D. D.

Microsoft Corportation

D. contacted us at the very beginning of the 12th grade. We helped her prepare all the necessary documents for her education in Denmark and at the same time answered all her questions related to her future life in Copenhagen. She studied Spanish and Russian at a language high school in Plovdiv. However, this did not stop her from continuing her development in the IT field. We quickly noticed her energy and determination when compiling each of the documents for Denmark. She is currently in her 5th semester at Aalborg University, majoring in IT, Communication and New Media, and holds a student position at Microsoft. From the next interview we will learn a little more about her life in Denmark.

How did you decide to get your higher education abroad? And why did you choose Denmark?

I chose Denmark because I was looking for a university, where I could learn mainly through practice. Each semester wraps around a big semester project, which combines the knowledge learned from the courses. At the end of the semester we have an exam on that project and a separate exam on each course (calm down, there are only 3). The semester project is a group work of several people – we form the groups by ourselves. The topic of the project is not strictly set. Therefore, we have the complete freedom and independence to work on something that is interesting to all of us as long as we can justify our choice on a topic.

What were the benefits of this decision?

The practical work helps you better understand the theory they teach you in lectures. Working in a group with other colleagues and supervisors teaches you how to really collaborate and work with other people, which you will have to be able to do later, when you start working for a company.

What were some of the difficulties that you had to face?

I did not know what documents to fill in, where to get them, how to fill them in correctly and where to submit them. The information about this is quite vague and difficult to find, which is why there are many agencies that help the students. However, there are often also obstacles and problems after you have already applied – no one warns you for them. DanBul Study is the only one that stays with you even after submitting the documents. In my case, two weeks before the final decision of the university, they called me that there was a problem with some of the documents, although so far – 5 months, everything was fine. DanBul Study immediately contacted the right people and helped me figure out exactly what the problem was and what I could do to get my documents approved.

How did you cope with the culture shock? What was it like?

Each country has its own culture, customs and understanding of life. I did not feel the culture shock to a huge extent. Perhaps, that was due to the fact that when I left my country, I decided to be open to the new. I did not compare the life in my country with that in Denmark, because it is a very subjective experience.

Tell us about your university. What did you like?

I have already said a few words about the education style, so here I will tell a little about the campus itself. The university building is relatively new, and for better or worse the furniture inside is changed at least once a year. The whole base is modern and maintained. We have a bar at the university that is run by students. It is open every Friday and most people stay to drink 2-3 Tuborg Classic with their colleagues. Various events are organized such as Beer Olympics and Tour de Friday Bar and others. And the concept of the Friday Bar is available at every university and almost every company in Denmark – it is absolutely acceptable to drink beer at your university or workplace (after work, of course). 

What is the ratio between theoretical and practical skills that you gain at your university? To what extent would this help you in a real work environment?

Although I already mentioned it above, I will again emphasize on how much you gain from the practice at the university in order to find a job in your sphere. Before entering the university, I did not have a solid foundation of programming knowledge, but the base I received, combined with the projects we worked on – 3 months each, allowed me to gain a lot of experience and learn the basics a lot better. Moreover, because of this practice, in the 3rd semester I applied for a student position in my sphere. Even my job interview was very similar to one of my programming exams from the second semester!

Tell us a little about the life in your city?

My university campus is in Copenhagen, which I was very happy about from the very beginning. The city is not very big, there are traffic jams and traffic – mainly from bicycles at peak hours, and on Sunday evenings it is sometimes frighteningly empty on the streets. The night life is not 1:1 with Sofia’s Student City, but it is inferior to it – everyone can find their place. The capital is super international, you can meet people from all over the world and hear amazing stories. Almost everyone speaks English and it’s not a problem if you don’t know Danish. In general, there is always something to do, even in the winter months when it is cold and gloomy.

Can you find a student job and is it easy to balance with the studies?

I would say that it is easy to find a part-time job as a student, but of course it requires action from your side to find it. This could mean handing out 50 CVs in one afternoon and so on – until it happens.  It is not difficult to combine work with the university, even most of my colleagues work as well. It’s a little harder if you’re 5 people in a group and you have to find time to meet together for the project, because at some point, everyone will work. I am currently working for Microsoft , for over a year now. Each of my colleagues in my current group is also working in the IT sphere. We have agreed if we could work the same two days of the week, so that we can attend the group works as much as possible.

How do you cope up with the costs here? Did you need financial support from your parents?

If you register for dormitories on time, there is a better chance that you will not pay a high rent. Copenhagen is the city with the highest rents in all of Denmark. Many of my friends live in shared accommodation. DanBul Study will help you find something that fits your budget.

What is the student life like in Denmark? What opportunities do you have and what do you miss?

The life of a working student in Denmark is super cool. To be honest, I’ve never imagined it as rosy as it really is, and I’m an optimist by nature. You can financially support yourself, you have independence, freedom and opportunities for everything. Well, all this doesn’t come on a silver platter, you need to earn it, of course.

There are definitely a lot of things that I miss from Bulgaria. However, there are also things that I miss from Denmark when I am in Bulgaria ¯\_ (ツ) _ /¯. Maybe I’d only complain about the nice sunny weather that I miss sometimes from Bulgaria, but you also learn to appreciate the short summer here, and how important it is to always have a jacket when you go out.

Do you have any recommendations for the students, wondering whether to get their education abroad and are most likely to face problems similar to yours? What can they do to protect themselves?

I would advise them to think about what they really want to do, to aim high, no matter what others tell them and to act! There will inevitably be many difficulties along the way, but it is important to find the right people to help them and get the right information from them as well. To apply in Denmark, this is certainly the team of DanBul Study, because they are the only ones with up-to-date information about the admission and the whole life in Denmark.