The Erasmus+ programme is not just an opportunity to study abroad. It is a chance to grow, discover new cultures, learn to be independent and gain experiences that will stay with you for life. You’ve probably heard plenty about the opportunities offered by student exchanges. That’s why, this time, we’re delighted to share the story of one of our students from WSG University, who took part in a student exchange programme and went to join Uniwersidade da Madeira. See for yourselves.
The Erasmus+ programme is not only an opportunity to study abroad. It is a chance to grow, discover new cultures, learn independence, and gain experiences that stay with you for life. You have probably heard many times about the opportunities student exchange programmes can offer. This time, however, we are happy to share the story of one of our students from Wyższa Szkoła Gospodarki, who decided to take part in a student exchange programme and travel to Madeira. See for yourselves.
Thanks to Wyższa Szkoła Gospodarki, I had the opportunity to fulfil my biggest childhood dream. I went on a student exchange as part of the Erasmus+ programme. I had dreamed about it ever since I was 8 years old and heard on television that something like this existed, that it was possible.
I officially began my adventure on the beautiful and picturesque island of Madeira on September 15th. Why officially? Because the preparations had started several months earlier. I had to go through the recruitment process before departure. I had to find a partner university that would take me under its wing, and then look for accommodation for the whole semester.
The university has its partners, however we, the students, have to contact them ourselves and handle the formalities. It was surprising to me, just like powdered mustard in a Portuguese supermarket, but I managed it.
The hardest stage was finding accommodation. For this purpose, I arrived on the island around three weeks before the semester started. Madeira is a beautiful place and amazes everyone with its blooming nature. Unfortunately, many people try to scam incoming students and extort money from them. Luckily, I managed to find a few honest people and rent a room from them, and later I was accepted into the dormitory.
Studying abroad unfortunately comes with huge costs. The dormitory was the cheapest solution. It is not easy to get a place there because there are many applicants. Once again, luck smiled on me.
I had the feeling that despite all the difficulties, this island wanted me to learn there. Nursing, culture, art, nature, language… The last one was especially challenging during the first days. Being used to Polish and Indian accents, at first I could not fully understand English spoken with a Portuguese accent.
Fortunately, it only lasted for the first 7 days. I recommend everyone in such a situation to talk as much as possible in order to get used to the language. I personally experienced the fear that I would not manage, but then I remembered my first days working in an international corporation and how I had exactly the same problems back then.
Universidade da Madeira welcomed me with open arms. Me and around 60 other students from different fields of study.
At this point, I would like to thank all my lecturers for believing in me. At first, they were very worried that I would not manage the exams. The lectures were conducted only in Portuguese. I assured them that I would manage despite that, because I know Italian and while reading the presentations I could understand a lot thanks to it. After all, it is the same language family.
Thanks to the kindness of the professors, I was able to take exams and present my assignments in English. My classmates translated the laboratory content, the lecturers’ questions, and my answers for me. Two of my exams were in Portuguese, including one written exam. I passed both on the first attempt.
In my free time, I focused on learning the language, especially by analysing lecture notes and materials sent by lecturers. Sometimes I thought my head would explode from the Portuguese-English-Italian mix inside it.
Apart from studying, I also took part in volunteering during the EMACS 2025 sports event. I met many kind people there. I was proud of myself when I could speak with athletes from Poland. My heart grew every time they answered my “dzień dobry” with a smile.
Polish turned out to be my superpower right after Italian and English. English was not much of a problem because several other volunteers spoke it as well. However, among the volunteers, only I could speak both Polish and Italian. There were over 3,000 athletes from all around the world.
It is worth fighting for your dreams. Preparing yourself for them to come true. In my case, it happened after more than 20 years.
I would like to thank Wyższa Szkoła Gospodarki, especially the Erasmus+ Coordinator, Mr Maciej Brząkała, for believing in me and believing that I could do it, as well as the Nursing faculty staff at Universidade da Madeira. I would also like to thank Director Gilberta Maria Sousa for her kindness and support, and Professor Ana Cristina Pestana for patiently translating my exams into English.
I am grateful to all the fellow students who helped me during my studies.
