Exchange Experience at Queen`s University, Canada

Exchange Experience at Queen’s University, Canada
4th year Accounting/Commerce
Hsiao-Yin Lee
Queen’s Location & Transportation
Queen’s is situated in a small town called Kingston. The location is actually perfect
because it’s very convenient to travel to Toronto, Ottawa, Niagara Fall, and New York.
The main campus is bordered to the south by Lake Ontario. Students sometimes
have picnics by the lake during summer. There is another campus called West
Campus, which is literally on the very far west and takes a 20-minute walk from the
main Campus to West Campus. There is an international line going straight from
Taiwan to Toronto Pearson International Airport. From Toronto Airport to Kingston,
you can either take the bus or train. It’s an approximately 3 hour drive. The bus
system in Kingston is free for all Queen’s students holding a student card. If you don’t
have one before the school starts, just explain that you’re an exchange student to the
bus driver. Most Canadian bus drivers are kind enough to let you bus around for free
without a student card on hand. The bus system offers bus ride per 30 or 60 minutes.
Therefore, it might be a little troublesome even though it’s without cost. You can also
buy a secondhand bicycle to ride it on and off school and around Kingston like me,
since it wastes a lot of time waiting for the bus. It is much more convenient and make
it easier to be acquainted with this small town. The only disadvantage is that you
cannot ride a bike anymore when it starts snowing around December.
Bike repairing on Wolf Island
Goodes Hall a.k.a the Commerce Building
Weather
The weather was warm like late summer and early fall in Taiwan during late August.
Sometimes it got stifling hot. However, as school began, it got cool and the
temperature began to drop gradually around zero degree Celsius. During late
November, it started to snow and the temperature stayed at around minus ten to
twenty degree Celsius throughout December and January. It was shockingly minus
twenty-three degrees when I left for Taiwan. (North America was colder than usual
this year which sadly was caused by the Polar Vortex.) I suggest that you should only
bring summer and fall clothes with you from Taiwan, since it’s cool at the beginning
of your exchange and the winter clothes from our country wouldn’t be warm enough
to protect you from the cold. There are stores on Princess St. selling waterproof
winter jacket and uggs on discount, and it’s cheaper than the ones sold in Taiwan.
You should buy them in early November and get yourself prepared for the extreme
weather.
Late August in Kingston
Students having a Snowball fight in December
Residence
Exchange students get to draw the lot and stay in the residence. However, the
chances to be picked are shallow since empty rooms are limited. There are two res
exchange students can choose to stay, Harkness International Hall and Jean Royce
Hall. Harkness Hall is very close to Goodes Hall, which is the Commerce building. On
the other hand, Jean Royce Hall is on West Campus. I wouldn’t recommend staying in
Jean Royce Hall, since it’s too fall away from the main campus. It would be extremely
inconvenience to walk or bus on and off school, especially when it’s snowing during
the end of fall term. If, unfortunately, you have to find a place to stay, I recommend
fly to Kingston early and pick a house to rent in person. The reasonable price is
CA$450~600 per month, all utilities and wifi included. Choose a 4-month rent rather
than an 8-month rent because it’s very difficult to find a subletter for the winter term.
There is a Facebook group called “Queen’s University Housing” and a website
http://www.kijiji.ca/ where you could find housing information. QUIC (Queen’s
University International Centre) also provides information and counselling. As a
result, don’t be worried about accommodation and always sign contract after you’ve
seen the place on the spot. If you like to party, there are Gecko areas along Aberdeen
Street which are mostly 1 to 5 minute walk to main campus. If you are a quiet person
and distaste late night crazy stunts, try to choose a place that is a bit far away from
the Gecko zone.
Traditions
Frosh week starts at the beginning of fall term. It’s a tradition to help frosh (first year
students) fit in Queen’s community. Each program has its own unique traditions. The
most distinguished ones are held by Engineering. Frosh in Engineering program
should be dressed in Queen’s jacket, have their hair shaved and be painted purple.
Skills and traditions are taught by the devoted Orientation Leaders through a variety
of activities, such as Highland Games, Thundermugs, and the coveted Grease Pole
that test the endurance, teamwork, and enthusiasm of the incoming class. You will
see crazy purple students digging into dumpsters door to door, shooting people with
water guns, or chanting high in groups. Interestingly, the Engineering Society is
conventionally paired with the Nursing Society due to severe gender imbalance. At
the end of the fall term, the renowned jacket slam will be held in front of Clark hall.
On the contrary, traditions in Commerce aren’t as distinguished as the Engineering.
However, there are numerous appealing activities arranged by the Commerce Society
throughout the term. Moreover, there is a song called Queen’s Oil Thigh which is
sung during homecoming and games played by varsity teams. (Homecoming is a
four-year event that had been banned years ago, but returned this year. Alumni are
welcomed home to celebrate.) Be active participating in them and you will blend in.
Homecoming & jacket slamming
Frosh Week- Nurses
Frosh Week- Commies
Frosh Week- Engineers
Extracurricular activities
There are a variety of clubs to choose from at Queen’s. Some need resumes and
interviews to become committees, while some don’t. I participated in Queen’s
Outdoors Club, CrossFit Tricolour, Women’s basketball (intramural) and Queen’s
Operation Smiles. The major reason that Outdoors Clubs enchants me from the start
is because the club provides elective outdoor activities and trips every weekend. It
saved me a great deal of time planning and I also got to be acquainted with Canadian
students. For example, I went woofing on a farm 3 hour bicycle ride away from
Kingston with three Canadians and one Swedish exchange student. During the
three-day stay, we all helped making apple cider, dried apple and honey. I got to
experience traditional Canadian rural lifestyle and taste authentic Canadian dishes.
At night, we all cuddled in a small trailer, feeling cozy and satisfied. This is the most
irreplaceable memory that I’ll always cherish. Besides that, I helped selling baking
goods with Operation Smiles to raise awareness and money to finance reconstruction
surgery for children with cleft lips and facial deformities. I also volunteered in
Commerce Has Heart, which is a volunteer program organized by the Commerce
Society. It’s actually soothing to volunteer and chat about business and future at the
same time.
Woofing
Working out with CrossFit Tricolour
NEWTs Week
Hiking at Mt. Washington with temperature -40。C
Travelling
Always plan ahead before you’ve decided to travel. You can rent a car for half an year,
buy tricolour tickets, buy VIA rail tickets or use Queen’s rideshare group on Facebook.
One way trip from Kingston to Toronto is approximately CA$20 if you use rideshare,
which is sharing a car with someone to fill all the seats. It’s less expensive and more
ecofriendly. QUIC and ETC will also schedule and provide trips during the term, which
also cost less than average. Canadian Thanksgiving (the second Monday of October)
and finals (Classes finish in November. Students usually have only two to three final
exams in December, so most of them either choose to go home early or travel) are
long holidays that are favourably suitable for travelling. If you want to travel to the
States, taking a plane from Toronto is the easiest and fastest way. If you want to
enjoy and have fun in Canada before visiting the States, there is a train going from
Toronto, passing Niagara Fall, to New York City. The internet makes it easy for
exchange students to book tickets and browse through luring information. As I said,
just remember to plan ahead.
Charging Bull (Wall Street Bull) in NYC
Bruce Peninsula National Park
Hockey Game
Selfieing and striding along Lake Ontario
with my dearest friends
Petty cash
Most of us are financially supported by our family in Taiwan. There are two ways that
exchange students store money. One is to open a bank account and have their
parents transfer money to this new opened account. This bank account offers online
banking, a credit card along with a debit card function, and free withdraw with
CA$500 limit per day. A debit card is a card that is similar to a credit card, except that
you cannot loan once there is no cash left in the account. You can use the debit card
function in every store in Kingston (ruling out Cafeteria in ARC) and most stores
across country and the States. However, it levies a certain amount of fees if you are
using the banking services outside Canada. You can also book tickets, hotels or buy
commodities online using debit or credit card function. I recommend to open a bank
account in CIBC because the only ATMs on campus are provided by CIBC. As a result,
it charges withdrawal fees if you have an account opened in Scotiabank or TD. The
other approach exchange students store money is to keep the cash with them. They
bring a lot of cash and checks with them from their home country to Canada. After
that, they simply hide the currency elsewhere. I don’t think it’s a brilliant idea, since
it’s still unsafe even though Canada is the most utopian-like country on earth.
Language and Culture
Canada has its unique Canadian accent which is different from that of the States if
you listen carefully. Words with “ou” are pronounced “oa”, such as about and house.
“R” is pronounced clearly and significantly. It is said that Canadian English is the
hardest to say comparing to other English, since Canadians pronounce each syllable
clearly. (Unlike the lazy Americans) In addition, Canadians use terms differently than
Americans. The most famous ones are washrooms instead of bathrooms, pops
instead of soda, and toques instead of hats. It took me almost a month to pick up the
accent and the terms, but some other exchange students didn’t have their accents
altered at all. There are also specific languages only said in Queen’s, such as
MacCorry, ASUS, Off the map, etc. About Canadian culture, Canadians are the kindest
and nicest people in the world. Rumor has it that Canadians say sorry all the time.
Staying in Canada for almost six months, I have to say that the rumor is true.
Sometimes it even gets a little annoying when they apologize for no wrong doing. If
you go to the States and find some random guys opening doors for you, they are
without doubt Canadians. This also means that professors are willing to help you out
academically and even one step forward. Additionally, when buying goods or booking
hostels online, you seldom need to be worried about receiving sketchy products or
services. The benevolence is deeply rooted in their heart and culture. Besides, make
sure to pay attention to Canadian holidays, such as Halloween, Canadian
Thanksgiving, Remembrance Day, Boxing Day, Black Friday, Cyber Monday and
Christmas. You will get to observe their culture closely and profoundly.
Last day in class with other exchange students
Statistics Professor dressed up in
costume on Halloween (He usually
wears a suit with a tie to class)
Commerce Farewell Party
Suggestions
Canada is a great place to live in because of its remarkable culture and environment
(except winter). Queen’s is a suitable university if you want a nice and peaceful
atmosphere to relax and study. It is due to the fact that Kingston is a small university
town that is ranked the best place to accommodate in Canada. If you have the
tendency to work in cross-functional and multicultural teams, Queen’s Commerce
provides the opportunity to have such experiences. The reason why I chose Queen’s
is because I am not fond of Toronto, a city so similar to Taipei City and Vancouver, a
city packed with Asians that are so fluent in Mandarin. Both University of Toronto
and University of British Colombia are unfortunately located in these cities. If you
want to refresh your mind and body as well as improve your English like me, Queen’s
is absolutely the best choice. Fortunate enough are you to be admitted to Queen’s,
hope you enjoy your stay here and make every minute worthwhile. Try to be a
participator and immerge in the rich Canadian Culture as much as possible.