E-mail: j.j.a.oosterwijk@tilburguniversity.edu
Study Program: Human Resource Studies
Exchange semester: fall semester
Academic year: 2014-2015
Host University: Leopold-Franzens-University of Innsbruck
Country: Austria
I GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL
Innsbruck is well captured in the following expression: ‘The capital of the Alps’. To my
honest opinion, Innsbruck is even more than that. Innsbruck is located right in the
heart of Tyrol and very close to both the German and Italian border. However,
Switzerland and other Eastern European countries are relatively close as well and
therefore making Innsbruck to a perfect starting point for travelling.
The city of Innsbruck is characterized by a very historical cozy city center with very
modern facilities. These facilities made it, for example, possible for me to be on the
top of the Nordkette (mountain of Innsbruck) within 20 minutes. Since a great number
of inhabitants in Innsbruck are students, the city is very alive (both during the day and
at night). Close to the ‘ Goldenes Dachl’ (Golden roof; famous tourist attraction in the
middle of the city center) a various number of coffee bars, shops, restaurants and
pubs can be found. Since Innsbruck is not too big by square meters, everything is
pretty close to each other. Combined with the perfect public transport organized by
the Austrians everything is within a short range of each other. I studied in the fall
semester, of course not for no reason. Since Innsbruck was located in the middle of
the Alps, several ski areas were in close range of Innsbruck. This was so ideal that I
went skiing several times a week.
The Leopold-Franzens-University had its University buildings located throughout the
city. For me, the SOWI (Social and Economic studies) building was the most
important since almost all lectures of my study program were given in this building. It
was a very modern building originating from the year 2000. This building was 5
minutes by foot away from the Golden roof (city center). The main University building
was located on a 20 minute foot-walk from the SOWI building. This building
originates from the University’s founding year 1669 and hosted the biggest library in
the city. I have only been gone to the main university for an Erasmus course about
the country and culture of Austria. The Sports center of the University is located near
the airport and can be reached by a nice bicycle ride or a short bus trip from the city
center.
What is the best place to go to eat/drink/dance/do sports/etc.?
The best place to go for an easy drink is in my opinion one of the two Irish pubs in
Innsbruck (make some Irish friends). For a night out go to Stadtcafé, Club Cubique,
Segabar, Weekender or to one of the many other clubs and bars. For a nice and
good affordable lunch go the Mensa in one of the University buildings. They serve
different meals every day for a reasonable price and every day is Schnitzel day for €
3.50. Sports can be done everywhere in the City. Hiking and mountain biking in the
summer and later on skiing in the winter both on one of the surrounding mountains of
which many can be easily reached.
Interesting things to do in Innsbruck and in the surroundings.
First of all, Innsbruck offers diverse activities which will never be boring, such as
hiking, skiing etc. Furthermore some nice events are hosted in Innsbruck during the
fall semester. For example, the Ski-jump game which is part of the world famous
Four hills tournament (amazing atmosphere), Air+style which is a freestyle
snowboard event including concerts etc. Next to these events, the city itself and the
surrounding villages are offering numerous things to see and do. The Stubaier
Glacier can be reached by a nice bus ride from Innsbruck and is open for winter
sports from approximately the beginning of October on. Other ski areas are within a
20 to 60 minutes bus ride away from Innsbruck (all free of charge in the winter).
Furthermore cities such as Salzburg, Munich, Vienna, Milan, and Venice are in
relative short distance. For those who love football, make sure you go and watch a
match of FC Bayern Munich. For those who love beer and a good atmosphere, go to
the Oktoberfest in Munich. The city of Innsbruck is in fact so diverse that it is offering
something to do for everybody.
I did not experience a so called culture shock, since I’ve been to Austria before and
in my opinion the difference is not that big. I believe it is well known that the Austrians
value being on time highly. In other words, make sure you always be on time
whenever you have an appointment with an Austrian. The average level of English in
Austria is comparable to the Netherlands and therefore good enough to survive with
your own English language usage. Nevertheless, speaking some German will always
help you in unexpected situations. Austrians do really appreciate you trying to speak
German, they are always (in my personal experience) helpful to offer you solutions to
your problems. If you can speak German in a proper way, your chance to get close to
locals is greater than the situation in where you don’t speak German. Getting to know
some local people might be very interesting, in order to discover places which are
less touristic and more authentic. At the University of Innsbruck, Language courses in
German are offered for free to Erasmus students.
The University of Innsbruck has over 28.000 students enrolled in several study
programs at all the 16 different faculties it hosts. I do not know the exact number of
exchange students in the fall semester, but there were at least 200 exchange
students. In the spring semester there are always less exchange students than in the
fall semester (due to the winter sports).The way of teaching was slightly different
from Tilburg. Both the lectures and seminars were very practical and not so much as
we are used to in Tilburg sit back and relax. That was a major difference.
Furthermore the examination was different, I had to write 2 final papers and two 60
minutes writing exams. I will come back to my study program later in this report.
II PRACTICAL INFORMATION
Information before you left
I have enrolled myself at the University of Innsbruck a good while before the
application deadline. I immediately received a confirmation e-mail followed by several
e-mails with instructions and general knowledge about Innsbruck and the University.
Whenever you had a question, you could always write an e-mail to the exchange
office in Innsbruck. They have always answered my e-mails within a short period of
time. I haven’t really experienced any difficulties with that.
Visa procedure and arrival
I didn’t need a visa to live and study in Austria. I travelled to Innsbruck by airplane. I
took a direct flight from Eindhoven to Innsbruck with Transavia. When I arrived at the
airport in Innsbruck, I took a taxi to my new home. This was in my opinion the easiest
way, since the bus was no option due to an overload of luggage.
I arrived a week earlier in Innsbruck before the starting date of the introduction week.
In this week I have had administrated myself at the town hall in advance and I
registered myself at the University as well. If I haven’t done this at that time, I was
offered a lot of time to do it with instructions during the introduction week. Everybody
at the University was very kind and helpful, you could always ask everything you
wanted. I didn’t experience any problems of whatsoever with my inscription in the city
of Innsbruck and neither for the inscription and enrollment at the University. If you
stay longer than 3 months in Innsbruck, you have to make sure you have a
confirmation of sufficient support signed by your parents. You have to bring this piece
of paper along with your European health insurance card to the town hall after three
months (costs €15,-).
Orientation/Introduction activities
There were several introduction meetings arranged in where you received some
knowledge about the University, course enrollment, public transport etc. The ESN
organization of Innsbruck arranged a welcome party and throughout the semester
more activities. This way you could meet new people and you were given a good
opportunity to make new friends. There also was an official speech by the director of
the University together with all the Erasmus students in Innsbruck.
There is a possibility to enroll yourself for an Erasmus buddy. I did do that and I’ve
met my buddy several times in order to get to know the right places to be and chill in
Innsbruck. My buddy borrowed me original ‘Lederhosen’ to wear to the Oktoberfest,
which was very cool. I can recommend to get yourself a buddy, since he/she has a
lot of local friends which you can get to meet.
Housing
I have had my accommodation arranged from the moment I knew I was correctly
enrolled at the University of Innsbruck. The University of Innsbruck provided me with
a site to arrange my accommodation with. It was the following site:
http://housing.oead.at/de/unterkuenfte/innsbruck-de/haeuserde?view=application&city=innsbruck
Via this organization as I have already mentioned, I managed to arrange
accommodation in Innsbruck. I had a single room in ‘Studentenheim Karl Kunst’
which was very pleasant. In case you have any questions regarding my stay there or
my knowledge about other accommodations, do not hesitate to contact me. My
advice will be to look for a place in a student house (studentenheim) rather than to
stay in a private accommodation, because you will meet more people in such an
accommodation. Of course this is my personal opinion so do not value that too high.
Living Costs
Apart from the grand I received from Tilburg University, I have worked a lot before my
departure. This was sufficient for the whole period of my exchange in Innsbruck. The
rent for my room was €360,- which was more than the amount of rent per month in
Tilburg, but in my opinion worth it. I think I have spent the most of my budget on side
activities such as travelling, Oktoberfest, Sports etc. the prices in the supermarkets
were slightly higher than in the Netherlands. In the first weeks I didn’t know where to
go for the cheapest food, but after a while I found myself the cheapest supermarkets.
When I arrived I bought the Freizeitticket (a ticket which includes over 20 ski areas,
swimming halls, ice skating places and museums) which costs €380,-. I would
recommend this to everybody who is into winter sports, because it already pays of
after you have went skiing for 10 times.
 Housing
360
 Food
200
 Transport
120 (semester ticket; valid for 5 months)
 Books
60 ( in the whole semester)
 Miscellaneous 200
Academic Calendar
I arrived around the 20th of September and the introduction started one week later.
The official first day of the semester is the 1st of October. The final exams took place
in the second week of February, meaning that the semester in Innsbruck is not over
when you already have to start in Tilburg.
There was a winter holiday from around the 17th of December till the 5th of December.
The intensity of my study program was not that high, so I had a good couple days
free for leisure time activities.
The International Office
There is an international office which helps you with your admission for the University
and your enrollment with the courses you want to follow in Innsbruck. The people
working at this office are very kind and always willing to help and support you with
anything. You will be assigned to a coordinator who will be your contact person for
the whole duration of your stay. I was personally very satisfied with the way they had
supported me. I felt myself on my ease and I had a good relationship with my
coordinator.
Exchange promotion
I was not offered the opportunity to promote the university with a presentation on any
event. Nevertheless, I have promoted Tilburg University orally when I was chatting
with my Erasmus friends in Innsbruck.
Social Activities
The ESN network in Innsbruck organized every now and then some activities such as
guided tours through villages, parties and dinners. Due to ESN I got a buddy who
showed me around the place, thanks to this person I’ve met lots of local people.
However, mostly I hung around with other Erasmus students. The people with who I
lived with in my floor became very close friends and the first reunion has already
been planned. I have traveled through Austria and visited some nice places, but I’ve
also been to for example Budapest. Furthermore, Munich can be reached by bus for
only 8 euro, meaning that I’ve been there quite often (great city).
Culture and Language
As I have mentioned before, I did not expect to experience a culture shock because I
have been to Austria before. The norms and values are very similar to those we
know in the Netherlands. The only thing I really had to take into account was the way
they value time. Whenever you have an appointment, you have to make sure you be
exactly on time (if not, very rude and impolite). Another thing what took my attention
was that everybody always waits for the red light. Not like in the Netherlands where
everybody just crosses whenever they think they can. Do not do that in Innsbruck,
the fines for such violations are so much higher than they are in the Netherlands. In
my opinion the Austrians life more peacefully, they look so less stressed than the
Dutch people. Everybody greets each other and above the 900 meter they say, there
is no more inequality in whatsoever. I had trouble adapting back to the Dutch culture
of efficiency and rushing to everything. In other words, I learnt about the Dutch
culture as well. There was actually nothing I did not like about the Austrian culture.
Life in Innsbruck was just so more relaxed and peaceful than it is in the bigger cities
in the Netherlands and in the Dutch culture in general.
I never experienced a language problem while in Innsbruck. Everybody was able to
speak proper English. I was able to speak German as well which was helpful to me in
some situation but generally English was enough.
I did not follow a language course offered by the university because I already
possessed a higher level of German than provided in courses for free offered to
Erasmus students. I did however attend in a course about the country and culture of
Austria (good fun).
Personal Development
 How do you think the exchange experience will affect you from a cultural and
social point of view?
 How do you think the exchange experience will influence your future career
possibilities?
 What did you learn from the people you met during your exchange?
 Would you do things differently if you had the chance and what would you do
differently?
 What was your best experience, and what was your worst experience?
 What will you never forget about your exchange period?
 What was the most important lesson you learned about yourself during your
exchange period?
I recognize that I had too many prejudices about cultures on forehand, but now my
exchange has ended I really shifted my idea of having prejudices to trying to have
none. Never let a prejudice lead your decision-making process is what I’ve learned
from that. I really think that I have explored myself in many ways; socially but also my
cultural consensus has been developed. I think I am now better able to work with a
greater variety of different cultures than I was before. I have learned so much about
different cultures and I really liked to hang around with different cultures. Luckily, I do
not have a very bad memory about dealing wrong with other cultures or something
like that. In my opinion it was very interesting to see that all my new friends came
from all different places in the world yet we are so similar. I am very thankful of
having had this opportunity to explore myself in both a socio/cultural and in an
academically way. This experience is something I will absolutely never forget.
III ACADEMIC INFORMATION
Academic level at a host university
You can choose courses in both English and German but I choose to follow English
subjects only. The reason for this is that I really had to obtain all my credits and I
found it too risky to follow courses in German (writing an academic paper in German
is more difficult than just speaking German). I took the following courses: Intercultural
Communication, The European Union, International Human Resource Management
and Business Ethics. All these courses were interesting and relatively easy to
succeed in. I was attending in the Intercultural Communication course because I was
very much interested in other cultured and how to deal with them. The European
Union course was good to follow for having more insight in the political processes in
the Union we are all part of. International Human Resource Management was useful
since I study HRM and Business ethics has some similar fields of questioning as in
HR studies. I would recommend every course I followed because it was pretty
interesting and not too hard. If I most compare, I can only do it for the course I have
followed, and those courses were easier than in Tilburg. The workload per ECTS
credit was lower than in Tilburg. The level of English was good and there was a good
mix between theory and practice. As I said before the teaching style was more
practical than it is in Tilburg. A lot of discussion are held in both the lectures and the
seminars. You had to do a lot of group works, which were interesting since
everybody was originating from another culture. The classes were about a maximum
of 30 students. Therefore, the relationship with the lecturer was slightly less
professional. You could go for an easy chat with each other. Whether I am happy
with my academic achievements or not? I most surely am, exams are graded from 1
to 5 (1 highest and 5 lowest/insufficient) I ended up having 1,1,2,2. This means that a
have obtained all the credits I needed which was of course an important part of my
exchange!
I had two final papers to wright as a final exam and two written final exams of 60
minutes. The resources offered by the University (computers, library access etc.) was
sufficient in my eyes.
Description of Courses
Course
433023 International
Human Resource
Management
Prerequisites
None
Exam
Written
ECTS
7.5
Comments
Group paper,
presentation, final
written exam. Easy
and practical
433040 Approaches
to Business Ethics
None
Written
7.5
Group presentation,
individual essay, final
written exam. Easy
both theory and
practice
434450 Intercultural
Communication
800604 The
European Union
None
Final
paper
Final
paper
7.5
Weekly assignments,
Final paper. Easy
Weekly assignments,
Final paper. Easy
None
7.5
Tips for the future students:
I would really recommend an exchange period abroad. You will come back with so
much more knowledge about everything including yourself. It is really an enrichment
for and an investment in your future career. I definitely would recommend the
University of Innsbruck as your exchange destination. However, there are some
prerequisites: you have to love the mountains and a culture which is somehow
somewhat more relaxed than the culture we have in the Netherlands. Make sure you
weigh the pros and cons for yourself whether you want to go abroad or not, take the
time for doing that. If you decide to go to Innsbruck and you do not speak so much
German, take part in one of the language courses offered for free by the University of
Innsbruck.
If you have any questions regarding Innsbruck as a possible city to study
abroad in or about the University of Innsbruck, do not hesitate to contact me.