Motivation
I wanted to get the most out of my degree at UQ and studying in the UK for a semester seemed an excellent opportunity. As a mature-age student at UQ, I thought "why not?" and, fortunately, my wife was supportive and able to join me during most of the exchange.
Personal Development
I have friends and family in the UK, so I was able to catch up with them over a prolonged time period. I also travelled extensively: to London, Buckinghamshire, Sussex, Devon, and Cornwall in the UK, and to Greece, Spain, Italy, Switzerland, and Germany in Europe.
Moreover, after living overseas with only 20kg of stuff (clothes, computer, etc) with me, the exchange reminded me that living simply, without lots of stuff, can be a very fulfilling way to live. Since my return, therefore, I have been actively decluttering a lifetime of accumulated stuff, and simplifying my life in general.
Academic Development
I took three 2nd-year-level courses at Bristol University, representing a full-time study load. As I have been taking 2-3 courses per semester at UQ, the three courses at Bristol should have represented a step-up in the extent of my studies, albeit I actually found the workload readily manageable.
I took film and TV studies courses at Bristol, where the facilities are much better than UQ's. The film department is much bigger than UQ's and is located over a number of floors in a centrally located building. There are purpose-built cinema rooms with excellent picture and sound quality. Moreover, there was a weekly on-campus film screening for each course, introduced by the course convenor, in one of the uni's theatre rooms; unlike UQ's facilities, there was no light intrusion, or brightly-lit clock, to distract attention from the screen. Teaching quality was generally as good as UQ's, but Bristol's weekly on-campus screenings in purpose-built facilities enabled me to better appreciate the content of the courses.
One of the challenges was that two of my courses required a group project (a presentation) as 40% of the assessment. I was fortunate with the groups I was allocated to and the project represented an opportunity to foster a closer relationship with some people on my course, which was good.
Highlights
Here's a few (aside from the obvious of spending time with English friends and family):
1. English football. The time difference in Australia makes watching European football here hard, so it was an absolute joy to experience England's football culture, watching games in pubs, and to go to games. A number of international students set up a groupchat and we watched games at a sports bar. In addition, I went to see my team, Southampton, play several times and enjoyed the 'high' of Southampton being promoted back into the EPL at the end of the season.
2. Running in Bristol in cold weather. Bristol has some great runs through the city, around the harbour, and out into nearby countryside. As well as running on my own, I joined two uni running clubs that undertook escorted evening runs. Once I had the right running gear for the weather, I found running outside in the cold to be exhilarating.
3. Visiting England's South-West coastline, particularly North Devon (a couple of hours' drive from Bristol). We spent 11 days there in May. The weather was warm, the evenings long (getting dark around 10pm), and the scenery spectacular. There are amazing clifftop walks (with coffee stops at the end). Beautiful.
Advice/Top Tips
1. Participate in as much as you can from the outset. Bristol Uni runs lots of events aimed at exchange students; like at UQ, there are lots of clubs and societies.
2. Plan to spend your time on the things you enjoy the most, whilst being open to new experiences. For me, that included running, travel, football, theatre, and film. For others, that list might include Bristol's music scene, which is, apparently, one of the best in the UK.
3. Dress for the weather. Clothing is plentiful and relatively cheap in the UK (including a thriving second hand scene), so it may be better to buy the warm clothing you will need after you arrive.
4. Don't miss out on visiting the South-West or England's coastal towns, such as Bournemouth and Brighton. Bristol has its own airport, so it can be tempting to just head for Europe after the semester ends, but Devon and Cornwall are stunning in Spring, and Bournemouth and Brighton are lots of fun.
5. Finally, do the walk from Bristol to Bath. Nearly 30km along a discontinued railway line, through countryside, woods and along a river. Awesome.
