Finding a second home

Neena Contreras loved her time at Falmouth University in the UK, from finding her people at the other end of the world to enjoying life in this charming student town.

Neena Contreras

Why I chose my host uni:

Upon research, I found that Falmouth University has an excellent creative reputation with a wide range of facilities and an open atmosphere. The studio culture looked vibrant and collaborative. It reminded me of AUT in its hands-on learning approach.

Now having studied there, I can confirm that Falmouth University has an engaging curriculum and is full of bright, expressive students who are led by incredibly passionate, experienced lecturers. Wednesday Open Workshops were great opportunities to try new skills – I got to do some jewellery-making and produce monotype prints. I also joined the Graphics Studio Society and it was very rewarding to create among other designers outside of assignments. Falmouth has a lot of design industry connections too.

Fal is a charming, lively student town. Cute town events include the Print Pals Illustration Fair, Falmouth Pride, Falmouth Food Festival, Sea Shanty Festival and Falmouth Market on the Moor. There is so much local talent and you should definitely take advantage of the local music scene by going to gigs/performances at AMATA and the Cornish Bank. Cornwall is obviously gorgeous and there are many stunning day trips you can go on like Porthcurno, Truro, Land’s End, Penzance and Mousehole.

Falmouth University’s campuses are very green with peaceful walks and nice spots to lounge around. There’s inspiration everywhere.

How I found applying to my host uni:

Applying to Falmouth was super easy and their comms are great. Because I was staying for less than six months, I only needed a UK ETA which was a straightforward process as well (approval should take a few days).

Relevant documentation below:

• ID photo
• Personal statement – who you are, why you’ve chosen your degree, why you want to study at Falmouth, what you aim to get out of this experience
• Portfolio – doesn’t have to be perfect but just has to show your passion, creativity, and abilities

I also applied for catered halls in Glasney Student Village on Penryn Campus. There was an English breakfast and a coffee available from 8am to 10.30am, then dinner and dessert from 5pm to 7pm. It was a bit pricier, but I felt this was the best option for me as it gave me lots of free time and it was fun to eat dinner every weekday with my friends who were also catered for. The Compass team was amazing! They helped me amend my contract to end close to the date I was leaving, so I wasn’t paying for time that I wouldn’t even be staying in the accommodation.

How I found learning in a different academic system:

Falmouth University has a single set study plan for graphic design students (no minors, electives or additional courses), so there were only two courses for the semester.

I was lucky that due to my learning pathway, I was able to spend two of my electives on exchange to make sure that the credit transfer was equivalent. This was the trickiest thing to work out, so make sure you liaise with your course advisor about matching up courses sooner rather than later. Each week, it was three full days (10am to 5pm) on the same module, which was very different to my typical class schedule at AUT.

In terms of the workload, I thought that it was similar to back home. A difference was with how the modules were designed, as the tasks were more open than I was used to. In one module, first and second years collaborated under an external partner, and I hadn’t done a collaborative design project like this before. The other module was extremely self-led – almost like a capstone project – and we had to write our own briefs.

Overall, the learning environment made it easier to navigate since the lecturing team was always keen to have a chat, and there was a constant flow of feedback between my peers. During my semester, there were no other exchange students that took the same course as me, so I didn’t have anyone in the exact same situation. However, I was able to meet some really cool people at the exchange student orientation who I could relate to in that sense. I enjoyed learning about their home countries and seeing what their degrees involved.

What I gained from this experience:

My time in Falmouth was very enriching and exciting. It’s a small town but it’s so full of life and truly feels like a second home at this point. After moving to a new country where I knew no one, I gained so much independence and I’m the most sure of myself I’ve ever been. It’s crazy how you can manage to find your people on the other side of the world and then have all these new friendships going forward.

I’m never ever getting over this adventure. I treasure every vanilla iced chai from Fox Café to every ASDA walk to every fire alarm evacuation in the middle of the night. Even though it’s easy to get swept up in your life abroad, always try to find time to update and call loved ones back home in NZ. Side-note: thrifting is great in the UK – make the most of Vinted!