Students' feedback
This page features the ENLIGHT network students' feedback on various conferences, seminars, BIPs and international studies.
Rando Simson, a student of Modern History at the Institute of History and Archaeology, spent five days studying a BIP course at the University of Galway in Ireland during the autumn of 2024. His time there provided an opportunity to meet students and professors from various nationalities.
"In seminars and discussions, we learned about each other's countries' historical issues and perspectives. Additionally, the course included a trip to Dublin and events organised by local students that introduced Irish culture. It was a useful and memorable experience, which, due to its short duration, did not interfere with my regular studies," said Simson.
Rando Simson, student of Modern History at the Institute of History and Archaeology.
My semester in Spain
In the fall of 2024, I went to Spain for a semester as part of the Erasmus+ program, studying at the University of the Basque Country (University of the Basque Country / Universidad del País Vasco / Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea).
Spending an entire semester abroad might seem intimidating at first, but once you’re there, there are so many events and interesting people that you don’t even have time to feel like you don’t belong. I was worried that time would pass too quickly, so I constantly reminded myself where I was on this short timeline. I consciously participated in everything that caught my interest – from workshops to week-long trips. This way of living taught me to appreciate fast and goal-oriented action and to take full advantage of opportunities. In the future, I aim to take more trips in Estonia as well, trips that I would otherwise keep postponing to an uncertain future.
Living abroad and hearing about the situation in other countries made me value Estonia even more. I gained a better understanding of how Estonia appears to foreign countries and how similar or different nationalities actually are. Seeing the bigger picture helped me to relate to others with more understanding.
I’ve known about the possibility of studying abroad since middle school, when people who had travelled abroad would come to school and share their experiences. I found the specific university through the SoleMOVE platform.
In the future, I definitely plan to take part in short-term study programs and BIPs, which I believe serve the same purpose (meeting new people and learning about different cultures) in a shorter amount of time. If foreigners are coming to Estonia, I would be more than happy to host them and make their stay here more enjoyable.
Lilian Luigla, a special education and speech therapy student at the Institute of Education
Mariete Tamm, a political science student at the Johan Skytte Institute of Political Studies at the University of Tartu, studied as an exchange student at the University of Bern in Switzerland in the autumn of 2024. The experience gave her the opportunity to study at a university with a strong academic background and to be part of an international learning environment with English as the working language. "In addition, it is possible to establish connections with other partner universities. For example, you can take courses at the University of Fribourg, which is just a half-hour train ride from Bern," said Tamm.
In addition to the strong educational system and international environment, Mariete Tamm highlighted the active international student network at the University of Bern, which organises exciting events every week, offering opportunities to meet new people. The studies are also slightly more affordable thanks to additional scholarships from the Swiss-European Mobility Programme, SEMP.
"The advantage of Bern is its location in the heart of Switzerland, allowing travel by train both within the country and to neighbouring countries. At the same time, the city is calm, student-friendly, and safe," said Mariete Tamm. Her second choice would have been Ghent University, about which she had also heard positive feedback.
Tamm emphasised that one of the biggest perks of studying abroad was the possibility to create international relationships. She met with people of various cultural and traditional backgrounds, which led to her being more open in regard to differences. Tamm also expressed that for her, the variety of educational systems was eye-opening, offering a more independent and practical approach to studying.
She heard about ENLIGHT via the student newsletter and will consider studying abroad once more and taking part of ENLIGHT conferences in the future.
"I'm grateful for the experience and recommend studying at the University of Bern," she concluded.
1. What opportunities has ENLIGHT offered you?
Teele: I've got to know the layout, work ethics and members of other student representations in the network. I also got an overview of the mundane problems of the student reps and shared our best experience in resolving various issues.
Anette-Mai: ENLIGHT has helped to create an important communication network. It is great to have connections in different universities all around the world that help to share the experience in understanding the universities and student representations and in political questions.
Kirke: I've got the chance to meet new people from other universities and speak about student related issues.
2. What will you gain from the experience?
Teele: I will take with me the knowledge that the universities share similar problems internationally. Also, I will take with me some useful international contacts. I got to see how different cultures work in resolving issues.
Anette-Mai: I'm a member of the ENLIGHT Student Network and my job was to organise the conference for student representatives. I will take with me the experience of organising an event abroad, also all the aquiantances, knowledge, and ideas that help me work on the situation and on the ENLIGHT Student Network.
Kirke: For me, it was very valuable to meet with people from other universities and get to know how they organise things and what we can learn from it. It helped me understand that there are many different opinions and prospects.
3. How did you hear about ENLIGHT?
Teele: From the mailing list of my home institute.
Anette-Mai: I heard about ENLIGHT because I'm a part of the Student Network and student representation at the University of Tartu.
Kirke: I heard about ENLIGHT's short-term mobility programmes via the students mailing list, and later I found out more thanks to working in the ENLIGHT Student Network.
4. What ENLIGHT events would you like to take part of in the future?
Teele: Conferences, developmental seminars, and short-term mobility programmes.
Anette-Mai: As a student representative, I would like to take part in similar conferences to continue working with people I've already met. I would also like to see what is an ENLIGHT's short-term mobility programme. When there are ENLIGHT-related events in Estonia, I would like to get more information ofr participation.
Kirke: As a representative, I would surely like to take part in conferences and I've also considered short-term mobility programme. I would also participate in the ENLIGHT events that take part in Estonia.
1) How are students involved in the general meeting?
The general mid-year meeting in Bilbao was important to both students and staff. There were multiple parallel working groups, where students representatives were also present. During those two days onsite, the groups discussed ENLIGHT-related stuff. I (Kirke Piiskoppel) took part in communication and visibility working group, where I could add valuable perspective as a student representative to enhance ENLIGHT communication marketing. Anette-Mai participated in the directors and rectors' meeting. We also had a student representatives' meeting, where we discussed the plans for the new semester, the sustainability of the Student Network, and our future visions.
2) What do you take with you from the experience?
Participation in the Bilbao meeting was extremely valuable, since regularly we work via web and onsite we could communicate face-to-face and discuss different, yet universal ENLIGHT-related questions. We were able to strengthen our relationships with our peers and create new contacts with staff members from other universities.
3) What about the communication between students and staff members?
The general meeting provided an excellent opportunity for the students and staff members to communicate more. As student network representatives, it was interesting to meet with student representatives and staff members from other universities. It gave a wider perspective of the whole ENLIGHT network. We felt in the working group that our opinions were welcome and heard :)
Quotes
"Studying at the University of Groningen through the Erasmus BIP Course has been an exceptional experience that has not only expanded my academic knowledge but also enriched my personal growth. I would highly recommend this university to any student seeking a challenging yet rewarding educational experience in a welcoming international environment."
- Ivan Puhachov, student of Informational Technology Systems Development at the University of Tartu (June, 2024)
"One of the biggest values was to create international relationships. Additionally, I got to study at a university with a strong academic background and to be part of an international learning environment with English as the working language."
- Mariete Tamm, student of political science at the Johan Skytte Institute of Political Studies at the University of Tartu (January, 2025)
"Spending an entire semester abroad might seem intimidating at first, but once you’re there, there are so many events and interesting people that you don’t even have time to feel like you don’t belong."
- Lilian Luigla, a special education and speech therapy student at the Institute of Education (January, 2025)
"It was a useful and memorable experience, which, due to its short duration, did not interfere with my regular studies."
- Rando Simson, a student of Modern History at the Institute of History and Archaeology (February, 2025)
