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author
Ruben Bertels
Ruben
faculty
Faculty of Science
academic year of the stay
2024/2025
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author
Ruben
faculty
Faculty of Science
academic year of the stay
2024/2025
traineeship
study stay
short-term mobility
other
Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf
How does Ruben rate their stay?
university
city
accommodation
financial demands
about university | organisation
What made your university special? What were the facilities where you studied and the university equipment like?
Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR) is a research institute at about 17 km from the centre of Dresden. It is located in the middle of nowhere, but there is an hourly bus connection to Dresden, which is primarily used by researchers commuting between Dresden and HZDR. The campus itself has a canteen, which is very convenient if you don't want to bring your own food. I was at HZDR to do laboratory work in a perfectly equipped lab, and the office buildings are also very modern. I worked for two months at this institute, and my overall experience is very positive.
What is the first thing that comes to mind when you think about your "adoptive" university? What made it special? What were the premises where you studied and the university facilities like?
Even though I was officially a visitor (with a visitor badge), I was considered a true member of the department to which my supervisor belonged. We always had lunch together at the canteen, I participated in their group meetings, ...There was a very friendly overall atmosphere, and I would definitely recommend HZDR to other interns.
What is student life like at university?
Did you study in English or in the language of the host country? What language requirements does the university have?
The communication with my supervisor was always in English. However, I sometimes used my limited German knowledge for basic communication with other people. I am not aware of any language requirements, however, going there without a sufficient English or German knowledge does not make sense.
about the city
What was your impression of the city? How would you describe it? What is interesting to see here?
Dresden is a vibrant city, although it feels smaller than its population of half a million inhabitants. The architecture of the old town (with buildings like the Frauenkirche, the Castle and Zwinger) reminds the city of Prague. Dresden probably has less interesting musea, although I really liked the Castle and a former Stasi prison. The new town is the place to go if you are looking for bars, restaurants, hipster shops,... When the weather is good, it becomes very vivid along the Elbe and in some of the parks. Saxon Switzerland is the place to go for hiking, with stunning views everywhere. This natural park is easily accessible by train, and if you have a Deutschlandticket or similar (which is essential when also making use of the public transport within Dresden and to HZDR), you don't have to pay extra for the local trains. Even most of the ferries along the Elbe are for free with this ticket.
about finances
In your experience, how far does the scholarship go? What percentage of your expenses did it cover? What is your opinion on prices in the country in general?
This depends a lot on the price of accommodation. I found a studio room in the International Guesthouse from TU Dresden (it is possible to stay there even without being connected to that university), for which I paid approximately €500 per month. I paid an additional monthly €58 for the Deutschlandticket (for all local public transport within Germany, it is the cheapest option if you are not connected to a German university). This means I had an additional €250 per month from the scholarship that I could use for food and leisure time. Overall costs are slightly higher than in Prague, but still quite affordable, which means that a significant part of the money I spent on food could be used from this €250 per month I had left from the scholarship. I should mention that the canteen at HZDR is a bit more expensive than university canteens in Prague (approximately €7-8 for a warm meal).
Please advise your classmates on how to save money—Where to shop? What services can be used to save money?
Accommodation is a large cost, so arrange this in time! I paid €500 per month for a studio room at the International Guesthouse from TU Dresden, but they also have shared or single rooms with shared facilities, which will be cheaper. Another large cost is food, try to shop in larger supermarkets as they are usually slightly cheaper. It is possible to bring your own food to HZDR and make use of fridges and microwaves there, if you think that their meals are too expensive.
about accommodation
What type of accommodation did you choose? Would you recommend it to others? If not, what type of accommodation do you think is best based on your experience (dormitory, private apartment, private dormitory, shared room, etc.)?
Try to find accommodation in a dormitory or guesthouse, it is significantly cheaper than private accommodation. I was very satisfied about the International Guesthouse of TU Dresden, but as I heard, they are often full if you try to arrange a room too late. You can also only stay there for a maximum of 3 months. I rented a studio room for €500 per month, but rooms with shared facilities are cheaper. The campus at HZDR has a guesthouse as well, but from what I heard it is not very comfortable, and then you are far away from Dresden (public transport between Dresden and HZDR is not so good during the weekend), so I would only recommend this if you plan to stay at HZDR for a very short stay.
about experiences
Did you use your stay to travel around the country/Europe? What are your best travel experiences? What would you not recommend?
I did not really travel throughout Germany as I had already visited the country a lot before. I often visited Saxon Switzerland during the weekends to go there for hiking, this I can definitely recommend.
Language and culture: what cultural differences did you notice? How did you cope with the national language? Was it also the language of your studies? Do you feel that your language skills improved during your stay?
I already spoke some German, so this was useful for daily communication, as there are quite some people that are not very fluent in English. At HZDR, I mainly communicated in English for work-related issues. I think I made a little bit of progress in German, but not too much as I did not practice it very regularly.
about experiences
Did you use Erasmus stay to travel around your country/Europe? What are your best travel experiences? What would you not recommend?
Language and culture: what cultural differences did you notice? How did you cope with the national language? Was it also the language of your studies? Do you feel that your language skills improved during your stay?
Did you use Erasmus stay to travel around your country/Europe? What are your best travel experiences? What would you not recommend?
final rating
Why here? What makes this location special? Why would you send your friends to your country/city?
At HZDR, you will be surrounded by other scientists that are excited about discovering new things. Dresden itself is a beautiful city, surrounded by magnificent nature and yet being very vibrant. The city feels very welcoming and even though it is not as big as Prague, you will always find something to do.
live-saving tips
If I went again, I would definitely remember to pack...
Cash money, or at least withdraw some money there. It happened regularly that it was not possible to pay by card, or only with a German card.
Before leaving, I would like to know that...
there is a local division of ESN (Erasmus Student Network), which you can perfectly join even while not being a student at TU Dresden. They organise a lot of fun activities, and they also organise hikes to Saxon Switzerland.
What surprised me most was that...
how well the public transport is working in Dresden, even during the night
The hardest thing for me was...
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