Studying @ Turku University School of Economics

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C1Boston
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Joined: Sat Apr 01, 2017 9:29 pm

Studying @ Turku University School of Economics

Post by C1Boston » Sat Apr 01, 2017 10:46 pm

Good afternoon/evening for most of you in Finland,

I was granted admission to the University of Turku and had a few questions that I was hoping to seek opinion/advice on via these forums. I am Latino/American, born and raised in New York City, currently living in Boston and I am sort of 50/50 on deciding if I should actually attend Turku University. I am not really concerned about the language and academics because Finnish people speak pretty eloquent english and the Masters Program is in English as well. My main questions are regarding transportation, cellphone service, internet service and housing.

1) I found a couple of housing websites which the University recommended, however, I was wondering if you guys recommend that I rent independently....is that even a "thing" in Finland?

2) Should I stick to public transportation? How efficient is it in terms of getting around Turku? Am I able to apply for some sort of student card that will provide me a different rate when I take public transportation? Does public transportation experience severe delays when its snowing? In Boston the Subway/Metro is AWFUL during snow storms. Do you guys have any sort of carshare services like Uber?

3) What are regular or usual phone service prices/rates in Finland? I imagine it would be cheaper to get a sim card from a Finnish carrier/phone company vs paying a US company for international service (total rip off).

4) Groceries/eating out. What would an average run to the grocery store cost? I'm not a "cook" per say but I can surely survive and make a few things here and there. Also, in terms of eating out...how expensive is dining out in Turku or Finland in general (nothing fancy, more like takeout places where I can grab a quick bite to eat if I'm feeling lazy).


Any insight is greatly appreciated and apologies for the major wall of text!



Studying @ Turku University School of Economics

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Beep_Boop
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Re: Studying @ Turku University School of Economics

Post by Beep_Boop » Sun Apr 02, 2017 11:08 am

1) Yes, of course you can rent on your own, but it's too expensive for a student. Go with housing that university recommends.

2) Public transportation in Finland is good, especially in relatively bigger cities such as Turku. Stick to it. Finland has been dealing with snow for thousands of years, so severe delays are not common. No Uber in Turku.

3) U.S. roaming charges in Finland are extremely expensive, so use a Finnish carrier. There are many deals.. don't overthink this. When you're here, you can go to any shop and buy a pre-paid with some good package. Saunalahti with internet package is good if you use Facebook Messenger/WhatsApp/Snapchat. If you go with university-recommended housing, internet is usually included, and it's much faster than what most people in U.S. get.

4) Groceries cost as much as you want them to cost. It all depends on what you eat. Some people say they pay 30 euros/week, some people say they pay 150 euros/week. You can get a quick takeout junk food (burger, pizza, Chinese) for something between 7-10 euros.

Are you really 50/50 because of these concerns? If you really are, then your thought process is severely flawed.
Every case is unique. You can't measure the result of your application based on arbitrary anecdotes online.

C1Boston
Posts: 3
Joined: Sat Apr 01, 2017 9:29 pm

Re: Studying @ Turku University School of Economics

Post by C1Boston » Mon Apr 03, 2017 5:33 pm

Beep_Boop wrote:1) Yes, of course you can rent on your own, but it's too expensive for a student. Go with housing that university recommends.

2) Public transportation in Finland is good, especially in relatively bigger cities such as Turku. Stick to it. Finland has been dealing with snow for thousands of years, so severe delays are not common. No Uber in Turku.

3) U.S. roaming charges in Finland are extremely expensive, so use a Finnish carrier. There are many deals.. don't overthink this. When you're here, you can go to any shop and buy a pre-paid with some good package. Saunalahti with internet package is good if you use Facebook Messenger/WhatsApp/Snapchat. If you go with university-recommended housing, internet is usually included, and it's much faster than what most people in U.S. get.

4) Groceries cost as much as you want them to cost. It all depends on what you eat. Some people say they pay 30 euros/week, some people say they pay 150 euros/week. You can get a quick takeout junk food (burger, pizza, Chinese) for something between 7-10 euros.

Are you really 50/50 because of these concerns? If you really are, then your thought process is severely flawed.

I am 50/50 due to acceptance to other Graduate school programs here in the US and in the UK. Was looking for insight to basic questions, thanks for your help!

Swissguy
Posts: 59
Joined: Tue Apr 05, 2016 3:29 pm

Re: Studying @ Turku University School of Economics

Post by Swissguy » Mon Apr 03, 2017 9:33 pm

If you are worrying about the cost of groceries, how are you going to pay the ~10.000€ tuition fees every year?

C1Boston
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Joined: Sat Apr 01, 2017 9:29 pm

Re: Studying @ Turku University School of Economics

Post by C1Boston » Mon Apr 03, 2017 9:44 pm

My post does not say I am worried about the cost of groceries...lol? I am just trying to get ballpark numbers on the things I mentioned for budgeting purposes outside of tuition costs as those funds are readily available.

Swissguy
Posts: 59
Joined: Tue Apr 05, 2016 3:29 pm

Re: Studying @ Turku University School of Economics

Post by Swissguy » Wed Apr 05, 2017 11:11 pm

You asked about some costs three times... So yeah. But that's offtopic anyway.


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