The Buddy Programme

Well first off, hello again!  My apologies to those that have been frantically clicking their refresh button on their browser over the last couple of weeks waiting for an update!  I'm now back from my holidays so expect plenty more updates about the life and times of Brian in Umeå.

As promised the next thing I wanted to talk about was the Buddy Programme at Umeå University.

So you've arrived in Northen Sweden in a town that you've been pronouncing Ume-aaa only to find out its pronounced Ume-ooo.  You may have traveled on your own or with a few of your fellow country men/women;  but one thing is for sure you're going to feel a little bit lost.  Even if you've read all the information available to you; you know that Umeå is called the City of Birches, you know the exact gender ratio of the university (62% female / 38% male for those playing along at home)... it's still very strange arriving in a new country.

And this is where the Buddy Programme plays such an important role.  It mixes international students from different countries with Swedish students in different groups.  An average there is around about 15-20 students in each group with about 6-7 of them being Swedes.  The students themselves organise events and activities to get the new students more integrated into student life in Sweden.  Also the Programme organises "International Pubs" which happen once every couple of months.  These can be quite the event and usually end up with a few quite interesting stories to tell the next morning!

This picture is taken from the "Snow Games" that was organised at the start of the second semester.  There's nothing like some snow football or snow rugby to help you get to know your fellow students!

My advice to you now is to go register for the buddy programme.  The last day to do so is August 20th and you will really regret if you don't.

So click on the link below and follow the instructions to sign up, there is a link on the right hand side to do this:

http://www.umu.se/english/education/student-support/buddy-programme

Till next time,

Brian