Intl students experiences in University of Prince Edward Island (UPEI), Charlottetown

[Wananchi]

Would anyone share any information about international students personal experiences in UPEI? More specifically:

1) availability of part-time jobs during school year, and full-time jobs during school breaks
2) how bad do winters get?
3) cost of living (I've heard that it's high because everything is imported)
4) is the air too dry?
5) accessibility of student support from UPEI (esp mental health)
6) how easy or hard is it to find affordable off-campus student housing?
7) are the locals warm and welcoming to people of color? Do BIPOC students feel discriminated in any way?
8) student trip/travel discounts across Canada, during school breaks?
9) what is the winter really like (how high is the snow, visibility, strong winds, etc)? most online content talks about the summer & the ocean but I'm guessing nobody is at the beach in the winter.
10) what fun activities/events can one do or attend in the winter?

Please tell me anything that I haven't read off the school website, or the tourism sites, I want to be ready and businesses tend to sugarcoat the reality of things when recruiting customers (ie. International students).

 

[canuck78]

2. PEI gets a lot of snow. Not the coldest of the provinces but if you are near the ocean the cold wind can be bad.
3. Housing will be your major cost and will be much lower than most provinces.
4. It gets damp because of the ocean but winter
makes the environment dry especially indoors because of heating.
5. There is extreme demand on mental health services at all Canadian university. Expect wait times to get support and you may not get many appointments.
6. Should be pretty easy between May and September. Harder to find if arriving for January start.
7.Maritimes in general have very friendly people.
8. Student prices for bus exist. Don’t think there are organized trips but perhaps a club may organize an outing or a group of friends may plan an outing.
9. People check out the beach in winter but it will be cold, damp and maybe windy. Lots of snow but as long as you dress well it will be fine.
10. You are likely to be busy but there are lots of activities you can do during the winter.

PEI is a relatively small school and a Island. Most students will be from PEI or the Maritimes.