Stephanie Cremer (Germany)

Hi there, I am Stephanie Cremer from Germany and I am doing my MSc in Tourism Management and Marketing. First of all, you need to know that I did my Undergraduate degree back in Germany, as an integrated degree, so I was working and studying full time at the same time. That also meant that I was not able to spend a semester abroad. This is one of the reasons I chose to finish my studies with a masters in the UK. There are many location related reasons for studying in Bournemouth (12 km sandy beach and only 2 hours by train from London to name but a few) but let me share my 5 top BU favorites with you:

5. The Global Cafe

Every Wednesday on the third floor of the fusion building international students meet. It can be a group of friends, classmates or just students looking to meet other international students or people from their home country. It’s all organised by the International Chaplain Sue Burt and it’s a great way to make new friends plus there is free coffee and amazing cookies.

4. Coffee, coffee, coffee

I don’t know about you, but I love coffee, I basically live off it. BU has kind of accepted that that is the case for most of the students, so there are now 8 coffee shops just on Talbot Campus alone. Ranging from Starbucks for your sugar intake to Costa Coffee and Naked Coffee. Sadly, this also means that there are no excuses for not submitting an assignment or studying for an exam.

3. Lecturers

This was a very positive surprise for me. Lecturers that you address by their first name and that will even know your name after a few classes. And not only do they answer questions in and after class, they will also reply to your emails within a few days. This was a whole new experience for me and they also encourage you to not only think for yourself but also to think outside the box!

2. SUBU and the SUBU building

SUBU is the student union at BU and they state that their mission is to ensure you get the very best out of your university experience! But what does that actually mean? Well, you can contact SUBU for course matters, money and accommodation enquiries and they also organise hundreds of activities via all these amazing clubs and societies you get to join when you arrive at BU and they also offer programmes for you to enhance your skills and employability. They have a whole building to themselves, the SUBU building where you can do group work, hang out and enjoy a coffee with friends (there are 2 coffee shops located inside the SUBU building). Pretty neat, right?

1. The student community

Last but not least, I really like the student community at BU. Given that I’m a master’s student most of my classmates are from all around the world. Not only Asia, but also from the Caribbean, US, Africa and the whole of Europe. Sometimes it can be a bit of a challenge, as everybody has a different cultural background, but most of the time it’s just a great experience to meet all these different people, learn about their culture, become their friends and share a great university experience, University  is not just about studying 24/7.

Stephanie Cremer, Germany, MSc Tourism Management and Marketing 2016/17.