Meet Roberto Citati

Former exchange student at Linköping University

Why did you choose to study in Sweden and in Linköping? Actually, I chose the country rather than the town. I wanted to study up north, in Belgium, Germany or some other country up there, and eventually I chose Sweden. I wanted to experience something very different to the Mediterranean culture, which I also did. And I liked it very, very much. I fell in love with Sweden.

Could you describe your first day in Sweden? To start with, I was very confused. I came to Sweden all alone, was very bad at English and didn’t speak any Swedish. Everything was new, how to buy the bus tickets, how to find out where to go and so on. But a Swedish student met me at the train station and helped me to get all the documents and information I needed, showed me to my accommodation and helped me find information about the organized activities. Already the first day there was a Swedish class where I met some of my future friends so I was very warmly welcomed. That was the beginning of an amazing adventure I will never forget.

What did you think of LiU and Sweden in general? I was an ERASMUS student, and my exchange was planned for six months but I asked to stay for another three months, and ended up spending nine months in Sweden. I enjoyed it a lot. It was my first experience abroad and I met people from all over the world; Indian, Chinese, Brazilians and so on. All these meetings really made me grow. I also travelled in Lappland with minus thirty or minus forty degrees, racing in the snow with the snow mobile and swimming in a frozen lake in Abisko and this was definitely the best experience of my life.

What do you think about LiU campus? Compared to my campus in Italy, it is very developed with a lot of technology. For example you can enter the University buildings any time with your electronic card and there are rooms you can use as a student for your projects. I haven’t seen that kind of service anywhere else.

In your opinion, what are the major differences between Italy and Sweden? In terms of studies, there are a lot more practical activities in Sweden. You get to work in projects with people from all over the world and learn a lot about teamwork, which I think is particularly good for an education like Management Engineering. You also work closer to your teacher in Sweden and continuously get feedback.

In terms of social life we are very outgoing in Italy. We often have a drink and some food in pubs after work. In Sweden, you socialize and party in a different way. For example, I got to experience corridor parties, which was a great and completely new experience to me.
 

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Last updated: Tue Jan 15 17:01:12 CET 2013