Student Report
Name of the University: HEC Montreal
Exchange semester: Fall 2015
I. PRACTICAL INFORMATION
Before leaving Norway
HEC contacted us shortly after BI nominated us as exchange students. Applying for a
spot in their exchange process was a very easy process done online. After being
accepted to their program, they provided us with the essential information.
We got information regularly about courses and when we had to apply, housing, and
how to register for the welcome week. They provided us with all the necessary
information, so we didn’t experience any difficulties in the preparing process.
One of the most important things to have ready before you leave is the testimonial
from HELFO, which says that you are entitled to receive Quebec’s health insurance.
Only bringing your HELFO card will NOT work. It is very important to have this
insurance, as it provides you with free medical care and you do not need to contact
your insurance company in Norway. A friend of us who did not have the insurance
had to pay $200 for an antibiotic prescription at the hospital.
Applying for a visa (if applicable)
As Norwegian, you do not need to apply for a visa when your stay is shorter than six
months. As we were only staying for four-five months, we did not have to apply for a
visa. However, keep in mind that it is always useful to have the document proving
you are studying in Canada whilst travelling.
If you are travelling by the U.S. when you are going to Canada, it is important to have
an approved ESTA application. You get it by filling out the online application on their
webpage, and you’ll receive your application after a few days. However, it’s smart to
apply for the ESTA as soon as you have booked your flight tickets.
Travel
When you are flying from Norway there are no direct flights, so you have to do a
stopover in another airport. Two of us traveled Oslo - New York and then New York Montreal. That was with SAS, and they have 23kg included in their tickets. The last
one of us travelled from Bergen via Iceland and Halifax with IcelandAir. The ticket
was ordered 2 months before arrival, and the price was around 9000 NOK.
Lånekassen covers 70% of your ticket price within 8000 NOK, so everything above
8000 NOK you have to take from your own pocket.
Housing
As mentioned above, we got a lot of information from the school about housing. They
recommended GetYourPlace. That’s a company who provide apartments for
exchange students in Montréal. They divide their apartments into the different
universities in Montréal, so you’re almost guaranteed to get to share an apartment
with other exchange students at HEC. We rented through Get Your Place. It was a
very easy solution, as it provided us with housing before arrival.
Many exchange students also rented a room at EVO, a student residence in
Downtown Montreal. It is also possible to look for an apartment when you get to
Montréal. Furthermore, they have a Facebook group run by HEC where people
advertise apartments and available rooms.
Our apartments were located close to HECs main building, CSC. It is a very nice and
quiet neighbourhood to live in, with easy access to parks, soccer fields, track
courses, swimming pools - all free. However, there is not much happening in this
area. The main street, Cote Des Neiges, has a good variety of restaurants, cafes and
some bars, but they are mainly Asian. If you prefer a more lively place close to bars
and clubs living in Le Plateau is recommended. Many exchange students lived in this
area and really liked it. St. Denis Street is a very good street to live close to.
Costs
Rent
4500 NOK
Books +
Simulation game
1000 NOK TOTAL
Food
2000 NOK
Transport
(Monthly pass)
400 NOK
Other
1500 NOK
Culture and language
HEC Montreal is a French-language business school, so most of the information and
posters around school are in French. It was very easy to learn the most common
phrases and signs. However, almost all the students, employees and teachers were
fluent in English as well so there weren’t any major difficulties with the language in
school. Compared to other exchange students, Norwegian’s level of English is very
good and we had no major difficulties studying in English.
Especially before the mid-term break we had a lot of time to travel around. The
HEChange team arrange trips for the students throughout the year. This semester
we went to Ottawa, Quebec, Mont-Tremblant to hike, New York, Boston and Cuba.
Many exchange students also travelled either on their own by bus/car or with a travel
agency.
II. ABOUT THE SCHOOL
HEC Montreal is the University of Montreal’s business division. The school consist of
two buildings, CSC and Decelles; both located at the University campus
approximately 15-20 minutes by metro from Downtown Montreal. Approximately
13.000 students are registered at HEC, the majority of them French speaking.
However, the school offers courses in French, Spanish and English.
The classrooms are much smaller than at BI, and you’re not more than 70 students in
each class.
Course registration
We registered for courses online at a page called enligne, similar to @BI. The
registration started in the beginning of July. However, do remember that it is possible
to add the courses you want a few days before the registration opens. As you have to
choose all your courses yourself, it is important to take into consideration lecture
time, midterm dates and finals dates. The most popular courses fill up very quickly,
such as the mandatory course “Strategic Management in Organizations”. When
registration opens, you can just submit your list of added courses.
You could add and drop courses until the 14th of September. It is possible to drop a
course later in the semester, but it will then be registered on your diploma.
Academic calendar
Arrival date:
16. August
First day of the semester:
1.September
Last day of classes:
8. December
Examination period:
From 9-21 December
Any special events/holidays: Labor Day
Thanksgiving
Halloween
Mid-term
Other:
Welcoming week
21-30 August
Arrival
Before the school started we had an introduction week called Welcom Week. The
Welcome Week is a week organised by the HEChange team, a student committee
that are organising activities and arrangement for the exchange students. The
Welcome Week started on the 21th of August and ended the 30th of August and
during that week we had a lot of different activities in the day and in the night. The
activities included amusement park, waterpark, zipline park, jetboat, different
activities around in the city, and parties in the evenings. You could choose between
three different packages, one for all days including airport pickup, one for all days,
and one for half of the week. The Welcome Week was an unique way to get to know
the other exchange students, and future classmates. We highly recommend you to
participate in this week.
The International Office
Before the school officially started, we had a registration day where we had to meet
at school with all our documentation. The HEChange team and the International
Office provided us with a guided tour in both buildings and an hour of information
from the International Office.
Promoting BI and Norway
In the beginning of November, HEC arranged an international fair. Together with
NHH, we had a stand where we promoted BI.
Social activities
We didn’t have a lot of contact with native students, because our classes were mainly
just exchange students. The native students were taking almost all of their classes in
English. However, the HEChange team run by HEC students arranged a lot of
activities for the exchange students throughout the semester. Every Thursday there
were an event called 4@7 at school, were students gathered to start the weekend. In
addition, they had a lot of events and parties in clubs and bars in downtown during
the weekends.
III. ACADEMICS
In the classroom
It is different from course to course, but most of the courses we had were a mix of
practical and theoretical teaching methods. Throughout the semester our teachers
used case studies and simulation games in addition to traditional taught lectures.
Through the semester every course have assignments, group works, simulations,
and presentations. So before you are even getting to the final exam, most of your
grade is already done.
Compared to BI, the teaching style is more personal because of the small classes
and the expected participation in classes. The teachers are asking a lot of questions,
but you’re not forced to participate.
As you have tests, assignments, presentations etc. throughout the entire semester
the workload is more spread than compared to BI where you only get graded on your
final exam. Even though it feels like a lot in periods, preparing for the exams are
much easier. It also gives you a lot of spare time if you are structured.
Course materials
Again, it is different from course to course. In some courses you need to buy books,
but they can be bought used on Facebook. Sometimes a coursepack is required,
which is basically the same as a compendium at BI and mainly consists of articles.
Some teachers only distribute articles and powerpoints for the courses. The workload
was pretty much the same as in BI, but you have to work more over the whole
semester here.
Exams
The exams were based on both lectures and course material, and the lectures are
mainly based on the course material. Some of the courses are non-cumulative, that
means they are divided into to parts, and the first part for the mid-term exam, and the
second part for the final exam. The courses was evaluated by:
o Final exam (include form: written, oral, home assignment, presentation,
etc.)
o Mid-term exam
o In-class quizzes throughout semester
o Small assignments and/or papers
o Presentations
o Group work
o Class attendance
o Class participation/debates
Library and technology
The library was under renovation when we got there, and as soon as they were done
it was really nice. The library is located in the building called Côte-Sainte-Catherine.
It’s a quite small library compared to the one at BI Oslo, but it has a lot of seats. The
whole library is a quiet zone so it’s not suited for group work, but they have a lot of
group rooms spread out in the buildings and in the library.
The technical equipment in the classrooms are quite new and modern. The
classrooms are smaller than at BI, so they’re using the blackboard more often in
addition to projector, and a smart board. In Côte-Sainte-Catherine, they have an
impressive Bloomberg room that you have access to use when it’s not classes there.
Description of courses
As mentioned, you are choosing courses in July and you have to be quick, because
the spots are usually taken very fast in the most popular courses. Because they have
3 credits courses (equals to 6 study points) you have to have 5 courses to get the
required amount of 30 study points.
2-500-09A Operations Management
Assignments: 25%
Mid-term: 35%
Final: 40%
If you’ve had “Logistikk” at BI, many of the subjects in the beginning of the semester
will be familiar. However, in this course they look deeper into subjects like forecasting
and the planning process and by the end of the semester you will have learned a set
of ways to calculate what you need in different stages of the production process, like
for instance product forecast, errors and components, but also the theory that is
important to make strategic decisions. It is a very interesting course and was my
(Malin) favourite course this semester.
2-440-07A Corporate Social Responsibilities
Mid-term: 30%
Participation: 15%
Individual assignment: 20%
Final assignment (group): 25%
Presentation of final assignment: 10%
This course teaches you about a broad specter of CSR subjects, like for instance
social business, environmental impact, sustainability. The lectures consists of a mix
of lectures by the teacher and guest lectures from different companies in Quebec,
like for instance Bombardier, Gardens without borders and Deloitte. It is a very easy
course to get a good grade in, as it is the overall percentage that decides what grade
you’ll get.
36-105-99A Business Communication in English Level 5
Summary and report writing: 20%
Business article presentations in front of small groups: 10%
Individual PowerPoint Presentation: 15%
Language skills quizzes: 10%
Participation: 10%
Mid-term: 10%
Final: 25%
This course aims to improve your communication skills both written and oral. The
classes are small (app. 20 students) and consists of a mix of exchange students and
business people. During the semester we touched many different subjects, like for
instance how to write different types of reports, business vocabulary and how to
present business related subjects in front of other people. It is a very interesting
course and you learn a lot as the class is very interactive and small. Though the
workloud may seem daunting due to all of the different criterias, it is a very easy
course to get a good grade in.
3-051-07A International Financial Management
Mid-term: 40%
Final exam: 60%
This was one of the mandatory courses. This course was interesting, and the teacher
had a lot of knowledge about the syllabus. However, his teaching method wasn’t very
good and, in addition, he had a quite strong French-accent that made it difficult to
understand him sometimes. The exam was based on the readings, his powerpoints
and handouts.
3-202-10A Risk Management
Mid-term: 40%
Individual assignment: 20%
Final exam: 40%
This was a hard, but very interesting and educational course. It is smart to have done
one or two courses of finance before taking this course, because they take into
account that you know all the basic things in finance and about the financial market.
The teacher has a lot of knowledge, and he is very engaging. The course in noncumulative, so the first part, of the course is based on power points and cases, and
this will be on the mid-term. The second part of the course is based on a class with a
real risk manager, his notes, and some reading, and this will be on the final exam. If
you’re interested in finance and risk, I recommend this course.
2-700-04A Information Technologies in Organizations
Assignment 1: 15%
Assignment 2: 15%
Quizzes: 30%
Final exam: 40%
This was one of the easiest courses we had, but it was a educational course if you
don’t know a lot about information technologies. This course was based on power
points, simulations, and assignments were you made a poster and presented an ITsystem, made a video, and made a dashboard. You learned how to use IT-programs
to make such things. The teacher is really good, and he has a lot of knowledge. The
final exam was divided into two parts, one computer part were you used programs
like Excel and Access, and the second part written.
3-430-14A Strategic Management in Organizations
Globstrat simulation: 45%
Peer evaluation: 10%
Final Exam: 45%
This is the second of the mandatory courses. This course is based on almost just
simulations. After the first three classes, you are going in groups and starting the
simulation with a program called Globstrat. There you are making new decisions
each week, and briefly presenting your decision and some concepts that you have
used every week. The workload in this course is not as high as the others, but you
learn a lot from the simulation.
2-300-97A Human Resources Management
Mid-term: 30%
Presentation in groups: 10%
Consultation report: 20%
Final: 40%
HRM is known to be the easiest course at HEC. It touches different important
subjects in HR, like the staffing process, unionization and mobilizing employees. The
syllabus is built around the laws of Quebec, which sometimes makes it a bit difficult.
However, the syllabus is not very big, so if you show up to class, pay attention and
do your readings it is very easy to get a good grade.
This is an experience you never will forget so we highly recommend you to go on an
exchange, and you should absolutely consider going to HEC Montréal. It is an
amazing city with a lot of things to do, see and experience. You will get friends from
all over the world, and experiences that you will keep with you for the rest of your life.
If you have any further questions, do not hesitate to contact us through the
International Office.