ICI-ECP Exchange Program Report

 

EU Studies 201148141
Subin Jo

 

 

 

1. VUB Life

I arrived in Belgium on January 30, 2012 and started the spring semester from February 15.
The house I was given by VUB was conveniently located. It took only 5~10 minutes to get school by walk.

On the first day, I listened to explanations about general rules and regulations of VUB and signed up for courses.
I chose 2 courses, which were Regional Development and The EU and the Stakeholders of the Economy.
Even though majoring in politics, I was attracted to the economics related classes.

Regional Development class was about the regional policy of the European Union.
So, various topics regarding the regional policy, such as what the policy is, why this policy is needed, how it is operated, and how this policy has contributed to European regions, were covered by Professor Andrea.
I am sure that this class helped me find out my research topic, i.e., thesis topic.

Another course I took was The EU and the Stakeholders of the Economy.
It basically focused on diverse actors affecting the EU and its policy making and dealt with economic themes like lobbying in the EU, property rights, etc.
In June, I took final exams and finished the semester.

2. UNU-CRIS Life

On March 5, I had a meeting with the UNU-CRIS chief director, Dr.Langenhove, and started the internship.
From him, I was given a research topic which was about the emergence of regionalization in OECD countries.
It was part of my supervisor’s research and I helped him.

I worked 2 days a week, on every Thursday and Friday.

UNU-CRIS provided separate offices for a group of interns and the interns worked freely.
My research was done in the late June and I also completed the internship program at the same time.

As a Asian student, I was unfamiliar with UNU-CRIS at first and have no idea on what the institute is about and what it is doing.
However, the working environment was good enough to make me feel I was lucky to work at UNU-CRIS.
Therefore, if I have a chance, I want to work for it again.

3. After the Exchange Program

When I arrived in Brussels, I felt kind of afraid because it was my first time abroad.
As time went by, however, I came to love the city and the life there.

Now, I decided to study there again after graduation. I like the European Capital city, Brussels.

If someone asked me what I think of Brussels, I would answer: Brussels is a lovely place that gave me a lot of opportunities to broaden my intellectual and mental horizon.

 

 

In front of the UNU-CRIS building