Every year, our students take part in the Erasmus program and spend a semester at one of our partner universities across Europe. This experience is much more than studying abroad — it is an opportunity to step into a new academic culture, discover different perspectives, build international friendships, and grow both personally and professionally.
Throughout their exchange semester, our students immerse themselves in local life, explore new cities, and challenge themselves in unfamiliar environments. We stay in close contact with them during this exciting journey and invite them to share their reflections, impressions, and personal stories. Their experiences not only capture the spirit of Erasmus but also inspire future students to embark on their own exchange adventure.
Here you can read their voices, insights, and memories from their time abroad.
Hello from Potsdam!
Currently I am at the University of Potsdam. I’ve enrolled in two courses devoted to Social Media Research Methods, which can be applied in the social sciences. The Social Media Research course is general and devoted to various aspects of social science methodology; Social Media and Elections is focused on statistical methods in political science. My studies are going successfully. I haven’t faced any significant challenges yet, but I think that the further it goes, the more difficult it will be to cope with the workload as the course tasks become more complicated.
I am also studying German at the A2 level to improve my oral skills, which is crucial for life in Germany. It will also help me with further analysis of German sources, which I will use in my thesis.
Life in Germany I generally like, although it certainly has its specifics, ranging from the weather to the local bureaucracy with which you have to interact.
I am spending the semester in Tübingen, Germany, as part of the Erasmus+ program. Although I am formally enrolled in the German Studies department, I am taking courses across several faculties to meet the requirements of my Master’s program at the University of Haifa. My academic schedule is intensive, with multiple German language courses each week both theoretical and practical, as well as classes in Political Science (Art in International Relations) and Sociology (Conspiracy Theories, Social Inequalities and Identities). The latter is especially challenging and enriching, as it combines theory with hands-on empirical work, including data analysis and coding.
Studying in Tübingen requires a significant amount of independent work, and I spend many hours in the University library. There is no single campus here; Tübingen is a true student town, and University buildings are spread throughout the city, creating a unique academic atmosphere.
Life in Tübingen is deeply impressive. The city looks almost like something out of a fairy tale, it was barely damaged during the WW2, and many historical buildings have been preserved in their original form. The sense of historical continuity is very strong here. With my background in Holocaust Studies, I find it striking how present the past is here. There is a small Jewish museum, created through a Christian initiative, exhibitions in the city museum dedicated to Tübingen during the Nazi period, and informational pillars throughout the city with photographs and explanations of what stood at each location during the war. Alongside the Stolpersteine and the remains of the fundament of the synagogue destroyed during Kristallnacht in 1938, this attention to historical detail and memory about the past itself is truly remarkable.
Overall, my Erasmus+ experience is exceptionally inspiring so far. It brings together study, language immersion, independent study, and a deep engagement with the history of the place, which is inspires me for my future academic career.
Sincerely,
Daria Ruth Kubrina
Hello, I am Yao!
My Erasmus exchange is taking place at the University of Tübingen in the southwest of Germany, and my host faculty is the Department of History. My Erasmus studies are going very well. I am mainly focusing on learning German and collecting historical sources in different archives and libraries in Germany in order to write my thesis. This semester, I have chosen several German language courses and one course in International Relations.
Life in Tübingen is very good. It is a very comfortable and beautiful university town, where the long history of the city and the energy of the young students combine in a perfect way. For Erasmus students, it is possible to live in the university dormitories, and the university canteen is also very good. In our studies, we can choose courses from different subjects, and there is a wide range of interesting classes to attend.
This year, I joined two demonstrations and a concert in the city in support of Israel that were organised by my local Christian friends. During these events, I also met many new friends, and I stay in close contact with the local German-Israeli Association (Deutsch-Israelische Gesellschaft).