Academic Development
This experience has helped me gain a better understanding of Singapore's legal system. In addition, the law courses I took were ones that UQ does not offer, so I was able to learn about other aspects of law (for example, public health law and regulation) that I would not have been able to had I only stayed at UQ. In addition, I was able to take 2 very interesting film electives that I was not able to find in UQ either.
Funding
The funding was very, very helpful as it helped me pay for the more major expenses such as accommodation, flights, transport, and household items when I first moved into my dorm.
Some advice I would give future students would be to do something similar to what I did: tabulate your expenses as against how much you are willing to spend per month or per week. That way, you can clearly see how much you are spending and know if you have some extra money to spend on personal stuff like entertainment, shopping or travel, or if it would be more appropriate to spend more conservatively.
Personal Development
Personally, the most valuable thing I gained would be the many lifelong friendships I now have. Many of whom I even travelled and have helped me through when I was feeling homesick, stressed, or just generally unwell when I was overseas. I have also thoroughly explored every corner of Singapore in the time I was there and have definitely developed very fluent Singlish as a result of my stay there. Through this experience, I have also learnt to be independent, more outgoing and adaptive to new environments. This was my first time away from my home and my parents, so it has really taught me to grow out of my shell and be my own person, learn to overcome problems without my parents guiding me through every step of the way.
Advice/Top Tips
My top tip would be to do a lot of research on the host uni and country that you are considering. And once you are in the uni, really do try and mingle with the local students rather than sticking to fellow exchange students (I know it will feel daunting, and other exchange students are easier to relate to, but trust me, local friends make the best tour guides).
And there is one other comment I would like to make, not necessarily advice, but more sharing of my experience in the hopes that it can help others decide if they want to do the same. I know a lot of exchange students take the opportunity to travel to other neighbouring countries while they are on exchange. But personally, I only travelled to one neighbouring country (Malaysia) and while others toured southeast Asia. Instead, I took the time to really travel and explore every corner of Singapore.
