Annika Kretzschmar from Germany studies International Business in Lappeenranta

"I came to Lappeenranta as an exchange student to study international business. Soon, I decided to stay longer and finish my degree here.

I really like the studying system here; that is one thing that encouraged me to stay longer. There are a lot of group works and presentations, and teaching is based on practical and real-life situations. This suits me well.

The great atmosphere was the second thing that made me want to stay longer. Relations between students and professors are nice and relaxed, and professors are very supportive. Here, students can call their professors by their first name.

Also, relations between students of different nationalities are open and friendly, so it was easy to make friends with both Finnish and international students.

Lappeenranta is quite small, but the good thing is that everything is close by and easy to get to. In the evenings, I meet with my friends, go to clubs or watch movies. You can also do a lot of sports here. I go to gym to exercise and go swimming in the swimming hall.

It might seem like Finland is far away from everywhere, but once you are here, you notice that you can easily travel to Russia, St. Petersburg, Sweden and the Baltic countries.

I have now also experienced a real winter. I am no winter person, but it has been a good experience. I like snow and have also tried cross-country skiing, which was fun but difficult."

Annika Kretzschmar