Researching your placement

A lot of research has to go into finding your perfect placement - although we would always argue that it's not the place but the person who makes the year an unforgettable one - and this is the section where you can find some guidance on how best to do so.

First things first, please visit the Researching Your Placement section of the University of Exeter Study Abroad website. This is a very comprehensive list of the type of research that you should have done by the time you fill out your application form. You will notice that there is rather a lot to be done, even before you state your preferences for the first time, but it is certainly necessary.

Whilst the majority of research points are covered by this checklist, we would like to highlight certain aspects:

Cost of living and Finance

The main costs that you will bear on a Year Abroad are the following:

• Tuition fee to Exeter (reduced by 85%)
• Flights and travel
• Travel Insurance with emergency medical cover (compulsory)
• Health insurance
• Visa
• Accommodation
• Living and study costs (food, books, transport etc)

Location

If finances are at all a concern for you, then you should seriously consider the effect living in a certain location could have. For example, if you live in a capital city, then the likelihood is that the cost of accommodation, transport and even food will be a lot higher. As such, you must ensure that you would not be disadvantaged or hard off if you were to live in such a location. 

Work

Some students choose to work while abroad but you will need to check what a study visa to that country would allow. If you are keen to know how expensive a destination is, the best thing you can do is talk to a student who has been there. If you want to be put in contact with a previous Study Abroad student, please the Outbound team.

Student Finance

Bear in mind that whilst you can still apply for Student Finance loans (i.e. maintenance) in the same way that you can when you're studying in Exeter, this money may not be sufficient. This is particularly true as costs can increase when abroad, in that most people want to do a bit of travelling around the country or surrounding countries, and participate in more tourist activities. This is an understandable desire, and indeed we would recommend it, but just make sure that you can realistically afford whatever you want to do.

Finally, please note that Student Finance currently pay travel grants to students who are eligible. These are means-tested but they can cover up to 3 return flights plus visa and medical insurance costs. We certainly recommend you research whether you are eligible for this financial support. Here is the Student Finance England Travel Grant page but each national body has its own information so please check.

Accommodation

Accommodation availability in any location changes on a regular basis: in any given year there may be significantly more or fewer spaces in both private and university accommodation. For this reason, as with regard to modules (see below), the College and University are unable to keep track of what happens in each city surrounding each of the 40+ university placements and even more numerous work placements available to Humanities students. Please note that some cities have limited accommodation and some of our partner universities do not guarantee accommodation to exchange students, even if they have specific health requirements. 

As such, the most up-to-date information can only realistically be obtained from students who are either currently abroad or who have recently returned. Please let the Outbound team know if you would like to be put in touch with a student who knows and has experience of a particular location. What's more, the Study Abroad Buddy Scheme has been established to help put prospective Year Abroad students in contact with students who have just returned to answer questions about issues such as accommodation, travel, local culture, bank accounts and so on. 

Modules

You will need to research the modules that you would like to take when studying at the partner university in order that you can fill in the application form. The College, of course, cannot keep a complete list of all of the modules that are offered by each partner, as they change each year, just as modules at Exeter do. As such, you will have to carry out this research independently.

You may find that the process of finding the available modules isn't always particularly easy. This can be because modules aren't always put up on the international version of the universities' websites or because other universities simply do things differently to how we do things in Exeter. Either way, you will have to find them.

The best way to find the module choices is to look at the part of the website designated for incoming exchange students. If is not clear from here which modules you can choose from (and it often is not very clear), there are two actions that are particularly effective. Firstly, you could find somebody - whether it's a tutor or an inbound exchange student - to help you carry out your research. And secondly, and perhaps more preferably, you can simply email the partner university (particularly their International Office) and ask them either for a list of modules or for a link to their module pages. If none of this works, let us know and we will try and help you.