourism industry
which counted for 40 %. Furthermore we had to do a group-wiki about a place anywhere in the world
and look at it as a TDR, TGR and transit route. The difficulty of this wiki was not the task itself, butrather the group members because we had to collaborate with students from a partner institution of
the SCU in Singapore. So we did not know our team members and had to get in contact with them via
Skype or email. This was kind of annoying sometimes. The Wiki counted for 40 % of the final grade.
The last 20% of the final grade were class discussions which I really liked. We could choose from
several topics and find arguments either for or against it. These discussions were really useful to
broaden ones horizon and look at things from different perspectives.
I would definitely take this course again even though Mieke was a bit unorganized because she was
about to rewrite this Unit and so not everything was planned in advance. But Mieke knows a lot andone can learn really much from her.
ANDREA
In this unit we talked about current topics that influence the tourism business in any way. After
defining important tourism terms we covered topics like sustainable and ecotourism, natural impacts
on tourism, cultural conservation, tourism in religious places and more. The material used for this
class was a book by Neil Leiper that we could borrow from the library. All the other readings
underlying this unit were available on the internet.
In this class we had to participate in two debates (20%) about contemporary tourism issues. One washeld in class and the other one online on the units online platform. We also had to write an essay
(40%) about a destination that was changed by economic, environmental, socio-cultural, ethical
and/or political impacts. Furthermore we had to write a wiki page about a place as a TDR, TGR and
transit route (40%) in groups of 4 people with other students from the SCU and with external
students from Singapore. This was a bit difficult, because some of the external students did not
participate or even respond to our e-mails for a long time.
The unit was held by Mieke Witsel, a very experienced professor and world traveller. As the unit was
being rewritten during the semester it had a pretty loose structure that left room for picking up a lot
of current topics from the media. Mieke was also very interested in our personal experiences intravelling and shared a lot of personal travel stories with us. The class was really interesting and I
believe that it will improve once a new syllabus is being used.
4.3 OUTDOOR EDUCATIONDANIELA
Outdoor Education tries to rouse the admiration for natural phenomena (e.g. star constellation) and
bring forward the protection of flora and fauna as well as develop individual character building. This
course was divided into lectures and tutorials and moreover, also included two outdoor trips. The
first one was a 3-day-trip to Meebunn-bia, an outdoor centre set up on land which belongs to
farmers who provide it for the purpose of outdoor education of all age groups and the second onetook place in a national park called Girraween. The difference between the two trips was that
almost the whole second trip had to be planned in little groups of three to five in advance. Therefore,
-
7/28/2019 Exchange Report Australia SCU_Daniela Vanessa Bermadinger
8/20
Exchange Report
SCU Lismore
Bermadinger, Handl, Stiendl 8
we could make the decisions, as for instance, when to get up in the morning and when to take a
break, pretty much on our own. The trip planning included a navigation sheet, risk and minimal
impact assessments, equipment lists amongst others. This came along with a greater responsibility
for the whole group and longer and more exhausting hikes with heavier backpacks since all the gear
we needed had to be carried by ourselves.
Both trips led us into the wilderness, i.e. into the
uninhabited bush far away from any civilization (e.g. no
electricity, toilets, showers, etc.). The contact with the
untouched environment and the connection to the
admirable nature took centre stage. Secondly, we
undertook heaps of exciting activities and games from
which I could learn a lot. We did wilderness bushwalking
or hiking, had to carry heavy backpacks, participated in
high rope and wire courses (on the first trip) and
navigated with map and compass. Moreover, we set up
tents in order to camp, cook, clean cooking equipment and got the opportunity to apply new
knowledge about risk assessment and prevention. Group- or teamwork including motivation of each
other and connected with observing and determining group dynamics and leadership styles was the
core of the trip. Furthermore, everyone had to be prepared for challenging difficult tasks within
which one could also test his own physical and psychic limits. With regard to such tasks, you could
find out more about your stamina, how you function, i.e. act or react, in pressure situations and how
far you could push yourself. I got the chance to improve my social and communication skills, to build
new or to deepen already existing relationships, and therefore, contribute to the whole development
of the group. Being more aware of risks and dangers in the outdoors, especially in Australianoutdoors, as well as being more aware of the beauty of nature were further aims of mine which I
could definitely achieve.
I absolutely appreciated the challenge by choice method, the get-to-know-each-other/social out-
coming talks and the reaction, memorization and teamwork games, the trust-partner-activities, the
cave climbing, the barbecue at the campfire, the sunsets and sunrises, the videotaping on the trip
and the reflection on experience in the end. However, what probably made the trips so perfect in the
end was the huge enthusiasm and motivation of/from the tutor plus instructors and the group. One
could feel that it contributed to a stronger team spirit and pushed the whole group forward. To sum
it up, besides the navigation and teamwork skills, I have improved my outdoor knowledge and feelway more comfortable in the bush than before. In addition, I appreciate the nature even more now
and know how to take care of it properly.
Concerning the assignments which had to be completed, in addition to the trip planning, the
participation in the trips and individual reflection papers about them afterwards, we also had to
write a big critical reflection paper which was linked to a case study and two final exams one with
general theory questions and one which covered the more practical navigation part in the end.
Last but not least, I have to say that this course was by far the best one I have taken. Both of the trips
were amazing adventures for me, it was heaps of fun which was due to our great tutors/instructors
and the awesome people who build up the harmonious group(s) and I am very impressed by what we
have all achieved in teamwork!
-
7/28/2019 Exchange Report Australia SCU_Daniela Vanessa Bermadinger
9/20
Exchange Report
SCU Lismore
Bermadinger, Handl, Stiendl 9
SABINE
The course consists of a theoretical lecture and a practical tutorial. In the lecture we learned the
theoretical stuff which is important for any outdoor activity, e.g. how to minimize the impact on the
environment or how to pack a backpack correctly and what to take with you. In the tutorial we
learned how to navigate with compass and map in the Australian Bush, how to plan trips and how toprevent any hazard factors. And we also had to prepare everything on our own for our two field trips
to National parks (our clothes, our food, our gear, our route and itinerary, ).
Steve, the lecturer, is one of the best lecturers I have ever met. He is pretty young and knows how to
motivate the students. Furthermore he is a really cool guy and loves the Outdoors. So he really
knows what he is talking about. During our field trips we got to know him really well and he even
went out with the whole class after our last lecture.
In this class we had to write one big paper which counted for 50% of the final grade and we had a
theoretical exam and a practical exam where we had to find grid references, read maps, work with
the compass, evaluate hazard factors during a trip and so on. Those two exams together counted for
50% as well.
I strongly recommend this course to every exchange student at the SCU. This course is completely
different compared to any course at the IMC.
ANDREA
This unit definitely was my favourite unit in this semester. We learned a lot about planning camping
trips and other outdoor activities with minimal impact on the environment, how to navigate in the
bush and deal with hazard situations, how outdoor activities can help to develop communications
skills and the ability to work in teams and that you can learn a lot about yourself when you are in a
challenging environment. The unit was divided into 2 parts: the actual lecture in which we dealt with
the theoretical aspects of outdoor education and a tutorial in which we learned practical skills about
how to behave in a natural environment.
However, the best part was the 2 camping trips that we had during the semester. In the first one we
went to an outdoor education centre where we did some activities on high rope courses and played a
lot of teambuilding games. For the second trip, which we had to plan in groups of up to 4 people, we
went to the Girraween National Park where we hiked for 4 days and explored the natural
environment. All the skills that we learned in this unit helped us to successfully complete these two
trips and also enjoy being in the outdoors for a few days.
In this unit we had to take an exam (50%) that consisted of a theoretical and a practical part.
Furthermore we had to write an assignment (50%) in which we had to plan a trip for a fictional group
and also reflect on what we have learned during class and on our trips.
It really was a great unit, because Steve Hawkes, the lecturer, made every student love the class. He
is really experienced in his field, knows how to deal with students our age and simply loves being in
the outdoors and hanging out with young people. He also organized the trip to the outback in our
study break where we spent a lot of time together, so at the end of the semester he was not only our
teacher anymore, but also a real friend.
-
7/28/2019 Exchange Report Australia SCU_Daniela Vanessa Bermadinger
10/20
Exchange Report
SCU Lismore
Bermadinger, Handl, Stiendl 10
4.4 TOURISM PLANNING & THE ENVIRONMENTDANIELA
This unit examined the concept of sustainable development and how it applied to the planning and
management of tourism. Special emphasis was put on the social, cultural and environmental impacts
of tourism, not only on a local, regional or national level, i.e. in Australia, but from an internationalperspective. The core elements central to ecotourism and sustainable tourism were recognised.
Furthermore, it also provided a critical assessment of various approaches of tourism planning. Finally,
of utter important for the tutor was being a critical and reflective thinker who can examine his/her
own assumptions regarding sustainability and tourism planning.
The final grade was made up of the active participation in online blogs, two critical thinking and
reflection papers and a big sustainable tourism project report about 2500 words. This unit was
similar to the Contemporary Tourism Issues unit, whereas it has to be said that Tourism Planning
and the Environment was less interesting which might have been due to too many definitions, the
loose structure of the course and the tutors lack to create more excitement. Besides, the markingwas sometimes also quite inscrutable. All in all, I liked this unit the least, but some guest lecturers
were definitely worth listening to.
SABINE
This course was about sustainable tourism and nature based tourism. Some interesting topics were
discussed and there were also two guest lecturers who spoke about sustainable tourism in Australia.
Erica, the lecturer was a bit confused sometimes and to my mind she was not able to explain the
important facts to the students. This was not only my opinion: At the beginning of the semester the
class room was full of motivated and interested students who expected an exciting course and whenthe semester came to an end there were hardly any students in this class anymore because no one
was really interested and motivated any longer.
We had to write several small papers about different topics and therefore we had to do a lot of
research which was really, really time consuming. The good thing about this course was that there
was no final exam.
Erica told us that next year this Unit will be rewritten and will have another name. But it will still be
held by Erica and the syllabus will be pretty much the same. (I am not sure about the exact new
name but it will be something like sustainable tourism).
All in all, I would not take this course anymore even though the topic is interesting but Erica is not
the type of lecturer who makes the unit interesting.
ANDREA
In this unit we talked about how the tourism business can affect the environment and how the
tourism business is affected by external forces. We dealt with topics like socio-cultural, political and
economic impacts, but the main focus was on natural impacts, how to plan tourism activities in
natural areas and ecotourism. We also made field trip to a national park and some other facilities
that concentrated on a sustainable way of tourism.
-
7/28/2019 Exchange Report Australia SCU_Daniela Vanessa Bermadinger
11/20
Exchange Report
SCU Lismore
Bermadinger, Handl, Stiendl 11
We had to write several blog entries (15%) about topics dealt with in the lecture, 2 papers (40%)
about critical thinking on ourselves and sustainable tourism and a big assignment (45%) in which we
had to discuss how an existing tourism activity or facility fulfils certain sustainability criteria.
The lecturer Erica Wilson sometimes was really confused and I had the impression that she did not
really know what she was talking about. This was a bit frustrating, because the topics themselveswould have been really interesting if they had been presented in a clearer way. I hope that when the
unit is rewritten next year, the structure of the lecture will be improved so that students actually can
gain something from this unit.
5 PRACTICAL HINTS5.1 JOURNEY TOAUSTRALIAThe orientation week for our exchange semester started on June 21
st, but due to some exams at the
IMC Krems we could not arrive the weekend before as suggested by the SCU. Daniela left Austria onJune 18th and Sabine and Andrea left on June 19th, because they still had some exams back home. We
flew with Emirates from Munich to Dubai and caught a connecting flight to Sydney from there. As we
had decided to visit New Zealand after the end of the semester we already booked the flights to New
Zealand and then back to Austria at the same time, because the overall package was cheaper than if
we had paid for every trip individually.
The airline Regional Express (REX) is the only airline that
offers connections to Lismore from Sydney, so we had to
catch a train from the international to the domestic
airport. The REX plane was pretty small and we were abit worried, but it turned out to be fine. We informed the
staff at the International Department in advance when
we would arrive, so they sent someone to pick us up at
the airport and bring us to our accommodation.
The other exchange students from Canada and the US
flew to Brisbane the weekend before the orientation week, because the SCU organized a bus transfer
for all of them at that time. We were also asked to arrive at that date, but when we told them this
was not possible for us, it was no problem at all to arrive later.
5.2 VISAIn order to study in Australia we had to apply for a student visa which costs AU$ 500. We had to wait
for the Certificate of Enrolment which we received from the International Department of the SCU,
because it contained a code that proofed our acceptance at the SCU. We received this certificate only
a few weeks before our departure to Australia, but as we applied for the visa online, it still got
approved in time (it did not even take 24 hours until we were granted the student visa).
The visa was valid from the beginning of the semester until one month after the semester ended. We
wanted to use the month afterwards for travelling, so we decided to leave the country on November
11th
, the day the visa expired. Most of the other exchange students left the country right after theend of the semester to go home or visit places like New Zealand or Fiji before going home.
-
7/28/2019 Exchange Report Australia SCU_Daniela Vanessa Bermadinger
12/20
Exchange Report
SCU Lismore
Bermadinger, Handl, Stiendl 12
5.3 INSURANCEWe knew that we had to arrange a health insurance in advance of our trip, so Sabine and Andrea
applied for an Overseas Student Health Cover with ahm Australian Health Management. At that time
we did not know that the SCU would offer us an insurance that would also cover us.
Daniela accepted the offer from the SCU and was then covered by Medibank Private, which turned
out to be the better deal. It is advisable to take the offer from the SCU, because the patients
contribution is much less with Medibank than with ahm.
5.4 ACCOMMODATIONAll the Exchange Students had to live on campus. The
SCU-Village has 3 Colleges which are all near the
Southern Cross University. The colleges are called
ORION, MAGELLAN and SIRIUS. We strongly
recommend every exchange student to live at ORION
COLLEGE because it is the biggest one and all the
exchange students live there. The college is like a little
village. There are several blocks to live in. Each block
consists of 4 apartments. So every resident has his own
room and has to share the apartment with up to 5
other people. Another important fact is that Orion College is located up a hill, called the ORION hill.
This hill kept us fit because we had to walk it up every time after university or after a shopping trip.
The rooms are small but the apartments are rather big, so it is not a problem to share the kitchen,
bathroom and living room with other students. The equipment is not the newest one but it is okay
for just one semester. Sabine lived together with 4 Australians, Andrea lived with 3 Australians and
an exchange student from the US and Daniela lived with 2 Australians and an exchange student from
Papua New Guinea, though she changed the apartment, because the first one was too dirty.
It was an awesome time which we do not want to miss. We felt comfortable from the first moment
on. All the Aussies were extremely friendly and helpful. All we had to buy was a pillow and a blanket
but everything else was there and we could use everything else from our roomies. (eg. kitchen
equipment).
For those of you who like it warm in their rooms: There are no radiators at the college and it does get
a bit cold in the winter months (May, June and July). Many of us simply bought a little heater to keepthe room/the apartment warm. Due to the fact that so many people had a heater, the power supply
system broke down many times. So we had blackouts nearly every evening for about 3 weeks time.
That was a bit annoying but every resident got a little reduction of his/her rent and the office decided
to renew the system, so in the end everything worked out again.
Everyone simply loves the life on college, especially if you like to get to know many people and to
party. There is a student party almost every evening in one of the units. Everyone brings his own
drinks, but at 10 pm the parties end because the neighbourhood does not want to be disturbed.
Every first Thursday in the month, there is a Theme-Party at the UniBar that is organised by the
college residents and EVERYONE dresses up. This is pretty much the biggest party of every month. Allcollege residents are really excited and think about their costumes already weeks in advance. We
-
7/28/2019 Exchange Report Australia SCU_Daniela Vanessa Bermadinger
13/20
Exchange Report
SCU Lismore
Bermadinger, Handl, Stiendl 13
often went to second hand stores in Lismore to buy cheap stuff in order to dress up. One simply has
to be creative to find a good and cheap costume!
5.5 INTERNETThere is a wireless internet connection at the Orion College, but the charges are not included in the
rent. Sometimes there were problems with the connections due to the large number of people using
the internet at the same time or because there were rooms and areas in which the signal simply was
too low. The villages management tried to work on that so the situation improved a bit towards the
end of the semester.
As an alternative there are computers with an internet connection in the library, the international
department and the computer labs that can be used during the semester. On Campus there is also
free wireless internet on which you can log on with your personal computers.
A working internet connection is very important for your studies as all of the information about
classes and the university are available online. In addition most of the papers we had to write had tobe uploaded on the units online platforms and we did not have to hand in a printed version of them.
5.6 PRICESAll in all, everything is a bit more expensive compared to Austria. The exchange rate of the Australian
Dollar was good at the beginning of our stay but within the last months the Dollar became stronger
compared to the Euro and that made everything even more expensive for us.
Fruits, vegetables and dairy products are much more expensive in Australia. Alcohol is really
expensive over there. There are liquor stores/bottle shops where you can buy alcohol but it is really
expensive. Just a little hint: The students drink GOON. Thats really cheap wine.
Fuel is the only thing which is less expensive in Australia.
5.7 CELL PHONESAll the exchange students had the possibility to buy cheap cell phones from the international office.
Those cell phones are not really the newest ones but one can cope with them for one semester. If
you are lucky your Austrian cell phone will work in Down Under, but for Sabine and Daniela it was
not the case and so they had to buy new ones.
Every exchange student got a global gossip simcard from the international office. We think global
gossip is a rather good provider for prepaid cards with cheap rates especially for (international) shortmessages.
5.8 SHOPPINGLismore has one big shopping square which is located near the town centre. One can find almost
everything there. COLES and WOOLWORTHS are the two big grocery stores. BIG W and KMART are
two warehouses where you can buy clothes, blankets, pillows, kitchen equipment and so on. Of
course there are several clothing stores and a surf shop as well. Furthermore the square has a large
food court with Subways, Mc Donalds, Chinese food and so on.
As the college is up the hill and we did not have a car, we often walked down to the square whichtook us almost half an hour. But life becomes much easier if you become friends with some
Australian students who own a car. If no one is able to give you a lift, one either has to walk or wait
-
7/28/2019 Exchange Report Australia SCU_Daniela Vanessa Bermadinger
14/20
Exchange Report
SCU Lismore
Bermadinger, Handl, Stiendl 14
until 5 pm because there is a free shuttle bus for the students which leaves from the colleges and
drives directly to the shopping square every evening from 5 pm to 9 pm. This service was really
convenient and we appreciated it a lot.
6 REFLECTION ON CULTURAL ISSUES6.1 DANIELAWhen I try to review my absolutely amazing time in Down Under, it is, first of all, simply beyond
words. All of a sudden, so many different and exciting impressions intermix with each other, that it is
hard for me to couch them. But I will try my best to... When my friends and relatives asked me back
home what I liked best about my exchange semester in Australia, most of the times I did not know
where to start, what to begin with, how to make such a one-word assessment or even
judgement...and I said: the people. It just takes me a little time to realise it more and more, but it is
truethe one and only travel component which makes the whole experience so special and long -
lasting are the people I met there, the Australians I got to know and have made friends with, the
international students who have become my friends, all the young students and also more mature
adults I can count myself lucky to know and call my friends now. The Australian landscape is
stunningly beautiful and impressive no doubt about that but what would it have been without all
these extraordinarily awesome personalities admiring it...?!
Since I was staying at Orion College, I had the unique opportunity of meeting and getting to know a
lot of other students from different countries, cultures and backgrounds. There were my roommates,
two Australian girls and a boy from Papua New Guinea, my so-called neighbours, a mix of locals
and internationals, Karen Jessen, the lovely spirit of the International Department, Steve, our
tutor, coach and friend, TravelAl, our personal trip assistant and all the other nice European, Asian,
American and Australian girls and boys, men and women. And it was anything else but hard to get in
touch with them. Already in the beginning, an Orientation Week took place where all the
international students got the chance to introduce themselves and make themselves familiar with
the university campus, the units offered and life on college by participating in group activities and
introduction courses. I can, therefore, definitely say that the intercultural exchange is extremely
boosted at the SCU. There is this unit Outdoor
Education which we have chosen and parts of it are
outdoor trips where the focus is placed on teamwork. In
the study break the university, furthermore, organisesan optional trip for all the international students, where
one can either spend a more luxurious week on Fraser
Island or experience an exciting adventure in the
Outback. I can definitely say that these trips have welded
us together and there are all these unforgettable
experiences which we will share for a lifetime.
Except for two French girls and a few Asians, most of the students came from an English-speaking
background and therefore, we got the chance to practise our English with native speakers on a
permanent basis. What I found really great was the fact that there were not only all the friendly andextroverted internationals, but also all the lovely locals with whom we could easily get in touch with
on and around college (the Unibar made a not insignificant contribution to that ;-)). As I am a very
-
7/28/2019 Exchange Report Australia SCU_Daniela Vanessa Bermadinger
15/20
Exchange Report
SCU Lismore
Bermadinger, Handl, Stiendl 15
curious and open-minded person interested in other peoples lives and cultures I spent most of my
time meeting and getting to know all these exceptional people and really enjoyed having
conversations about their home country and culture with them. Google Maps was a huge support
and even allowed us to show each other the places where we usually lived. ;-)
On our final road trip along the East Coast, we already got the chance to stop along the way downand visit some of the friends we made during our studies. I could endlessly enthuse over the
Australian hospitality. Stopping at our friends places gave us an even more intimate and unique
insight into the Australian mentality or way of living. We owe these people so much, but I really hope
one day we can give them a little bit back when they are coming over to Europe and visit us in
exchange. I can proudly say now that we have our own Australian family in Sydney where we spent
a whole week and to which we could go back anytime, a lot of friends spread all over the world with
whom we are still in touch (thanks to Facebook at this point ;-)) and whom we could easily catch up
with in their home country and that we are just waiting for all of them to fly in. After all, we have
never even thought of becoming tired of approaching new people.
6.2 SABINEIntercultural aspects are really important at the SCU. This semester, there were about 60 exchange
students from all over the world, especially from the USA, Canada and from Asian Countries. I got to
know many different nationalities due to the fact that nearly all the international students live on
college. Of course I got to know heaps of Australian students as well. The managers of the college
decide in which unit an international student lives. I had to fill out some forms and evaluate my
habits and preferences before I came to Australia. So local Australian students are mixed up with
internationals which is a very good idea.
Nearly everyone on college was interested in the country
we came from. Especially the Australian students wanted
to learn something about Austria because many of their
ancestors came from Europe. It was a real pleasure for me
to represent Austria in Australia and to teach some funny
German words and phrases. Now the Australians,
Americans, Canadians and all the other nations which were
present on college know a lot more about Austria and
Europe and some prejudices are now disproved. I am sure
that I learned a lot about Australia and America and some
of my prejudices are disproved but others are confirmed.
One could say that the residents on college were one big family for one semester. We all had so
much fun together and there were hardly any residents I did not know. Therefore it was really sad to
say good bye to all of them at the end of the semester. We all got along with each other really well
even though there were so many different people with a different cultural background. Nobody was
discriminated or teased because of his/her origin.
6.3 ANDREAComing to Australia meant living in a different country with different people that have different
customs and believes than we have. It was a really interesting experience to get to know so many
-
7/28/2019 Exchange Report Australia SCU_Daniela Vanessa Bermadinger
16/20
Exchange Report
SCU Lismore
Bermadinger, Handl, Stiendl 16
people from all over the world and to learn from them, not only about their countries, but also about
their lifestyles and mentalities.
Australians in general are really friendly and always offer their
help no matter if they gain something form it as well or not.
They were also very interested in our origin and why we cameto Australia. It happened several times that we met people in
the streets, the bank, the airport or even the police station
that just started talking to us, because they overheard that we
were not from the area. After they found out we were from
Austria a lot of them proudly told us that their ancestors were
from Europe or that they had already been to Austria for
travelling. It was really great to experience this interest in
other cultures, because it made us feel welcome from the first moment on.
During our exchange semester we lived with Australians, studied with exchange students from theUS, Canada and Asia and made friends with all of them. I think it was really great that, unlike in some
other exchange destinations, all the international students were mixed up with locals and lived
together in the colleges apartments. We talked about everything and anything, exchanged music,
recipes and customs, learned about their travel experiences in Austria, Europe and the world and
taught them some easy and funny German words and sentences. Everyone was really open-minded
and curious about the other peoples background, but also very tolerant when they discover ed parts
of their culture they did not understand.
I also really enjoyed representing Austria during my exchange semester and I was glad that, like
Sabine, I brought my Dirndl with me. Even if it was just for a costume party, it was great to wear it ina surrounding where nobody knew the custom behind it, but everyone thought it was great that we
brought a bit of home with us. I also got another point of view, in a positive and negative way, on
some aspects about the Austrian life, because some things are simply done differently in Australia.
I believe that living with people from all over the world really changed my way of thinking and
broadened my horizon. I might not even be aware of the influence all the great people I met during
this semester had on my, but I know that I changed a lot because of them. Therefore I am really glad
that I met each and every one of them, because they all shaped my exchange semester and made it
an unforgettable time.
7 TRIPS &TRAVELLING7.1 TRIP TO THE OUTBACKIn our study week we went to the Outback with 14 exchange students, our Outdoor Education
teacher Steve and his friend Jude. We flew from Brisbane to Alice Springs, where we rented 2 trucks
to drive through the Red Centre. As we did not have our own big backpacks, sleeping bags and
camping mats, we borrowed them from the university or friends. We also had to bring good shoes
(Andrea and Sabine brought their hiking boots from Austria, the others simply wore runners), a rain
jacket, a hat, a torch, cutlery and a lot of other stuff which we could borrow from friends or had tobuy in the shopping centre.
-
7/28/2019 Exchange Report Australia SCU_Daniela Vanessa Bermadinger
17/20
Exchange Report
SCU Lismore
Bermadinger, Handl, Stiendl 17
During this week we visited the Uluru-Kata Tjuta
National Park (where the Uluru (Ayers Rock) is located),
the Western MacDonnell National Park, the Kings
Canyon and some other sites which were pretty
amazing. Every day we drove some hours in the car and
hiked for several hours. Most of the time we left our big
backpacks with the cars and only took smaller daypacks
on the hikes, but once we had to bring almost all our
stuff as we stayed away from our cars for the night. We
slept outside for 7 nights on sandy rivers beds, camping
grounds or in canyons between rocks. We also brought some tents to sleep in, but most of us wanted
to sleep under the stars anyway. The nights were pretty cold and we even had frost on our sleeping
bags twice in the morning, so it was good that we brought enough warm clothes and warmed us up
at the campfire before we went to bed.
We also had to prepare our own meals, so everyone had to participate in cooking lunch and dinner.
As we did not have access to supermarkets for the whole time we had to bring all the food and
enough water for the whole week and did not bring many perishable food items. For lunch we always
had wraps with vegetables, tuna, sausage, cheese and sauces and for dinner we cooked simple things
like rice or pasta. The university supplied us with the food, so we did not need to bring anything on
our own except some snacks and sweets.
We only had the chance to shower once during the week (in the Uluru Resort), but there were some
cold water holes along our hikes where we could refresh ourselves. We also did not have access to
proper toilets, because only a few of or camp sites where equipped with toilets. Most of the time we
were so far away from civilization that there was no need to bring our mobile phones on the trip.
We had an absolutely great time on the trip, because we saw a lot of wonderful places and sites. We
did not really know a lot about the Red Centre (except the Uluru) before we went on the trip, but we
were amazed how much it has to offer. We learned a lot about the country and also the indigenous
culture that is connected with it. Furthermore we did not only got to know the other exchange
students better, but also made good friends with our teachers Steve and Jude.
The trip was completely planned by the international department and we did not have to take care
of anything. Some of the other exchange students were lucky, because their home institutions had a
special agreement with the SCU, so their trip, except the air fare to Alice Springs, was covered forthem. The IMC does not have such an agreement, so we had to pay the whole amount of AU$ 1,220,
but the trip was definitely worth all the money! The International office also offered a trip to Fraser
Island which was a cheaper (AU$ 700), but as it took place at the same time, we could not take part
in it.
7.2 ROAD TRIPMost of the exchange students did a lot of trips to Brisbane, Sydney, Cairns and other places on their
weekends during the semester. As our student visa only expired a month after the semester finished,
we decided to rent a camper van and do a road trip instead. We flew up to Cairns, visited a friend in
Port Douglas for some days, went back to Cairns and picked up our car there. In the following days
we drove down the East Coast and saw wonderful places like Townsville, the Whitsunday Islands,
-
7/28/2019 Exchange Report Australia SCU_Daniela Vanessa Bermadinger
18/20
Exchange Report
SCU Lismore
Bermadinger, Handl, Stiendl 18
Rockhampton, Fraser Island, Brisbane, Byron Bay and Coffs Harbor before we returned the car in
Sydney.
There we could stay with our friend Dan and his family for 5 days. They made us feel like family and
we really had a great time exploring the city and experiencing the true blue Aussie life. After 5 days
we took the overnight train to Melbourne and stayed with Diana, another friend from college, beforewe went to New Zealand, from where we went back home to Austria, for some days.
We already decided to do this road trip before we went
to Australia, therefore all 3 of us brought our Austrian
and International Drivers License that we needed to
rent a car. We decided to rent a Jucy-Camper-Van that
was well equipped with a gas stove, cutlery and dishes,
a fridge and even a sink and which had an automatic
gear. This was really great, especially as we had never
driven on the left side of the road before. It turned outnot to be so difficult, so we really enjoyed driving and
being on the road for such a long time.
During the trip we could sleep in the car, because there were 4 sleeping places (2 in the car, 2 in a
tent on the roof). The only problem was that overnight parking is not allowed in public areas and
there are only a few free overnight camping sites, so we had to pay to park on camping grounds
several times. Furthermore we had to pay a toll when using the highway around Brisbane and
Sydney, which was not too much, but turned out to be a bit difficult to manage (the automatic
answering machine at the hotline did not recognize our voice).
The universitys travel agency and its owner Alan helped us a lot in preparing this trip. He did not only
assist us in renting the car and buying bus, plane and train tickets, but also gave us a map of the East
Coast where he marked all the places we should see. Alan was really nice and helpful, but he loves to
talk to and joke with students, so it also always took quite some time before we talked business.
8 PERSONAL EVALUATION8.1 DANIELABesides all the friendships I have made during my time in Terra Australis, this exchange semesteralso contributed a lot to me becoming more mature. Given the fact that I had never been abroad for
such a long time before, I had not only to survive at the other end of the world, but rather cope
with a totally different setting: a different culture, a language which is different from my mother
tongue and a different university system for the first time.
With regard to the culture, I have already said that I have just become more open-minded and
outgoing than I was before. Concerning the language, I feel way more self-confident speaking English
now and I am glad that I have got to know another course design and graduation system. Living in a
place far away from home always helps you in becoming more mature, I guess, because you have to
organise so much more on your own which goes hand in hand with more responsibility and to findyour way around in all the foreign cities and on a new campus. The way of living life was different
-
7/28/2019 Exchange Report Australia SCU_Daniela Vanessa Bermadinger
19/20
Exchange Report
SCU Lismore
Bermadinger, Handl, Stiendl 19
there to the one I was used to at home, but I would say in a rather positive way and that I got quickly
used to it.
In my opinion, you have to be more flexible, more tolerant, as well
as extremely curious and enthusiastic about travelling and getting
to know foreign places and new people in order to be able to reallyenjoy such an exchange semester. I have always been interested in
the background of this continent and its inhabitants. Therefore, I
have tried to get as much information about them as possible and
store it in my brain, so that I know much more about Australia and
also New Zealand, since we were staying there for a short time as
well, now.
The long trip at the end was organised mostly by us and with a little
help from our travel assistant and it had also been the first time for
me that I had planned such a big adventure. Especially the outdoorand outback trips gave me the chance to experience how I act and react under different and more
difficult conditions and pressure situations. Finally, I have benefited so much and in every aspect
from this exchange semester, it really did teach me a lot, not only how to drive on the other side of a
road, but more essential and longer-lasting things, that I would not have wanted to miss a single
second of it. Travelling, indeed, broadens your horizon!
8.2 SABINEI simply LOVED my time in Down Under. I would definitely go there again anytime. It was just
awesome. The Australian folk are so nice, open minded, friendly, helpful and laid back. I felt
comfortable from the first moment on and my new friends from the other end of the world made
every day of my stay to a very special one. I really liked most of the courses at university and I
learned a lot. I got to know so many nice people and many of them took us to beautiful places in New
South Wales and Queensland. I am really glad that I could spend half a year of my life in Down Under
and be part of an amazing continent.
But one has to keep in mind that an exchange semester in Australia is rather expensive. So one
should think about money matters in advance, but to my mind it was absolutely worth it!
I always wanted to visit Australia one day and the IMC made
my dream come true. I did not feel like a bloody tourist inDown Under but I was able to make true blue Aussie friends
and therefore I was very much involved in the Australian
lifestyle and culture. That made my stay to an unforgettable
adventure. Now Australia is a part of my life and I simply fell
in love with this amazing continent.
Live it the Australian way: NO WORRIES MATE!
8.3 ANDREAI definitely dont regret a single moment of my exchange semester because I met heaps of amazingpeople and learned to love a whole continent! From the first moment I found out that I would spend
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=31390663&id=1360951695 -
7/28/2019 Exchange Report Australia SCU_Daniela Vanessa Bermadinger
20/20
Exchange Report
SCU Lismore
my exchange semester in Australia with Sabine and Daniela I knew that we would spend an amazing
time together on the other end of the world.
We got to know a wonderful continent that offers so much to see
that one semester really is not enough to discover everything. I am
really glad that I got the chance to go to the Outback and that wemade this incredible round trip at the end of the semester. We
could easily have stayed for a second and third semester without
capturing all the wonderful things that make this country so
spectacular.
I also enjoyed studying at the SCU, although and because the way
of teaching was so different from back home. It was interesting to
see a different approach towards education and how tricky it can
be to adapt an unfamiliar system. However, the staff of the
international department and our units helped us to adjust todifferent setting quickly, so we could keep up with our Australian colleagues and successfully
complete this semester.
Last but not least, I am glad that I met all these wonderful people and made some friends that I know
will be there for me for the rest of my life. We might be separated by oceans, but I know that one
day I will see all of them again and it will be as if we had never parted. All of them contributed to
making this semester the best time of my life and I hope I did the same for them.
9 USEFUL LINKS SCU homepagewww.scu.edu.au Lismore City Councilwww.lismore.nsw.gov.au Lismore Tourismwww.visitlismore.com.au Online application for student visawww.immi.gov.au/e_visa SCU Village Lismore Campuswww.scuvillage.com.au/lismore Medibank Privatewww.medibank.com.au Global Gossipglobalgossip.com Lismore Shopping Squarewww.lismoresquare.com.au Jucy Rentalswww.jucy.com.au
PLEASE DONT HESITATE IF YOU HAVE ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS
ABOUT OUR EXCHANGE SEMESTER IN LISMORE,AUSTRALIA!
DANIELA BERMADINGER SABINE HANDL ANDREA STIENDL
0910311005 0910311022 0910311059
http://www.scu.edu.au/http://www.scu.edu.au/http://www.scu.edu.au/http://www.lismore.nsw.gov.au/http://www.lismore.nsw.gov.au/http://www.lismore.nsw.gov.au/http://www.visitlismore.com.au/http://www.visitlismore.com.au/http://www.visitlismore.com.au/http://www.immi.gov.au/e_visahttp://www.immi.gov.au/e_visahttp://www.immi.gov.au/e_visahttp://www.scuvillage.com.au/lismorehttp://www.scuvillage.com.au/lismorehttp://www.scuvillage.com.au/lismorehttp://www.medibank.com.au/http://www.medibank.com.au/http://www.medibank.com.au/http://globalgossip.com/http://globalgossip.com/http://globalgossip.com/http://www.lismoresquare.com.au/http://www.lismoresquare.com.au/http://www.lismoresquare.com.au/http://www.jucy.com.au/http://www.jucy.com.au/http://www.jucy.com.au/http://www.jucy.com.au/http://www.lismoresquare.com.au/http://globalgossip.com/http://www.medibank.com.au/http://www.scuvillage.com.au/lismorehttp://www.immi.gov.au/e_visahttp://www.visitlismore.com.au/http://www.lismore.nsw.gov.au/http://www.scu.edu.au/