Erfahrungsbericht Auslandssemester 2012/13
University of Ottawa
Andrea Mareike Abel
Das Folgende ist größtenteils eine Zusammenstellung von Blogeinträgen, die ich während
des Semesters an der University of Ottawa geschrieben und online gestellt habe.
Das Blog kann weiterhin unter
thegrumblingirlinottawa.wordpress.com [http://thegrumblingirlinottawa.wordpress.com/]
abgerufen werden; es enthält auch noch mehr weiterführende Posts.
Organisatorisches:
Rideau Canal, August 2012
Mein Zimmer habe ich über Craigslist gefunden — es kann eine Weile dauern, bis sich
jemand meldet, also nicht verzagen. Für die Einreise braucht man kein Visum, nur
den Reisepass und den Begrüßungsbrief der Universität. Wenn möglich, ist es besser,
ein paar Tage früher anzureisen; so hat man mehr Zeit, alles Administrative (Studentenausweis,
Semesterticket) zu erledigen. Die Schlangen sind in den ersten Tagen des Semesters
jenseits von spektakulär, das lässt sich in der letzten Augustwoche noch ganz gut
vermeiden. Eure Versicherung und das Semesterticket solltet ihr bereits bezahlen,
bevor ihr anreist, die Uni hat dafür in ihrem virtuellen Campus eine Anleitung für
den Auslandstransfer.
Blogauszüge
The Quest for the Holy Grail begins… [http://thegrumblingirlinottawa.wordpress.com/2012/09/04/welcome-day/]
So, after days of agonising silence, today was Welcome Day, which works like this:
herd the imported sheep together, shove them in a room, give them goodie bags, and
tell them stuff. This concept usually plays out better in theory than it does in
practice, but today, everything went smoothly. There were several sessions, due
to the sheer number of people arriving from all over the world; also, I’m
registered as an exchange student, whereas most other incoming students are registered
as international students; which apparently causes confusion even among university
employees sometimes. Note: always emphasise and be clear on which of these two groups
you belong to when you go sorting out your things.
View of Montréal Pierre-Elliot-Trudeau International Airport from the bus stops
There was also a lot of discussion on the matter of the uPass, and after the survey
among all international and exchange students, the U-Pass is now available for exchange
and international students again. The university has taken our recommendation and
passed it on to OC Transpo. For students of this term, it is optional to purchase
the pass; as of next year (2013/14), however, the pass will be mandatory
for all students, and will be charged to your e-bill before the term starts, along
with the insurance fee (UHIP). If you’re only staying for four months, you’ll
be able to get a refund for half of the ticket in mid-December.
Welcome Day basically advises students to do everything organisational and administrative
they haven’t gotten around to yet: picking up their student ID, finding an
apartment/room if they’re still bunking at a hostel, picking up their course
materials, if available, etc. In other news, there are people coming in to talk
to you about the Community Life Service, the Health Resource Center, and the Sports
Services. Moving on…
Academia!
I'm taking the following classes:
- Modern British Lit, with Prof. Childs (third-year course)
- Science Fiction, with Prof. Warnock (second-year course)
- Fiction of Horror, with Prof. Cooper (second-year course)
- Utopian Fiction, with Prof. Phillips (second-year course)
Now, the requirements in each class are roughly the same, though the administrative
details vary with each lecturer. What you have to be prepared for is a much tighter
schedule. There is more reading to be done than you’re probably used to, and
more small examinations all over the semester to keep you on your toes. Since these
courses I’m taking are coded as lectures, as opposed to seminars (which are
called discussion groups here, I believe), the groups are bigger and participation
in the actual class counts for less of your grade; since there’s just not
much chance for it. Your only “homework” is reading, there are
no additional assignments during the week. So in case you’re quiet and can’t
really make an impression on the lecturer, you’ll be glad to have the tests
and short responses to make yourself visible and keep your grade up.
Knox Presbytarian Church, Lisgar St at Elgin
Since I can't cover all general exam requirements, I'll just talk about my courses
to illustrate what you might encounter:
There are informal responses (just paragraphs or very short essays, no more than
500 words) to be written, at least three per course in Science Fiction and Fiction
of Horror. In Utopian Fiction, there are four quizzes (open questions, requiring
one-sentence answers) throughout the term. In Modern Brit Lit, you basically just
have to show up most of the time and write a whollopping essay—or two, depending
on whether you’re satisfied with your grade after the first attempt. In each
course, there’s a final essay/research term paper, ranging from 2,000 to 2,700
words; and a final exam after the teaching session closes in early December. Utopian
Fiction also requires a second, shorter essay (usually due in October, right before
study week). In Fiction of Horror, there’s also a midterm: a fairly straightforward
test, in which we’ll have to identify passages from the fictions we’ve
read so far, name the author and the work, and write about a page on which trope
of Horror Fiction is being used in it, and to what effect.
The course choices are varied and extensive especially for literature students.
The courses are generally very comprehensive. In each class, we're reading at least
four or five novels, plus short stories, though hardly any secondary material. Since
it's lectures rather than seminars, though, don't stress yourself too much about
getting all the reading done on time if other things come up that demand
your attention. One, because hardly anyone does, two, because the lecturers are
covering the material so thoroughly in their notes that catching up is easy enough
if you keep at it; since the things they talk about can be expected to be the things
most pertinent to the final exams. The schedule, however, is manageable, though
I have taken to reading practically everywhere except in the shower; but that's
just me.
The material is readable and versatile, especially in Science Fiction and Fiction
of Horror. So, definitely take advantage of the classes that complement the current
genre rotation in Bremen. Fiction of Horror, especially, grapples with some useful
and interesting concepts, because it’s inherently political literature (and
gore); similar to Science Fiction.
The other students are really friendly and open, though at the beginning of the
year everyone’s a bit shy; but the ice breaks soon enough and you’ll
find yourself having a chat with some brilliant people.
Another thing:
When you bring your laptop/smartphone, leave the eduroam connection installed in
your WiFi settings. Here, technically only employees have access to the eduroam
network; students are supposed to use the uOttawa-WPA, which has the unfortunate
habit of being a bit of a diva, so if you can’t get the network to work/access
the internet or if there’s limited connectivity, just use your eduroam account,
it’ll let you in. (Which is especially handy because the university website
doesn’t have Android support, though you can just configure your smartphone
the way it is described for iPhone or BlackBerry.)
The VPN client the student guide issued by the university talks about totally flaked
out on me, so I’d say don’t even bother with that one.
Abschlussbemerkung:
Die Quidditch-Spiele habe ich leider verpasst (kein Witz!), aber auch ohne Schnatz
haben mir meine vier Monate an der Uni von Ottawa sehr viel Spaß gemacht. Die Kurse
waren arbeitsintensiv und anspruchsvoll, und wenn man stur dran bleibt, lohnt es
sich definitiv. Die Studenten sind freundlich und aufgeschlossen, und die Dozenten
sind meiner Erfahrung nach hilfsbereit und kompetent. Ich habe nicht nur für meine
Bachelorarbeit Anregungen gewonnen, sondern auch für mein Nebenfach, Kulturwissenschaften,
viel gelernt — unter ethnologischen Feldbedingungen, sozusagen.
Weiterbildung außerhalb der Uni
Zwar dürfen Austauschstudenten in Kanada nicht arbeiten sofern sie keine Studienerlaubnis
beantragt haben; aber dafür gibt es gerade für Studenten der Englischen Literatur-
und Sprachwissenschaft eine sehr spannende Möglichkeit, als volunteer zu
arbeiten. Das Ottawa International Writers Festival, ausgerichtet im April und Oktober,
ist eines der weltweit größten Literaturfestivals und hat mit über 30 Veranstaltungen
von populärer Wissenschaftsliteratur über Politik und Religion bis zu Belletristik
und Romanliteratur vieles zu bieten. Für freiwillige Mitarbeiter sind die jeweiligen
Veranstaltungen kostenlos (wenn man mind. 5 Stunden mitarbeitet, auch alle anderen).
Wohngegend und Verkehrsanbindung
Generell bezahlt man natürlich im umliegenden Stadtgebiet weniger Miete als direkt
in der Innenstadt, dort ist auch nicht immer rechtzeitig was zu bekommen. Es lohnt
sich, auch z.B. in Hull/Gatineau, Kanata oder Gloucester zu schauen, weil dort die
Preise etwa halb so hoch sind wie teilweise sogar im Studentenwohnheim (es gibt
kein freigehaltenes Kontingent für Austauschstudenten dort, also wird einem gleich
nach der Anmeldung geraten, sich selbst umzusehen). Gloucester liegt zwar weiter
außerhalb des Stadtkerns, ist mit dem Bus aber auch nur eine halbe Stunde vom Campus
entfernt.
Tipp: Free Store
In der ersten Woche des Semesters wird extra für die internationalen Studenten der
Free Store frühzeitig geöffnet. Dort können Studenten und Angestellte der Uni alles
abladen, was noch zu gebrauchen ist: Klamotten, Büromaterial, Bücher, Seifenspender,
etc. Alles, was im Free Store untergebracht ist, kann kostenlos mitgenommen werden;
und am Ende des Semesters kann man Schnickschnack wieder loswerden, den man nicht
in den Koffer stopfen möchte. (647 King Edwards Ave)