Reason #6
Comforting side effects for a student
Of course, that feeling was an individual one. But wow – All in all, I must say, that I probably have had the best time so far in my life in Murcia. It wasn’t a full year, because I left the city after eight months. But to sum it up, I never felt as confident and never had less sorrows in life or an easier job to pass than this study. Here is why:
Great lesson schedule
Very good news for all long sleepers who have had a couple the evening before or need to work in the mornings. The classes for the Master study start at 4:30 PM in the afternoon, right after the Spanish siesta. Although it was late in the afternoon, I still came several times too late too class 🙂
You will usually have a break at 6:30 PM for half an hour and will then continue until 8:30 PM max. This schedule of four hours in four days lets you have 16 hours of contact hours and approximately 15 – 20 hours of group work and essay’s every week. Depending of course on the time you will need for everything outside of the university. But still I must say, that the week itself for a student can’t be more chill than in Murcia.
I was in total eight months in Murcia, but I had unfortunately only one month to enjoy as a full-time student. To finance my study, I was working every day for six hours approximately remotely for a Dutch company and earned a pretty decent salary. Compared to other students, I had a 70 hours-week. But it was more than worth it. So I can say at least, that I was financing my study on my own and did not beg at parents or the government for help.
Good weather, tasty food, many parties and the beach is very close
The most important thing for a student is to know about all the amenities around the study itself. What Murcia has to offer around its pompous university is quite attractive.
If you like hot temperatures, you will have found the right place to be. In winter times it usually never gets colder than 12 degrees celsius (Only exemption: 18th of January 2017 when it snowed for the first time in Murcia since 36 years) and in summer times you can enjoy temperatures about 40 degrees celsius. My Finnish housemate these days had quite some problems with the temperatures. But as a snowman you should not swallow too much sunshine. Everyone else appreciated the good temperatures.
Food tastes very good in southern Europe and kitchen can be described as Mediterranean style: Light food, a lot of fish and rather oil and vinegar instead of heavy sauces. Besides that, the Murcia region is famous for its citrus fruits. You will almost everywhere you go find a tree with fresh lemons, oranges or mandarines. What I also liked were many traditional restaurants in Murcia. Of course there are as well some Yankee-Fast Food restaurants, but many tasty tapas are prepared on a traditional Spanish way. You would like that!
Party animals can live out their life and be in their full element. Murcia is famous as a city where many young people live, thanks to two bigger universities and a lot of other colleges, schools, etc. Not only at weekends there are many opportunities to go out and have fun during the evenings. And it’s usually possible to celebrate until the early morning.
Also the beaches are very close and worth to see. You will only need around 45 minutes to arrive at the closest beach there is. And as a student with a lot of free time you can enjoy the almost empty beaches out of the main season.
Some things you will get for free at UCAM
It’s hard to believe, because usually you have to pay for every little thing in your life. Regardless if you are a student with a low budget or not, people want to earn money with you. But if you are studying, some things at UCAM are free. I remember at least three of them:
- Free welcome package: Nice gesture! You receive as a beginner a little box with a t-shirt, some stationary supplies and vouchers.
- Free language course: You have the option to attend a cost-free course in Spanish to obtain a A1, A2, B1 or B2 level.
- Free tickets: UCAM sometimes gives away free tickets for their sport teams. The basketball team plays in the first Spanish league, the football team in the second Spanish league.
Although these are only smaller things, also minor gestures can make a student very happy.
Next page: Comfortable side effects – Best time of life