cafebabel.com

German medical students head for Latvian university

('Sebastian Baciu',) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 12:00:16 -0000

Just under half of the 500 foreign medical students currently enrolled at Riga’s Stradina University come from Germany – but a medical education in a foreign country doesn’t come cheap

Multiculturalism in Italy: emigration and exodus

('Sophie Inge',) — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 15:02:55 -0000

Not only are Italy's privileged leaving their country as fast as immigrants are arriving in Italy, but when they do move abroad their perception of their own national identity naturally changes. A new open-minded multi-cultural sensibility contrasts with the mindset of their parent's generation, but will they stay attached to their homeland?

Russian art collective Voina: 'Zhlobs are in power in today's Russia'

('Annie Rutherford',) — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 10:05:48 -0000

The Moscow-based self-styled 'street art gang' formed in 2005. Its four main members consist of president Leonid Nikolaev - who was arrested at an 'election fraud protest rally' on 5 December - ideologist Oleg Vorotnikov, coordinator Natalia Sokol and her son and Voina's youngest activist, two-year-old Kasper Can't-Take-Our-Eyes-Off-Him Sokol. Part one of an exclusive interview marks their brief history

University initiation rites debate hits France and Belgium

('Amy Hargreaves',) — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 16:36:06 -0000

In the UK at least three people had died by 2008 because of initiation ceremonies for undergraduates, whilst recent incidents in France and Belgium featuring physical abuse and comas have helped raise awareness about a dangerous student ritual

Contentious Guéant circular rejects work visas in France

('Annie Rutherford',) — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 10:07:12 -0000

France’s governmental memo on employment for their residing non-European students caused quite a commotion, and we’re not talking Jerry Maguire style. Graduates like Nabil Sebti are taking a stand against what could either turn into a long-term policy of sealing France off or be a strategy to gain votes in 2012 elections

Tips for taking a ‘laughter yoga class’ in Paris

('Katrina',) — Mon, 17 Oct 2011 15:10:15 -0000

Laugh for the sheer pleasure of laughing. Laugh standing up, laugh sitting down, laugh lying on your back, laugh sprawled on your front, laugh during the day, laugh at night, and most importantly, laugh with someone else

Zagreb’s Miss Independents

('English language version of cafebabel.com',) — Thu, 19 May 2011 17:32:58 -0000

The higher educated woman in Zagreb is close to the 'western model' of female independence. In the Croatian capital a Serbian journalist meet feminists, students, musicians and actresses who she says are moving away from the ‘traditional’ – at least from a Balkan perspective

Laszlo Tengelyi: the problem of being a philosopher in Hungary

('Emilie Prattico',) — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 16:22:08 -0000

On 8 January Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orban launched an investigation into the use of grant money awarded to five philosophers. Questions to a Hungarian-born philosopher who spearheaded an international petition, 'Protect the Philosophers!' from Germany, where he is based

Why would you learn Hungarian?

('Silvia Alexe',) — Tue, 05 Apr 2011 13:45:00 -0000

I could be daydreaming on the soft sand with a women’s magazine at my feet and a little sunburn on my shoulder. Unfortunately, it’s my Hungarian grammar book in the room I am sharing with two other students. They, too, decided to sacrifice their holiday month of July to improve their Hungarian

Book review Germany: 'degree Facebook internship' generation

('Carol Howard',) — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 12:52:31 -0000

Generation X became generation Y and the ‘internship generation’ is a recurring topic. However, whichever letters or titles are selected for it, no one can really get a hold on us. Can we really all be lumped together, technically-speaking, in terms of a generation? German writers Manuel J. Hartung and Cosima Schmitt asked themselves this question in a 2010 book analysing the difficult future of a generation with no name

Discrimination in Germany? Well go to Korea then

('Carol Howard',) — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 12:03:37 -0000

Germany has long been legendary as an immigrant’s paradise. For several years now, more people have been leaving the country than are actually entering it. Among them are some of the most highly educated young Germans who are turning their backs on the country because of discrimination

Plagiarists: Guttenberg resigns, Saif al-Islam Gaddafi in Swiss peace

('Annie Rutherford',) — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 11:45:00 -0000

Online accusations of plagiarism were not just being hurled at German defence minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg, who resigned in a shock move on 1 March. The son of the Libyan dictator, said to be in exile in Switzerland where he stayed after the world economic forum, also helped his London School of Economics doctorate along with a bit of the copy and paste method – in return for a tidy cash infusion

Vox-pop: Being a young journalist in Montenegro

('Jovana Zivkovic',) — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 16:57:19 -0000

I want to intern at a fashion magazine. I want to stop the assassinations of Montenegro's journalists. I want to wake the people up to the freedom that they have. Three twentysomethings from the capital, Podgorica, explain honestly why they chose journalism in a sometimes bleak Balkan world

Why are students protesting in Bologna

('blackbird3',) — Fri, 03 Dec 2010 12:30:00 -0000

With cries of 'block everything!', Italian students have been demonstrating for days against the university reforms currently being discussed in parliament. This report is from Bologna, where heated protests have even made headlines in the New York Times

German erasmus student on life in Istanbul

('Anneka',) — Mon, 18 Oct 2010 12:00:00 -0000

Who speaks English? Why don't men look me in the eye? Why do people still wear headscarves? A score of questions hit the European newcomer studying in the Turkish city

Study philosophy in Europe: France’s discern is UK’s ticket to top

('English language version of cafebabel.com',) — Fri, 01 Oct 2010 11:30:00 -0000

In the collective (French) conscience, it’s a lunar individual who studies philosophy, disconnected from the modern world and who brushes aside finance and marketing books. In reality their anxiety for the future remains a young one, choked by the crisis and demanding whether Socrates or Aristotle can really still mean something

Vilnius: 'Jerusalem of Lithuania'

('Daiva Repe\xc4\x8dkait\xc4\x97',) — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 14:47:26 -0000

Tired after a busy day and prepared for a casual chat, I meet a summer school student, with whom I've arranged to do Hebrew language tandem. 'Do you mind keeping me company to go to the synagogue?' Apparently, the person is a second year convert-in-progress to Judaism. 'Umm, my skirt is kind of short for that...' Anecdote from cafebabel.com blog ‘Wonderland'

Venice, the Moses project and fake funerals

('Sarah Truesdale',) — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 11:00:00 -0000

It is slowly sinking, its residents are leaving. The world's media are claiming that Venice’s end is nigh. American environmental information website Mother Nature Network even includes Venice on its '10 places to visit before they vanish' list. But the reality is more complicated

University: German students cross the Austrian border

('Joana Cansado Carvalho',) — Thu, 17 Jun 2010 10:54:23 -0000

It fills up pages in both Austrian and German newspapers. The EU’s court of justice has taken a stand on the subject. In some classrooms some say that there is no cause for concern, while others warn that tension is in the air. What is really going on?

Popping into Chinatown in Manchester

('Ana D',) — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 15:13:09 -0000

Known as a Chinese village of north England, the neighbourhood is one of the most peculiar in Manchester, being the second largest tourist spot of England after London. One of the odd distinguishing factors of multiculturalism is the local community enclosed in its borders

University-educated flee and woo Lithuania: emigration and erasmus

('Krisztian Gal',) — Wed, 19 May 2010 10:07:53 -0000

An increasing number of students are asking professor Žilvinas Martinaitis at the University of Vilnius to let them take their exams at the end of May. This would allow them to go abroad - most popularly, to the UK, Ireland or Scandinavia - to work, and return with some extra money in October, a month after the official term start. Lithuanian and eramus students, professors and politicians explain the phenomenon

Obituary: Irish academic Fred Halliday dies in Barcelona

('Metsa Rahimi',) — Mon, 03 May 2010 17:09:43 -0000

The Dubliner passed away on 26 April. No student in east-west relations would have escaped the work of this internationally acclaimed scholar in international relations, unabashed European socialist and eternal friend of the Middle East. Tribute from an Iranian Londoner who met the Irish scholar in Spain

Europe’s graduates: lecture halls to poverty lines

('Annie Rutherford',) — Mon, 26 Apr 2010 11:00:00 -0000

At best, many graduates find themselves facing a marathon of internships, and at worst a life under the poverty line. Unemployment in times of crisis brings social consequences too. The EU is reacting to prove that a degree is for life, and not just for christmas

Truth? There's no-one to vote for in 6 May UK elections

('james whyte',) — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 10:13:58 -0000

For the first time in decades, the very real possibility of a hung parliament allows the political landscape to be shaken up in the UK's general election on 6 May. But the opposition leader David Cameron, who launches his election campaign on 13 April, appears windswept, PM Gordon Brown imperious and Nick Clegg just wants to be recognised

‘University mafia’ cut corners in Czech Republic, Slovakia, Germany and France

('Jude Lister',) — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 12:00:00 -0000

On 1 February, a new rector was allegedly appointed to the Alexander Dubcek university of Trencin in western Slovakia, after a spate of corruption scandals forced his predecessor to resign. Fake diplomas are nothing new, but these events multiplied across Europe in 2009, with Miss Worlds and prominent politicians standing accused: how can such a reality be explained?

Marketa Tokova, 26: 'erasmus is too vague'

('Hayley Worsley-Carter',) — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 12:00:00 -0000

Set up in 1989, the international erasmus student network is the largest and oldest. Results from a 2009 study into whether the celebrated European academic exchange programme is correctly recognised and understood between and in universities appeared negative; we hear from the president of the network on its virtues and faults

'Erasmus is about discovering Europe'

('Nicola Potter',) — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 13:00:00 -0000

Like many an old advertising cliché, the erasmus student exchange programme offers a ‘dual action’ experience. After the culture shock, the parties, the multinational encounters and the adventures across Spain, come the trips to visit new found friends, in all corners of Europe. This new European consciousness keeps us coming back for more

Discrimination: finding a place to live in Paris

('Aatish Pattni',) — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 12:00:00 -0000

Real Parisians know it all too well; even they need several months and an agency, usually, to find a home within the city limits, on the commuter belt of one of the 20 Parisian ‘arrondissements’ (administrative districts). But then how do foreigners fare in the cut-throat Parisian housing market?

Eternal Traineeship of the Eurojobless Mind

('Aatish Pattni',) — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 16:30:00 -0000

The road towards the ideal job is long, and Brussels is merciless on those who don’t have the nerves or patience - especially between the disappointment regarding job offers and evenings spent by young, wanna-be Eurocrats networking to get noticed

Metro-run university of Paris 14 challenges French ‘anti-egalitarian’ education system

('Tim Mac an Airchinnigh',) — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 11:29:55 -0000

The newly formed university is a mobilisation of students, teachers and researchers who aim to liberate education from the over-arching confines of the ‘institution’. Participants Emile Gayoso and Quentin Lade on neo-liberalism, the Bologna process and giving classes on public transport

In Greece, remembering Alexis Grigoropoulos, 15, with riots

('Mohsin Patel',) — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 17:39:50 -0000

Since 6 December, millions of Greeks have been gathering in the country's streets in memory of the teenager who was killed by a policeman during the student revolts. Collisions between anarchists and 6, 000 police have resumed with renewed vigour. 'When will we listen to what the youngsters have to say?'

Dominika Nowak: 'I want to stay unusual, even if I've had to become more commercial'

('Nabeelah Shabbir',) — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 11:27:38 -0000

The designer untames convention with her 'Nunc' shoes, insisting that her furry fabric fantasies are made to be adapted to daily life. We discuss Paris-Krakow, fashion uglies and what it's like to go it alone as a one-woman brand at 27

Sauna, an A-level in drinking beer: my erasmus semester in Tampere, Finland

('Ellie Banks',) — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 10:00:00 -0000

Scandinavia is continuously highly rated in the Pisa classifications, and in between reindeers and Santa Claus, I recommend you all spend an erasmus semester in Tampere

University in Denmark is free for EU citizens, plus other fantasy-realities

('Alexandra Baxter',) — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 00:00:00 -0000

The land of Hans Christian Andersen and Hamlet finds a place in the hearts of everyone who lives or studies there

Free movement of French and Dutch foreign veterinary, medical students in Belgium

('Tam\xc3\xa1s K\xc3\xa9ry',) — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 16:59:13 -0000

A huge amount of foreigners study two of Europe’s seven officially regulated subjects in Belgium, but its foreign student population of 6.3%, the seventh highest in Europe in 2006, is not heterogenous. Insight

German students swoop down on Austrian universities

('Darren Thompson',) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 10:00:00 -0000

In some border university towns, the student population is as high as 12%, as German students escape the various clauses in their own universities and enrol 'abroad' for subjects like medicine and psychology. A common tongue and the abolition of tuition fees are the fundamental attractions

Lyon Zero: French universities what run themselves

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 12:28:43 -0000

French university reforms saw the birth of revolts and protests, but also the emergence of alternative higher education projects in spring 2009 which administer themselves at the UA, Paris 14, Paris 3 and Paris 8 universities. The laboratory aim is to share knowledge and abolish hierachy - after all, going to university is not just about getting a job

Kasparas Pocius, not quite the father of Lithuanian anarchism in the millenium

('Daiva Repe\xc4\x8dkait\xc4\x97',) — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 15:23:12 -0000

The 27-year-old is too young to be fairly branded the 'father' of Lithuanian anarchism today. However, as one of the co-founders of anarchija.lt, the critical magazine Juodraštis ('Draft') and the Vilnius Free University, he is the most visible public figure when it comes to presenting Lithuania's anarchist ideas to the wider public

Evora, where life bumps to a different rhythm than in Lisbon

('Darren Thompson',) — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 17:00:00 -0000

The economic development of the Alentejo region of the country poses the same problem faced by many Mediterranean countries. How can innovation and tradition survive side-by-side?

Europe's youth stack up the degrees to shun the dole

('Paulina Dominik',) — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 10:02:27 -0000

With one out of five under-25s job-hunting in Europe, many opt to continue studying as long as it takes to avoid signing up on the dole. Diverse realities of a generation in the middle of the crisis

Istanbul's Yeditepe, Bogazici universities: erasmus on the catwalk campus

('Annie Rutherford',) — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 18:00:00 -0000

Istanbul is in: just look at the rising numbers of erasmus students at the thirty or so universities in the Bosphorus metropolis. While just a few years ago only a few universities in Istanbul had a bilateral contract with other European colleges, there are now hardly any colleges left in the 20-million inhabitant megapolis which do not open their doors to students eager to study abroad. Part one of an erasmus experience

Ghostwriters in France: who’s writing your dissertation?

('Aatish Pattni',) — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 08:00:00 -0000

They are paid to write dissertations and theses in the shadows for others. There is a punishment for this in France which is rarely applied. We meet 'Nicolas' in Paris

Visit to the EHU: Belarusian elite university exiled in Vilnius

('Sarah Truesdale',) — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 12:00:19 -0000

The decision was taken: the European humanities university, created in Minsk, Belarus in 1992, packed up to join Vilnius (and democracy) in 2004. In this oasis of free education, Belarusian youth have been exiled further and further to the west

Seville: Cuba, communists and anticapitalists for the elections!

('Nabeelah Shabbir',) — Tue, 12 May 2009 15:59:50 -0000

Spotlight on the epicentre of southern Spain, whose ruling socialist-communist government leans more towards Cuba than Europe. In the land of the mileuristas - so-called '1000 euros a month-ers' - the rude gap is being bridged with an increasingly politically alternative feeling before the European elections in June 2009

65% of European students want free university

('Joss Corner',) — Mon, 11 May 2009 17:00:00 -0000

In Germany, students are threatening to strike. In France, certain universities are blocked for the long term. The question of end of year exams is looming. ‘Students and the further education reform?’ - perilous survey by the European commission

Why would you not do Erasmus?

('Hayley Wood',) — Tue, 05 May 2009 16:00:00 -0000

In France, around 4000 Erasmus bursaries found no takers in 2008. But why say no to an experience abroad? Efficiency, money, elitism…here an assortment of experiences shed some light on the situation surrounding the student exchange programme in Europe

For Czech students, European travel is not a priority

('Sarah Truesdale',) — Tue, 05 May 2009 15:00:00 -0000

Slap bang in the middle of the Czech Republic's six-month presidency of the EU, and not only does the state lack a little enthusiasm for European affairs, but Czech students too seem less willing to go and study in another European country

Follow the German 'work and travel' slogan summer

('Aatish Pattni',) — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 16:20:15 -0000

The Germans use the term to emphasise an 'alternative kind of trip'. Getting to know the people and country whilst picking strawberries, lying on the beach, going to concerts and getting work experience all at the same time? The summer seems too just short to carry out all our plans. So how else is it possible to combine work and travel?

Education: looking for theology in France

('Marie Pepper',) — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 16:00:00 -0000

Theology, or the study 'of realities relative to the divine'. Where can this subject be studied in Europe and who pays? Is it public or private?

Middle-East: British students still mobilised

('Hayley Wood',) — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 12:00:00 -0000

Fighting in the Gaza Strip may be over, but sit-in demonstrations organised via email and Facebook continue in 21 UK universities. Amongst other things, students demand bursaries for Palestinian students. This is a campaign which 'has only just begun'