UWS exchange - Japan or England (1 Viewer)

[petermeetswendy]

Hi

I am doing B International Studies at UWS and it has an optional exchange semester in 3rd year. I have a few questions to ask.

1. How much money should I be aiming at to save up (considering the costs of air fares, accommodation, etc)?
2. While I looked at both University of Leeds (England) and Meiji University (Japan), both are good, what are the pros and cons of either universities?
3. Is it competitive to do exchange in general at UWS, or easy to get accepted in your number one preference?

 

[so_what]

I don't go to UWS, but at UNSW for exchange they want you to that you have a minimum of $2200 per month. So, I assume UWS would be similar. However, you can get up to around $6000 on HECS, it is called OS HELP, from the government which you pay along with the rest of your HECS. Actually, if you go to an Asian country, you can get $7000 on HECS with OS HELP.
UK is one of the most competitive countries to get into for exchange, that being said though, it shouldn't be too hard if you have decent marks. I am going to Scotland next year for exchange, but Leeds was my second choice. From what my advisor said, you needed a minimum wam of 70 to be competitive for entry there. However, this can vary widely between universities. Talk to your exchange advisor and they will likely tell you where you will be able to get in. I do not know the pros and cons of the universities themselves though. I chose UK because it gave me access to travel Europe later.
If you talk to an exchange advisor, those questions are likely to be answered better than anyone here can. So do that.

 

[petermeetswendy]

I know that I have to get at least about GPA of 3.5-4 to just get accepted. My GPA fell from 6 to 4 this year. Thank you for your help. =]