I started my Erasmus at the end of January in 2026. When I arrived in Utrecht, it was freezing cold. My finger froze through my gloves, and it was nearly impossible to be outside longer than necessary because of the harsh wind. In the Netherlands this is still no excuse not to cycle. That meant for me and everyone I met on Erasmus that we STILL cycled to events like Buddy go Dutch and the ESN introduction week. The weather didn’t stop me to fall head over heels in love with my Erasmus and the city Utrecht. Now, I can not imagine a life without my Erasmus. I always knew that I wanted to do an exchange semester and therefore my excitement was immense and I have to say my expectations were exceeded.

In my university in Graz, I study to be a primary school teacher. In the summer semester the Hogeschool Utrecht doesn’t have a program specifically for teachers. That meant for me that I studied a minor that is meant a part of the English Teacher program. The program was called Art of Writing, and it is exactly what you would expect. We wrote a script, short stories, poems, fiction stories and did some life writing. The university in general has a different concept than the one I was used to. In the Netherlands it is typical to only have classes a few days a week. In my case that was Monday and Thursday. Of course, that didn’t mean that I didn’t have assignments due or I was bored. For me it meant that I scheduled everything outside my class by myself. In the beginning it was a big challenge but with time I got used to it. I didn’t have to attend a teacher practice because it wasn’t included in the course program in Utrecht. I still wanted to see schools and lessons in the Netherlands and therefore visited two schools in the surrounding areas of Utrecht. It was important to me that I would go to an organized university. The Hogeschool Utrecht helped us a lot and got us all the information we needed before the Erasmus. The program itself was a bit chaotic but in the end, we still managed everything.

Utrecht is a vibrant student city twenty-five minutes away from Amsterdam. I was so happy that I chose this city. The canals, the oudegracht, the biking, the small cafes and of course the dome tower were amazing. The train connections are good which made it easy for us to see the rest of the Netherlands. Do keep in mind that it takes around fifteen to twenty minutes with the bike to get to the city center because the campus is located outside of Utrecht.

I lived on the Science Park Campus, which I already mentioned earlier in my article. There are a few student houses, and I wholeheartedly recommend you inform yourself in which one you would like to live before the dates to register drop. My tip: when the registration drops be there in the first second so you can book the house you want to live in. You also must have a little bit of trust that you will end up with the right people. I lived in the building called Johanna and, in my opinion, it is the nicest. There is one further away from Utrecht, in Zeist which is a bit cheaper. The other option was Pythagoraslaan but keep in mind that this is more a party house. If that’s for you, that’s the place to be. For me this wouldn’t have been the right home for these five months, so I was lucky to end up in Johanna. The last option was Cambridgelaan which is located five minutes away from Johanna. The flats host four people which is smaller than in Johanna. There you can have up to six roommates. The Cambridgelaan building is also a bit older.

All in all I can say that the Erasmus was one of the best experiences in my life. I met so many amazing people and although it can be tough sometimes this was the place to be for me personally. I met so many inspiring people from all over the world but also the dutchies surprised me in a positive way with their openness. If you think about going to Utrecht for your Erasmus I can say: DO IT! For me it was an amazing time that I will never ever forget about.

Photos & Text: Marie Valerie Pall