Many Activities on Campus

My name is Roy Tan and I am a student from the National University of Singapore studying Material Science Engineering. I was an exchange student in the University of Pittsburgh for Spring term 2017. I took 6 courses there which was a heavy workload but it was still manageable. I really like the classroom culture there where students would openly voice out their opinions and participate actively in classroom discussions, which was something different from back at home whereby the lecturer would teach and we would simply sit there and listen. I also like how the engineering curriculum was taught; hands-on activities were heavily encouraged and the curriculum was based on real-life industrial applications and you could immediately see how the knowledge taught could be used in the industry. I stayed on campus in McCormick Hall during my stay and I really enjoyed it. My neighbours were friendly to me and we would hang out from time to time. I still remember the first day when I moved in they extended an invite to me to hang out with them. I could not have asked for a better roommate as well. There are also many activities on campus for you to join depending on your interest. I joined Ballroom dancing as well as the Intramural Soccer games during my stay there. Pittsburgh is a safe and laid-back city area and I loved it here. It might not have been the most touristy spot with the hustle and bustle, but you could just simply enjoy and relax by walking around. Because of my heavier workload of 6 courses, I did not travel much but this allowed me to make more friends and forge stronger friendships with the locals. I would dare say that this was the best experience of my life thus far and I would strongly encourage anyone going on study abroad to consider the University of Pittsburgh.

Roy Tan

Singapore
Material Science Engineering
Spring 2017