Erasmus+ Journal (Issue 3) 2014/15

Stefanie Wonisch, Università degli Studi del Molise, Italy, Mobility for Study, PHST

University

Università degli Studi del Molise
Via De Sanctis 1
86100 Campobasso

Tel.: +39 0874 40 41
E-mail: amministrazione@cert.unimol.it
http://www.unimol.it/

Erasmus Contact

Dr. Margherita Di Paolo
Tel.: +39 0874 404415
E-mail: mdipaolo@unimol.it

Description of the University

The "Università degli Studi del Molise" (Unimol) offers a wide variety of departments, listed below:

The University is wide-spread, as Medicine-students have to go to the hospital, which is a little farer away from the center. All other departments are situated 10-15 minutes from the city-center.
Inside the building it’s pretty difficult to find the right room in the beginning, as it looks everywhere the same, but you can find descriptions on every floor and if you're completely lost, there are offices on every floor as well and they will accompany you to your classroom.

Language

Concisely - you have to learn Italian in Campobasso!
There are only a few people who can understand English and even fewer who can speak English. On the first day I arrived they spoke a mixture of English and Italian, but on the second day it was clear, that I will stay in this flat and my flatmate said: "In this house - only Italian!" In the beginning it was quite difficult, but as you have to deal with it all day long at university, at home and everywhere else in Campobasso, you get used to it rather quickly.
If you want to learn Italian, you should choose Campobasso, because in Rome or Bologna (or other bigger cities) there are so many Erasmus-students, so you will speak more English than Italian.

Description of chosen courses

Educazione musicale e didattica della musica + Laboratorio

As I study music in Austria, I decided to attend a course about education and didactics of music. The course covers nearly all basics about the theory of music, such as intervalls, scales, notes and accords. I already knew these things, because I had to know them for the entrance examination at the PHST to study music, so I only had to learn the new vocabulary. In Italy they call the notes "Do Re Mi Fa Sol La Si Do", in Austria it's "c d e f g a h c". I knew the way of solmisation, but nevertheless it was a reorganization for me.
The course was quite theoretical and for me also rather simple, but it was nice to learn all those things again in a new language.

Laboratoria di lingua Inglese III

As already mentioned only a few people understand or even speak English, also at University. When I first came in and the professor asked me who I was, I answered in English and all of a sudden there was complete silence in the room and everybody was looking at me. In every lesson I felt like "the queen", because everyone asked me for help with grammar, vocabulary and particularly pronunciation. The professor told me they have a B1-level, but in my opinion some of them don't even have A2! So if you know a little more than only the basics of the English language, you are the hero ;-)

Laboratorio di lingua Inglese IV

My professor of LAB III encouraged me to attend also the Laboratorio of the 4th year. I've missed the first two lessons, but when I came in the professor looked at me strangely. Then she asked for a volunteer to read a text of three lines, but nobody volunteered, so she looked at her attendance list and said my name. I read the three lines quickly and like in the other English course, everybody was staring at me like I was from marse. From this moment on I was her favourite student and there were no more volunteers. "Any volunteers? ... Stefanie?".
The exercises (listenings, vocabulary, grammar) were at a high level, so only a small number of students understood even the instructions. When the first results of the written exam came out, we were only four people out of twelve who passed it.

Corso della lingua Italiana (only for Erasmus students)

The course about the italian language only for Erasmus students was boring. There were a few students who didn't get the language and so sometimes it took us three hours only for one unit of the book. But anyway I learned something new each and every lesson, even if I already knew the main stuff we learned in the lessons. I took the exam for the levels A1 and A2 and I passed the two of them.

Communication Sciences (at the Giurisprudenza =Law building)

The course was in Italian, but the professor was nice and explained unclear things to us Erasmus-students. The exam was rather easy, also without studying, and in English. The only thing was, that it was supposed to be one written exam and one oral. In the end both of them were written and there was no oral exam at all.

Application for Università degli Studi del Molise:

Students are nominated by home university

Students must complete and return these documents to university of Molise's International Relations Office:
-Students application form
- Learning aggreement

Deadlines

Application:
- Full year/ First semester: 30 June
- Second semester: 30 October

Academic Year (October - July)

1st October: first semester begins
mid January: first semester ends
end of January - end of February: examination session
1st March: second semester begins
mid May: second semester ends
end of my - mid July: examination session

Practising teaching

After one and a half months I finally went into the school with Dr. Margherita di Paolo to get to know the teachers. After this first meeting I went to school nearly every day. They wanted me to do 150 hours and get a 360° - view from the school and the system. At first I was shocked about the huge amount of hours, but in the end it was good to see everything (primary school, secondary school, secretary) and I got to know loads of students and teachers.
The school methods are rather old-fashioned, the teachers stand in the front, the students have to sit in rows and be quiet. Also, they only have one break after the fourth lesson. So the teachers only have a few minutes to change the classrooms, but as Italians it takes them about 15-20 minutes sometimes.
All in all, the teachers were very friendly and if I needed help there was always someone there.

In conclusion, my Erasmus-trip was awesome. I will never forget the people I met, the cities and things I saw, the things I learned, all the fun we had ... I recommend to every student to study at least one semester abroad. You don't just get more self-confident and learn a new language. You also get to know a bunch of people, get to know a new culture and experience a total different life.

Campobasso from the castle on a mountain Castello Monforte