First Impressions of ASP Katowice University

The day began with a briefing at the International Office of ASP Katowice where we met the study abroad coordinator Agnieszka Czardybon.
We also met 3 other Erasmus students, 2 girls and a boy who all came from Slovakia.
It was useful to find out that the Student ID cards we purchased give us a 50% discount on public transport, we hope to travel around the key landmarks of Poland whilst we are here so the discount will be useful.

Raciborska 37, where the International Office is situated 

A tour of the three university buildings was given by three current students, 2 industrial design students and one graphic design student. It was informative and they were all very friendly and helped to translate speech into English as some of the older tutors can't speak or know very little of our language. The quote of the day from one Polish tutor was;
"We have to speak English just for you!"

I was interested to read some background history into our host institution...

The Academy of Fine Arts in Katowice has been an independent university since 2001. For nearly 50 years before this, it was a branch of the Academy of Fine Arts in Krakow and held the name as the oldest public higher education institution for art studies in Poland. ASP Katowice has just over 600 students. It is described in the information book for foreign partners as;
"A modern educational strategy based on a solid, long-standing tradition in art education helped to create a varied educational offer that allows taking individualised learning paths in all fields of study"

We were given timetables for both Graphic Art and Graphic Design courses and have chosen units from each of them. It was also enticing to see swimming and 'joga' mentioned on the timetable, these activities are known for helping with stress management and are enjoyable so we may do some classes if we have the time. I'm looking forward to being able to compare this university course and teaching methods with our own course back at UCA.

My first impressions of ASP Katowice are that it is a clean, modernised and open plan space that allows students to thrive. Little touches such as beautiful artwork displayed in the hallways and on walls creates areas of inspiration. The little kitchenette rooms where you can make tea and coffee for free if you bring your own mug is a genius idea! I wish we had these in the UK.
The students and staff seem very friendly and passionate about the artistic subjects they are involved in which creates a positive environment. I look forward to our first classes tomorrow morning, starting with Editorial Graphics, a Graphic Art unit.