Rosemary Seberry : Emory University, Atlanta

Name: Rosemary Seberry
UOW Degree:B Commerce (Management and Legal Studies)
Host University: Goizueta School of Business, Emory University, Atlanta Georgia

Being an exchange student is not just about getting to your new uni, settling in, making friends and somewhere in there fitting in some study. For me, I decided to make the whole trip an adventure. I left Sydney on New Year's Eve, so I missed the celebrations, but there is always next year. I was headed for Atlanta, Georgia, in the USA, but decided that the round-the-world plane ticket was the most cost effective.

Some Snapshots
The Business School @ Emory, Atlanta	Class @ the Business School	Pool facilities	Me @ the Business School	It's so cold! Look at the ice!
Me @ Hamstead Heath	Me in the snow @ Ingrids	Hiking in Cloudlands Canyon	The waterfall @ Cloudlands canyon	Me @ the waterfall

Therefore, my first port of call was London. I took in some of the more unusual sites, as I had already been there, done that, so I went on the London Eye, which is a huge wheel built as part of the Millennium celebrations. It is a huge ferris wheel over the River Thames and has great views of London. I also did some historical walking tours and lots of walking in the fields and areas on the outskirts of London. I saw a musical production at the West End, a real must, and saw the vibrant lights of Leicester Square and Covent Garden. To my great surprise, and everyone else's, I was treated to the most snow that London has seen in 12 years. It was only about 10cm, but enough to ruin the travel plans of a very busy city. There are plenty of free museums and galleries in London, but if they are not free, the International Student card can save you heaps of $, but not on the transport unfortunately.

My Accommodation
E-Block @ Clairmont	My bedroom B4 moving in	My bedroom afterwards	My Loungeroom	Australia Day & Superbowl!
My Emory PJs	Dining room & kitchen	Dining & kitchen after the flood!	Staying @ Pine Mountain

Finally the time came to make my way to America and my new 'school' as they so fondly call it over here. I am lucky as English is my first language, but the other exchange students in my group come from everywhere from Hong Kong to Belarus. The orientation alone is enough to make you scurry back to your room and wonder what you were thinking when you signed up for the exchange!

My uni is Emory, and student wise is a similar size to UOW, but the campus it huge beyond your imagination. There are 4 shuttle bus services around the campus just to get you from home to class, or the food or the supermarket. The uni even comes complete with their own hospital, which obviously services the local residents as well. Classes are one hour and 15 mins in the Business School, not sure about the other faculties, and there are 2 lessons a week. There are no tutorials and attendance and participation count for 15% of the mark. If you are sick and can't go to lecture, you need a medical certificate. I think my school may be unique in this regard, as I don't think that the rest of the uni is this strict.

Out & About
Ice-Hockey!	Some of the action	More of the action	Giant Screens	Angie, Marina, Alvin & Sam on a train
Having cider in a pub	My friends @ Hard Rock Cafe	Elvis @ Hard Rock Cafe	Guess what I did today!	Everyone @ skydiving

I have teamed up with some Uni of NSW, Hong Kong and Singapore students. It is good as we all want to explore and can share things together, such as the stress of being in a different place and with no family and friend support. I have found that the email is a great way of ensuring that constant contact with friends helps alleviate homesickness. I am sure that by the time I get to Week 4 and my first of two mid-session exams for the same subject, that I will be too busy to miss home and will wonder what I achieved by the time May rolls around and I have to head off.

As I said before, this trip is an adventure. My round-the-world ticket takes me to South America for 5 weeks and New Zealand for 4 weeks before I have to turn up for Spring session at UOW.

Exchange - do it - it is a whole new experience that only comes along once in a lifetime.

- Rosemary Seberry

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