students' status

it seems that the students here are more appreciated than in finland. as soon as the new term started the main entrance of the university was occupied by diverse advertisers: you could join greenpeace, test a newspaper, try a new yoghurt, get a credit card... as much as the promoters annoy me, they make me feel important. they really see students as an important target group and important consumers. on campus there are also all kinds of companies such as a driving school, book shops (of course), restaurants, a brewery (!), insurance company, supermarket... in finland it sometimes seems that even putting their advertisement into the student calendar is for the companies more like a gesture of charity than real marketing. in vaasa there is even a campus area, but in comparison to vienna it's very empty and -well- dead. my self esteem as a student has got a lot higher since my arrival.

on the other hand, stundents have different problems here. there aren't enough courses for them (remember my proseminar with about 150 applicants for 38 places?) and the auditoriums are more than full students sitting on the stairs and leaning on walls. and that's despite the tuition fees.