Your Student Experience
UofG Sport & Erasmus
Meet Duarte and Ethan. They met in October 2018, when Duarte joined the University of Glasgow on a one-semester Erasmus programme from the University of Porto. Less than twelve months later they were a winning Lightweight Pair in student rowing.
Duarte was a fourth year Mechanical Engineering student when he joined the University of Glasgow who had been rowing for over ten years. Ethan is a second year, studying Politics and English Literature, who rowed at St Andrew Boat Club in Edinburgh before joining the university crew.
Within days of arriving in Glasgow, Duarte joined Glasgow University Boat Club (GUBC) hoping to join the crew and make friends. Duarte's academic experience and everything he achieved with GUBC meant he extended his Erasmus programme into a full year.
Ethan and Duarte were winners of the Lightweight Pair at the Scottish Rowing Championships and Winners of the Lightweight Pair at the Home International Regatta, racing for Scotland. In September 2019 Ethan and Duarte were crowned Vice European Champions at the European University Sports Association (EUSA) Rowing Championships in Jönköping, Sweden, the highlight of their rowing careers and a fantastic culmination of their year together.
The story below is their first-hand student experience at the University of Glasgow, showing all that can be achieved by combining academic studies and sporting ambitions.
Duarte's Story
I knew right away that the University of Glasgow was the placement I wanted.
Glasgow appeared to be a vibrant and interesting city, with a well-known University, world-recognised for its high standards and prestige. And to top it off, Rowing was a sport highly practised amongst the students of the University. Rowing has been my sport and passion for twelve years now, and doing an Erasmus at the University of Glasgow definitely meant fuel to this fire, enriching my sports career with an entirely different and unique season.
I am very proud to have extended my Erasmus mobility two times, so that I could keep on chasing my goals and fuelling my passion for the city and country.
Duarte tells us about his UofG Sport experience
Ethan tells us about his UofG experience
Duarte's Story (continued)
Even before setting foot in Glasgow, I had already shown interest in joining the University's Boat Club (GUBC). As soon as I arrived I started training with them, and it wasn't long before I already felt like I was part of the family.
I've made new friends, set up new goals and established my commitments with the team. They were my main reason to stay at Glasgow. A team that drawn me in, and with whom I found an entirely new passion for the sport.
Rowing this year at Glasgow resulted in a season I will never forget, full of unbelievable experiences and achievements I would never have dreamt of at the start of this journey.
Duarte's Story (continued)
Erasmus allowed me to do the sport that I love in a completely new environment, which naturally lead to a bigger and more challenging season, one which I was very excited about. Once again, I had to adapt to a new team, a new club, coached by new people, with a new training programme, race against new rivals and be part of new regattas. It was an entirely different and unique season, full of challenging goals, that worked as fuel to this passion of mine and helped me grow as an athlete, by giving me more confidence, experience and adaptability.
My Erasmus experience was very defining, as it created a path for my future as an Engineer – gave me knowledge, experience and allowed me to meet a group of people with whom I am very interested to keep in touch with for future projects. I believe this will definitely be essential to build my future as an Engineer.
Erasmus is about learning how to cooperate, communicate and get along with different cultures and people. Now, more than ever, I believe the Erasmus spirit should be shared across the entire academic community.
More than an Erasmus student, I felt like I was a student of Glasgow, and that was key to have the sense of belonging to the University itself.
I recommend people to join clubs or societies with whom they can identify themselves with. It is an easy way to get to know people and establish new friendships. For me, the Boat Club was essential, as people there welcomed me as their own, and soon enough, they became one of my dearest friends, with whom I still keep contact with.
Duarte tells us about his Erasmus experience
UofG Sport
UofG Sport supports over 25,000 students during their time at the University of Glasgow. Facilities for all interests and capabilities allow for sport, exercise and wellbeing to be a fundamental part of your student experience.
Established in 1867, Glasgow University Boat Club (GUBC) is one of the oldest, largest and most successful clubs at the university. The club welcomes rowers – both experienced and totally new to the sport – providing a friendly, competitive and driven environment to train and compete in.
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Study Abroad & Exchange
The Study Abroad & Exchange team welcome over 1,500 visiting students every year, offering students from around the world an unforgettable study experience at the University of Glasgow.
We also run the UofG Go Abroad programme, which gives UofG students the option to study at one of our European or International partners or build up your work experience through an Erasmus Traineeship. Traineeships allow you to expand your professional network and gain hands-on experience in your field of study.
Wherever you are in your UofG journey, the Study Abroad & Exchange team can help steer you in the right direction.
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