International Exchange Programs Day, which was organized by Prof. Dr. Zübeyde Sinem Genç, included honest reflections of  Erasmus and Orhun program students' experiences in Bursa, Türkiye. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ufuk Özen Baykent, Dr. Erkan Yılmaz and Orhun Program Coordinator Dr. Ayşegül Zıngır Gülten joined us for the event.
İslam Akifov from Kazakhstan,  Alice Sati from France, Nikola Kazmierska and Paulina Nowacka from Poland shared the things they loved, the weirdest things they learned, and some unexpected life lessons they picked up along the way.
Nikola and Paulina expressed that 
Erasmus wasn’t just about studying abroad – it was about stepping out of your comfort zone and growing through every awkward or amazing moment.
Alice's presentation was a mix of personal experience and cultural comparison, explaining what studying in France looks like, what university life is like and especially how different it is from the system in Türkiye. She emphasized that this experience was about growing as a person and adapting to a new system, and different perspectives.
 İslam shared his personal journey from Kazakhstan to Türkiye as part of the Orhun Exchange Program, and talked about the cultural differences he experienced, the similarities between our Turkic roots, and how this exchange helped  him grow both personally and academically.
Our students at the ELT Department participated and asked questions during this fun and informative event.