Student Report
Name of the University: Nanyang Technological University (NTU) – Nanyang Business
Scholl (NBS)
Exchange semester: Fall, 2015
I. PRACTICAL INFORMATION
Before leaving Norway
- When and how did you receive information from the exchange university, and
did you encounter any difficulties?
I received a lot of information from NTU before arriving in Singapore, about a month in
advance. This was sent to my personal email and the exchange school also provided me with
an (NTU-mail) were we communicated.
Applying for a visa
- How did you apply for your visa, what did it cost and did you have difficulties?
Regarding visa for Singapore, we needed to apply for a studentpass. I had to send in some
papers which included personal information, picture etc. This task did not come with any
difficulties. I had to pay an $60 issuance fee for the student pass and further $30 more.
Travel
- How did you travel to your destination?
I travelled by airplane. It was a a comfortable, but a long ride. I was sitting next a student I
didn’t know, but after many hours of good conversations we got to know eachother better and
this made the trip a good experience. I flyed with Emirates, which I really recommend.
Housing
- Was housing provided by the university? If not, did you receive support from
the school?
Housing was included by the university. I lived in hall 6 with an Singaporean. It was great
experience, and I don’t regret applying for it. It is so more cheaper than living outside of
the school campus, and it’s easier to meet and interact with people from another country
than just your own.
Costs
- Approximately how much per month did you spend on rent, books, food,
transportation, and other personal expenses?
Rent
Books
NOK 1500
NOK
50
Food
Transport
Other
NOK 2500
NOK 500
NOK 3000
Culture and language
- Did you have any language problems with the faculty or other students?
-
-
It was a little was weird setting in the beginning, speaking English all the time, being
in a foreign country and approaching many people from different cultures. I got used
to it very fast and I didn’t have any problems communicating with other students or
the faculty.
How were the possibilities to experience the country and the culture?
NTU arranged a lot of social events in the school area and outside as well. If it was a public
holday, the school let us know in advance and they gave us information about the event, were
they motivated us to attend.
II. ABOUT THE SCHOOL
- The school
NTU is located in western part of Singapore. It’s almost like a huge village with a lot of
buildings, canteens, parks and different school faculties. The school area is so big that buses
are driving around campus halls and to the different schools all day long, to make it easier to
get around for the students and employees.
Course registration
- When and how did you register for courses?
I registered for 10 courses that suited me the most and for this I first needed approval from
BI.
- When did the add/drop period end?
The add/drop period did end two weeks after semester start.
Academic calendar
Arrival date:
First day of the semester:
Last day of classes:
Examination period:
Any special events/holidays:
July 30th
August 3rd
November 16th
November 16thDecember 4th
Recess week 28-sep –
02 oct
Other:
Arrival
- Describe the introduction week
One of the first days of school we had a day introduction seminar with a the exchange
students in NTU. They proved some food and a good environment to chat with other students.
An organisation for exchange students arranged most of the events after this.
The International Office
- As an exchange student, did you receive sufficient and relevant information?
- I received sufficient and relevant information, and if I was not certain about something
I could easily email International office. They proved me good information fast which
helped me a lot in some cases.
Social activities
- How was the relationship with native students and that among exchange
students?
Especially at my hall, the native students were very welcoming and nice to me. We tended
to hang out more with exchange students, at some occasions we hung out all together at
hall-events, eating together at the cateen, or going out eating some local food. Some of the
natives showed us around in the city where we among others visited Little India and
Chinatown.
- Are there any special activities, student organisations, and gatherings for
exchange students?
- It was a students organisation called “One Big Family” which held a lot of events and
gatherings, giving us good prices and a welcoming atmosphere.
III. ACADEMICS
In the classroom
- Describe the teaching style (practical, theoretical, cases/lectures, formal/informal
etc.)
- How is the level and workload compared to that at BI?
- I did business courses and the lectures were held in small classrooms with an open
atmosphere. We communicated a lot more in class compared to BI. The lecturer often
had a powerpoint presentation about the week’s content and after that we discussed
and did some tasks. It really depended on the course, but in most cases the classes
were informal. It was more practical compared to how the lectures are runned at BI.
Almost every week we had assigments which had a due date.
Course materials
- Describe the course materials used
- We rarely used the book. We often used online articles and powerpoints to go through
the course’ content. The level of the course material was the same as BI, perhaps a
little higher in some courses, for example in finance courses.
Exams
- Was the exam based on the course materials or on the lectures?
- The exam based on both course materials and lectures
- How was the course evaluated (include all that apply)?
o Final exam
o In two of my courses a final written exam counted 50 %
o In-class quizzes throughout semester
o I had some quizzes, especially in two of my courses
o Small assignments and/or papers
o I had assignments in every course
o Presentations, group work
o We had do do at least one presentation in 3 out of 4 of my courses. We also
had group work as an assignment.
o Class attendance, Class participation/debates
o Class attendance counted around 10 % in every course I had
o Activities outside of the classroom
o In one of my courses we needed to interact with native students and a
Singaporean business, finally doing a report about it.
Library and technology
- Describe the facilities
- There were a lot of libraries around the school area, even at the hall-area we had a
study rooms with aircondition. They also provded us with computers at the bigger
libraries around the school.
Description of courses
Course code & name
Example:FIN123
Finance
Bf 2201- Investment
Master/
Bachelor
Bachelor
Bachelor
Exam form
Prerequisites
Comments
None
Approved
as
Elective
4-hour written
exam
2 hours written
exam
Basic Finance
Required
Perhaps the
most
difficult
finance
course at
NBS,
including
assignment
s, and
groupwork
as well.
The
difficulity
level is way
higher than
what I was
used to in
finance
courses at
BI.
A practical
and
theoretical
course,
including
group
presentatio
ns
dicussions
in class.
A pratical
and
theoretical
course,
including
groupprese
AB 3601- Strategic
Management
Bachelor
2 hours written
exam
None
Required
BE2501International Business
Environment
Bachelor
None
None
Elective
BH3603- Cultural
Intelligence At Work
Bachelor
None
None
Elective
ntation, a
lot of
discussing
in class,
quizes and
one major
assignment
A very
practical
course,very
similar to
“Business
Communic
ation at BI.
On a final note, how will you sum up the exchange experience?
Regarding the academic part it was very different from BI, where the workloud was
spread out over the whole semester. Some courses had a higher difficulity level than
BI in my opion, but some was actually easier. All in all it made it a bit more
challenging doing all the courses in English, but you get used to it pretty fast. As for
the academic part, I learned a lot and escpecially improved my English speaking level
(including the business language).
As for a cultural and social point of view, this was one of my greatest experience so
far in my life. I met many people from so many different countries and cultures. I’m
certain I will keep in touch with many of them. We went to school together, hung out
in the sparetime and travelled around in Asia together. You will probably meet some
people you will meet in a social setting, or in a business/work related way in the
future.
I recommend everyone to go on exchange, where you can challenge yourself, go
outside of your comfortzone, and do something you will never forget, both
academically and socially. Take your opportunity and go on exchange- it’s an
adventure.