Laura's ASU Summer Experience 2024

METU student exchange experience at Arizona State University 

On 2 May 2024, Budapest Metropolitan University (METU) has entered into a landmark partnership agreement with Arizona State University (ASU), becoming the first and only Hungarian university to sign a long-term partnership agreement with them. ASU is ranked among the top 1% of universities in the world according to the Center for World University Rankings 2023-2024. The partnership brings additional know-how, innovation, international experiences and opportunities for Hungarian and international students studying at METU. 

In July 2024, three METU students have been selected to participate in Arizona State University's summer program – which has been a significant event not only for them, but for our entire university, as they were the first - but by no means the last – of our students to travel to ASU. 

Curious to hear what it is like to travel to the U.S. and join a summer program at ASU?  

Here are the experiences of Design Culture Bachelor’s METU student Laura from her visit to Arizona State University’s summer program! 

First and foremost, I am immensely grateful for the opportunity that I received from Budapest Metropolitan University to be chosen to participate as one of the first METU students in ASU’s Summer Experience program. I am thrilled about the future collaboration between METU and ASU as I believe it will offer a great and never-seen-before landscape in not only the Hungarian educational scene but in European lengths as well. There’s no other Hungarian university that has as broad of an international network and opportunities as METU. 

Honestly, this summary is not enough to express how awesome this trip was. Our journey started on the 23rd of June, early at the airport. I was excited for the journey to come as I already felt that it would be a great opportunity for me and also to proudly represent my home university, METU. After our long-haul flight, we arrived the same day in the afternoon as there was a minus 9 hours of time difference. 

At the PHX airport, we were greeted by ASU students who were already waiting for us. 

They warmly welcomed us and escorted us to a private bus organized by the university between the airport and the hotel. From the beginning, we already had such a warm welcome from the ASU staff. Upon arriving at the Graduate Hotel which is a 4-star hotel, we got our Arizona State University folder which included our schedules, ASU map, transportation system, and every important information for the upcoming days. 

On our first day, the METU students decided to explore Phoenix. The city was pretty calm on a Sunday. The streets are broad and because of the heat, there are a lot of humidifier stations. We explored the ASU campuses located all over the capital. There are different types of campuses from tall buildings to smaller ones and some newer ones are under construction. ASU seems to continuously expand with new campuses in the greater Phoenix area. 

On Monday, ASU’s summer program started. Thanks to the ASU alumni and staff we had a campus tour in Tempe. ASU in Tempe is the main campus which pretty much can be considered a whole university town. The first building, the ‘Old Main’ on the campus was constructed in 1898, fourteen years before declaring Arizona as a state. Arizona State University has a similar circular building as METU’s Örs Vezér Tere campus functioning as a music building. ASU has its dining area with Starbucks, different restaurants to choose from and most importantly Engrained which is a sustainable-based restaurant harvesting and processing locally grown ingredients. Furthermore, there’s an on-campus health facility to provide the highest quality of health service for all of their students. 

ASU being the first in innovation amongst US universities, focuses greatly on innovative learning. The venue of Dreamscape Learn embodies VR learning with fun where students can experience the newest educational breakthroughs while acquiring problem-solving skills, teamwork, etc. as completing tasks in a virtual world. Also, Luminosity Lab provides a cooperative environment for innovation between students from diverse programs to collaborate in an open lab. There’s lots of possibilities for projects such as through the partnership with NASA. 

On Tuesday our Sustainability and Innovation courses started, which we had 4 of throughout the week. These courses provided us with knowledge of the UN’s sustainable development goals and how we can put these to practice in different aspects of business. In addition, we had several guest speakers throughout the week who were sustainability professionals. 

On our second day, I was encouraged to express my excitement and experiences about the program. I’m glad that I had the opportunity to take part in ASU’s testimonials representing METU and talking about the experience.

About our extracurricular activities, on Wednesday, we had a full day exploring the unmatched beauty of the Grand Canyon, Arizona’s Gem. Apart from the heat and desert, Arizona has amazing nature and wildlife which is so different from the European landscape. It’s interesting that in the desert still how innovation can prosper from the form of the first self-driving ‘WEYMO’ cars offering service, ASU being the top 1 innovative university, and more and more tech companies arriving in the area. 

On Friday, which was our last day, ASU students accompanied us to the Diamondbacks Baseball Game in Phoenix. It was an unforgettable experience where we could get immersed in the American lifestyle. I also would like to mention that ASU prepared us lots of meals throughout the week and personally arranged meals for any food sensitivities and allergies just like mine. I was grateful to experience the American taste even with food sensitivities. 

In the near future, I’m already excited to be able to take part in another METU x ASU exchange program. It’s one of the best things that can happen to a METU student and it’s the best opportunity for your future. METU students can explore the world thanks to its global partnerships. METU students can go international. METU’s scale of partner universities continuously keeps expanding and offering the most up-to-date education in Hungary. 

Would you like to gain experiences like Laura’s? 

Be part of Budapest Metropolitan University’s international community, study in the heart of Europe and enjoy the benefits of our partnership with ASU and 200+ other universities worldwide! 

Check out our programs and apply now!