Hele Kaukonen from Kuopio, FINLAND

I had the idea of going for a student exchange even before I had started studying on my current program. And I was more than eager to take up the opportunity to go do my one of my paramedic traineeships abroad. At first I weren’t aware that Slovenia was a possible option for the exchange and my initial plan was to apply for the English speaking countries since the idea of a language barrier was quite intimidating. But my University of Applied Sciences back home messed up a tiny bit with my application and those options were already given out to others. That’s when I was recommended to go to Slovenia. And to be completely honest, I couldn’t be happier with the result that this lead me onto!       

It did take a bit long to get the final confirmation that I actually got to do my traineeship in the ambulance services, but the coordinators at the faculty were kind and helped out with the application process for the exchange and coordinated the traineeship I needed for my studies. 

I spent 10 weeks in Maribor and the time flew by really fast. It took me some time to adjust to the environment but the city and Slovenia as country overall is very beautiful. People in here were very friendly and social, which at first was bit of a culture shock for an introverted Finnish person. But their kindness and willingness to help out others played a big part in helping me to adjust to living in there. 

I ended up getting one of the most memorable traineeships in here. At first it was probably bit of a surprise for them to have me there for such a long period of time, but within time they started to get used to having me around. It was interesting to see the differences within the way people work in the ambulance services in here compared to my home country. I got to see some very interesting and educating interventions, and the guys were trying their best to explain and teach me their way of working. And it was lovely to see how proud they are with what they do.  The language barrier was a slight hindrance every now and then, but we were able to find a way around it so that I was able to function during the interventions. And people in here do speak good enough English so that they get understood, but mostly it seems they are bit shy about speaking. Certainly, it wasn’t the easiest period of time for neither me or them, but I enjoyed my time with them very much and I’m very grateful that they did try their best to get me accustomed to being part of them.

Every journey has their ups and downs, but even with the challenges, all the positive aspects were topping them off and making this one of the experiences in my life that I won’t be forgetting. I truly recommend people to give Slovenia a chance and to apply here for an exchange period even if you don’t know the language. It is definitely worth it! This journey did widen my horizon and opened me some new opportunities as well. It was hard having to say farewells to the people I ended up getting to meet and befriend with. Maribor will always have a special part in my heart!