"I have to balance between study and fun"

Why did you choose Pécs?

I had five or six options before choosing Hungary, not Pécs exactly. I had three Arabic countries: Egypt, Algeria, Sudan and Macedonia, or Hungary. I chose Hungary, because it is a member of the European Union, the certificate is issued in here but you can work in any country of the European Union. I chose Pécs because of the name of the university: this is the oldest Medical School in Hungary and one of the oldest in Europe. I heard a lot about Pécs and the Medical School: it has friendly atmosphere, good teaching materials and good equipment, as well. I experienced the same as I heard, but the atmosphere was much friendlier than I expected.

What do you think about the people around you?

It is difficult to find people who speak English in Hungary; this is the biggest problem for a foreigner student. Hungarian people are friendly. I learn Hungarian, I have classes at the university, and because I have a lot of Hungarian friends, I always ask them to teach me. I have friends not only from the Medical School, but the Faculty of Business, Law and Humanities as well. Lot of activities are being organized by the university, you can meet people, even by just sitting in the city centre. My favourite sight is the cathedral because it is awesome.

You've mentioned that you learn Hungarian.

I can have a short conversation with someone in Hungarian. We learn formal expressions in school, but out of school, of course, I speak with all of my friends informal. I know the words for the months, the days of the week, how to introduce or talk about myself. I can ask about something I want, order food or drinks at a restaurant, to ask for an address, asking for any question and information. We also learnt at school how to talk to the patience. My first words were “szia” and “köszönöm”.

I know Arabic as a mother tongue, I speak English fluently and Hungarian quite well. I cannot say it is bad, and I cannot say it is perfect. It is a quite difficult language, especially for the vowels. It is elective how many students learn Hungarian, but we need to pass an exam at the end of the semester as a medical student, so we have to learn Hungarian. And it can add a lot of experiences for you. Our teacher is so nice: she always teaches us the things she thinks we have to know, either to cope with the patients and different situations in Pécs.

How many Jordanian students are here in Pécs?

I don't know the exact number but we are 12 at the Medical School and there are more than 200 pre. med students. Actually, we do not have a kind of student chancellor or something like this, but I also contact with the consul if there is any problem or we would like to organize a program. Basically, most of us are studying Medicine, but we have a couple of students who are studying Engineering and one of them is studying Architecture. Actually, we do not live at a student hostel; last year – except one or two students – everyone moved to a flat. If you need freedom, an own place, or to do what and whenever you want you have to move to a flat – you cannot do that in a dormitory. Dormitories not fit for the medical students, there are a lot of annoying things, for example the parties. Actually, I have to study a lot. It is not difficult, but there are a lot of studying at the Medical School.

How about your free time?

Unfortunately, I do not have enough time, but I try to go to as many places as I can – I have to balance between study and fun. I have been at Mohács before and I go to to Kozármisleny each Sunday to play football, besides I also visited Villány and Szekszárd. I have been several times in Budapest and at the Lake Balaton. In the high school I used to do many sports, but now I do not have enough time. I used to play handball, volleyball, football and basketball. Now I mostly play football, it is my favourite one, I pursue it in Kozármisleny. We go there each Sunday and we play sometimes indoor, sometimes outdoor, it depends on the number of the players. In most cases I go to places with my friends. My best friend and me do almost everything together. He is studying Medicine and he is also a Jordanian guy. We have met at the Hungarian Embassy.

Do you like the city?

I arrived 15th of November, 2013 and I will leave Pécs after finishing my studies, approximately 5 years from now, because I am a first-year medical student. I am sure that the other Jordanians also like Pécs, because if they do not like, they would have moved to another city. If a Jordanian does not like a place he does not want to stay there. We are almost every week together: we play cards and we talk about things we have experienced during the weekdays. We have got so crowded schedules, so at the end of these, we do not speak about school at all.

by
Judit Szanyi-Nagy
UnivPécs