Basel, the city in Switzerland located on the Rhine, only a short ride away from the borders of Germany and France
The city of Basel is very diverse and multicultural. It is known for its great sense of art & architecture, its carnival celebrations and swimming in the Rhine, as soon as the temperatures allow it. As part of this master program you can spend one semester in Basel if you want to gain a Social Science Perspective on Sustainable Development. The short Q&A below tells you all you need to know about your mobility semester.
Which specialization tracks exist? And how is the workload and grading system?
The specialization in Basel is called “The Social Dimension” and thus the focus is on social sciences’ perspective on sustainability. But you can basically choose from a huge variety of different classes. The workload is perfectly fine, as you need to write two long papers which count 5 ECTS each. That means, that you are only having classes for 20 ECTS, which is really relaxed during the semester.
I loved the classes and learned a lot there. It’s best to check out the classes in the first two weeks of the semester and then select them. There is the possibility to take classes from other institutes but for us it was important to discuss the classes we wanted to select with our supervisor (Prof. Burger). I felt that the classes were more demanding than in Graz which I liked because I learned more. The grading system is different, there are grades from 1 to 6 and 6 is the best. However, unlike in Graz, it is not very easy to get a 6 and therefore the conversion of the grades is not really in our favor.
What should I prepare before the stay?
All the organizational stuff from University of Graz. No worries, they are more organized in Basel J You will choose and elect the classes once you are there. As a European citizen, I don’t know about the visa issues, I just know that the non-European students had to drive to Vienna for organizing the visa.
How do I find housing?
I lived with one of my fellow classmates and friend together in one apartment that we rented together for the whole semester. I was very lucky since my friend took over the apartment hunt and it was quite easy to find it, but I don’t know which websites she looked at. But I think that there is student housing and otherwise I would just search on the private market, it is actually not that hard to find a shared flat.
This website is perfect for finding housing: https://markt.unibas.ch/category/wohnen-angebot
You can consider living in Germany or France, as it is cheaper. But it also has its advantages to live right in the beautiful city of Basel.
How do I get around in the city?
I recommend strolling around by bike as it is a great bike city. You can also use public transport, but it’s not that cheap in Switzerland. It makes sense to by a “Halbtaxkarte”, with which you only pay half the price. It costs 185 CHF but you get half of it from the Erasmus Office. If you want to see the mountains and travel around Switzerland, I definitely recommend it. Here is some information about it: https://www.sbb.ch/en/travelcards-and-tickets/railpasses/half-fare-travelcard.html
How do I meet people when I arrive?
There will be a welcome meeting for all newcoming sustainers. You will also get in contact with the Erasmus Team, which is super active in Basel. Meeting international people is not hard at all, making Swiss friends might be a bit harder…
Also, in the classes we met people from the MSD (that’s the Swiss Sustainability Master) and they are usually well connected. They invited us to their WhatsApp group and to events. Then again, there is ESN, the student group that organizes events for all the exchange students. They have a Facebook group and they will also be introduced at the introductory meeting from the University of Basel for exchange students.
How are the living expenses?
Basically, everything is really expensive in Switzerland. You have to plan around 450 € for renting a room. For food, I recommend doing grocery shopping in Germany, which is not far away at all. And get a bike – it’s worth it :)
Prices in Switzerland are definitely higher than in Austria or Germany but Basel is not as “bad” as Zurich or Geneva, meaning prices are high but not that high. Also, living in Basel you can go shopping in Germany or France (which is what we did). For us, living in Kleinbasel, it took around 15-20 minutes by bike to get to REWE in Weil am Rhein. When you go out for drinks or coffee it is quite expensive and so we mostly met at our place or a friend’s place to have coffee or dinner together and did not go out that often. If you want to travel a bit (which you definitely should do, the country is gorgeous!) you should get the Halftax-card and always bring food so you don’t have to buy it up on a mountain or in a restaurant. If you have the Halftax-card and book your ticket early, prices can actually be quite cheap!
Which cafés, bars, sports centers can you recommend?
Café Frühling in Kleinbasel (Klybeckstraße), restaurant Kleine Freiheit in Kleinbasel, La Fourchette in Klybeckstraße (quite fancyand expensive but really nice and good!), KLARA in Kleinbasel, and the Markthalle near the Basel SBB main station (they have really good food there!), tibits Basel (also near Basel SBB). For sports I always went running along the “Wiese” (that’s a river) and my room mate took some of the sports classes offered by the University. The Looking Glass yoga studio is my favorite. They speak English and are just wonderful. You HAVE to get a croissant in the store “Stoff und Brot”.
What is your ultimate tip for having a good time in the city?
You should go for a swim in the Rhine river – it’s amazing and typically Swiss. And make the most of living that close to the mountains, France and Germany. There a perfect train connections. I recommend doing Foodsharing in Basel, as there are quite nice places to get super yummy food and save money.
Find activities that you can do where you don’t have to pay for :D
The specialization in Basel is called “The Social Dimension” and thus the focus is on social sciences’ perspective on sustainability. But you can basically choose from a huge variety of different classes. The workload is perfectly fine, as you need to write two long papers which count 5 ECTS each. That means, that you are only having classes for 20 ECTS, which is really relaxed during the semester.
I loved the classes and learned a lot there. It’s best to check out the classes in the first two weeks of the semester and then select them. There is the possibility to take classes from other institutes but for us it was important to discuss the classes we wanted to select with our supervisor (Prof. Burger). I felt that the classes were more demanding than in Graz which I liked because I learned more. The grading system is different, there are grades from 1 to 6 and 6 is the best. However, unlike in Graz, it is not very easy to get a 6 and therefore the conversion of the grades is not really in our favor.
What should I prepare before the stay?
All the organizational stuff from University of Graz. No worries, they are more organized in Basel J You will choose and elect the classes once you are there. As a European citizen, I don’t know about the visa issues, I just know that the non-European students had to drive to Vienna for organizing the visa.
How do I find housing?
I lived with one of my fellow classmates and friend together in one apartment that we rented together for the whole semester. I was very lucky since my friend took over the apartment hunt and it was quite easy to find it, but I don’t know which websites she looked at. But I think that there is student housing and otherwise I would just search on the private market, it is actually not that hard to find a shared flat.
This website is perfect for finding housing: https://markt.unibas.ch/category/wohnen-angebot
You can consider living in Germany or France, as it is cheaper. But it also has its advantages to live right in the beautiful city of Basel.
How do I get around in the city?
I recommend strolling around by bike as it is a great bike city. You can also use public transport, but it’s not that cheap in Switzerland. It makes sense to by a “Halbtaxkarte”, with which you only pay half the price. It costs 185 CHF but you get half of it from the Erasmus Office. If you want to see the mountains and travel around Switzerland, I definitely recommend it. Here is some information about it: https://www.sbb.ch/en/travelcards-and-tickets/railpasses/half-fare-travelcard.html
How do I meet people when I arrive?
There will be a welcome meeting for all newcoming sustainers. You will also get in contact with the Erasmus Team, which is super active in Basel. Meeting international people is not hard at all, making Swiss friends might be a bit harder…
Also, in the classes we met people from the MSD (that’s the Swiss Sustainability Master) and they are usually well connected. They invited us to their WhatsApp group and to events. Then again, there is ESN, the student group that organizes events for all the exchange students. They have a Facebook group and they will also be introduced at the introductory meeting from the University of Basel for exchange students.
How are the living expenses?
Basically, everything is really expensive in Switzerland. You have to plan around 450 € for renting a room. For food, I recommend doing grocery shopping in Germany, which is not far away at all. And get a bike – it’s worth it :)
Prices in Switzerland are definitely higher than in Austria or Germany but Basel is not as “bad” as Zurich or Geneva, meaning prices are high but not that high. Also, living in Basel you can go shopping in Germany or France (which is what we did). For us, living in Kleinbasel, it took around 15-20 minutes by bike to get to REWE in Weil am Rhein. When you go out for drinks or coffee it is quite expensive and so we mostly met at our place or a friend’s place to have coffee or dinner together and did not go out that often. If you want to travel a bit (which you definitely should do, the country is gorgeous!) you should get the Halftax-card and always bring food so you don’t have to buy it up on a mountain or in a restaurant. If you have the Halftax-card and book your ticket early, prices can actually be quite cheap!
Which cafés, bars, sports centers can you recommend?
Café Frühling in Kleinbasel (Klybeckstraße), restaurant Kleine Freiheit in Kleinbasel, La Fourchette in Klybeckstraße (quite fancyand expensive but really nice and good!), KLARA in Kleinbasel, and the Markthalle near the Basel SBB main station (they have really good food there!), tibits Basel (also near Basel SBB). For sports I always went running along the “Wiese” (that’s a river) and my room mate took some of the sports classes offered by the University. The Looking Glass yoga studio is my favorite. They speak English and are just wonderful. You HAVE to get a croissant in the store “Stoff und Brot”.
What is your ultimate tip for having a good time in the city?
You should go for a swim in the Rhine river – it’s amazing and typically Swiss. And make the most of living that close to the mountains, France and Germany. There a perfect train connections. I recommend doing Foodsharing in Basel, as there are quite nice places to get super yummy food and save money.
Find activities that you can do where you don’t have to pay for :D
- Swim in the Rhine! Depends how long you stay in Basel for but if it’s already warm in May/June you should definitely do that.
- Go outside running, play Wikinger Schach in the parks and/or have picknick, barbecue (can recommend St. Johanns-Park and Kannenfeldpark).
- Having dinner parties at home.
- Go hiking! Near Basel: in the South Muttenz or Pratteln. Day trip: Reigoldswil (Jura Alps, e.g. Hinteri Egg). Longer day trip: Swiss Alps! Lucerne à hike the Pilatus. Thun à Beatenberg. But there is so much more, just do some research.
- Buy cheese fondue in the supermarket, prepare it at home and go to the River side, bring wine and have a nice outside dinner.
Pictures of Basel's old town
(C) Johanna Trummer
(C) Johanna Trummer