Student Report
Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok
Exchange semester: Spring, 2013
I. PRACTICAL INFORMATION
Before leaving Norway
When I got accepted at Chulalongkorn, I received a lot of information about accommodation,
contact persons, registration and the academic calendar. They contact you frequently several
months before the semester starts, and there is no lack of information. If you have any
questions, the people at the international office are glad to help you and will answer you
quickly by email.
Applying for a visa
The Visa process takes some time, so you should start as early as possible. After I received
the “visa application letter” from Chulalongkorn, I went to the Thai Embassy in Oslo and
applied for a three month single entry visa. The embassy in Oslo is not offering the multiple
entry visas which are a better alternative for people who want to travel outside Thailand as
well. Because my visa only lasted for three months, I either had to leave the country before
three months or buy multiple entry visas after I arrived in Thailand. Another alternative is to
let the university help you with extending your visa two more months, but also this means that
you still have a single entry and in theory can’t leave the country. I decided to let the
university extend my visa (which was much cheaper than buying the multiple entry visa), and
when I left the country after 3-4 months and came back I got a tourist visa, which only lasts
for 30 days. If you do this, you have to make sure that you have the opportunity to leave the
country again before the 30 days are over (if you travel by bus or train across the border, you
will only get 15 days). You can get the tourist visa three times.
I paid 500 kroners for the visa I bought in Norway, and approximately 300 kroners for the
visa extension.
Travel
I bought the plane tickets at Finn.no. I only bought a one way ticket, because I still had not
decided how long I wanted to stay after my exams. The ticket was pretty expensive because I
bought it as late as one month before departure, so I will recommend you to buy the tickets
earlier.
Housing
The university offers all exchange students housing in serviced apartments at three different
hotels, “Evergreen Place”, “Asoke Residence” and “Nonsi”. You can also choose to rent your
own apartment somewhere else. I stayed at “Evergreen Place”, which was really central and
close to school. Most exchange students choose to stay at the accommodation the university
provides, which makes it very easy to make new friends the moment you arrive. The
disadvantage with Evergreen is that you have to share bedroom with one other person and
apartment with three persons. I still recommend choosing this instead of your own apartment.
We were approximately 50-60 exchange students living at the same place, which means that
you always will have someone to go out with, eat dinner, study and party with.
We also had a big pool, free gym and cleaning girls twice a week.
The contact person from Chulalongkorn will send you an email with all the information you
need about accommodation.
Costs
The living situation in Bangkok is really cheap compared to Norway. You can live really well
with the money from “lånekassen”. I ate a lot on the street, which is very good and cheap food
(from 8-20 kroners for a dish). Taxi is really cheap as well. I often took a taxi to school with
the other students, and we ended up paying approximately 2-3 kroners each per ride. The rent
at the hotel was 2100 kroners each month, without electricity.
Culture and language
The other students at the university are very nice and friendly. Each exchange student get 1-3
Thai buddies, who will help you with everything you need in the beginning, like buying
uniform or take pictures for the student card. My buddy even picked me up at the airport and
brought me to Evergreen. Everything at your program at the university is in English, and both
the teachers and students speak well English. Still, outside the university, the language can be
a bit problematic. The regular Thai speaks poor English, for example the taxi drivers. The
University offers the exchange students a two day “thai class”, where you will learn some
Thai words that will make it easier. Please note that you have to wear a uniform when
attending classes, enter into university offices and facilities like computer lab and library.
Travelling in Thailand is really cheap, which gives you a great opportunity to experience the
country and the culture. Bangkok is a very busy city where it’s difficult to get bored. In the
weekends we often travelled to the different islands to get some beach time and relax.
Cultural and social effects from the exchange experience
The exchange experience has affected me in many ways. I had to step out of my comfort zone
several times, and faced a lot of challenges I wouldn’t have had to deal with at home. I
learned to work with people from all over the world and learned a lot about other cultures that
I could never learn from a book. I met a lot of exciting and different people. I think the
exchange experience is very positive when it comes to future career possibilities, because it
shows that you are willing to take a challenge and stand on your own feet, as well as adapting
to a completely different environment.
II. ABOUT THE SCHOOL
The school is located pretty central, close to several big shopping malls. The university is
huge, but as an economic/business student you will have all your courses at the same area. I
had all my courses in two buildings next to each other. In one of the buildings is a big
cafeteria where you can buy lunch or breakfast. The food is even cheaper at the cafeteria, and
it is a nice place to hang out in the breaks.
We were approximately 90-100 exchange students at my program during the spring semester.
The study structure is very different from the study structure in Norway. We had both
midterm and final exam, but the exams only count for 20-30% of the grade. In addition to
exams, we had a lot of group projects, presentations and assignments during the semester.
This made the workload less before the exams, but it is expected that you work more during
the semester. All projects are done in groups, and the classes are small.
Course registration
Before you leave, you have to sign up for 7-10 courses. This is not your final choices, just to
give the University an overview. Unfortunately not all information will be given in advance.
For me, I got this information when I was in Bangkok or maybe a week earlier. This was not a
big problem, because you can change all your courses the first weeks of the semester in
Bangkok, and you have the opportunity to attend the courses you are interested in, and drop
them if you change your mind. Because many students try to get the most courses in a few
days, there is some demand for those. I was lucky enough to get some courses that both fit all
the requirements of BI and were only on Monday till Wednesday, which gave me enough
time to explore the culture
The period for adding and dropping classes is more than a month, so don’t worry if you are a
bit confused the first week. The BBA-office will provide you with all the information you
need, and remind you of all the deadlines.
Academic calendar
I arrived the 4th of January, and the first day of school was the 7th of January. It is
recommended to arrive 3-4 days before the school starts. Midterm was in the middle/end of
February, while all my final exams were in the end of April/start of May. We also had a week
of vacation in the beginning of April because of the Thai New Year celebration.
Arrival
The administration was very well prepared for our arrival, and very helpful.
We had an information meeting one of the first days, which our buddies also attended to help
us and answer our questions. The welcome party is within the first month, and they also
arrange a cultural trip for all the exchange students. This is a great opportunity to meet all
your fellow students.
The International Office
The International Office will give you all the information you need, and the contact person
will send you e-mails frequently. He also answers you quickly if you have any questions or
need help.
Social activities
The relationship among the exchange students is truly amazing, and you will get really close
in short time. Most of the students that choose to study abroad are interested in making new
friends and experiencing the culture. There is always something going on, and you will travel
and party a lot with the students that have the same schedule as you. The native students can
be a bit shy, but they are always smiling and some of them are really interested in hanging out
with the exchange students, especially the girls. They visited us at our hotel, invited us to go
shopping with them and went out to party with us.
III. ACADEMICS
In the classroom
The level of study in relationship to the level at BI is approximately the same, depending on
which courses you choose. A lot of the work is done in groups at school, and you will have to
present in front of the class several times in most courses. This should not be a problem,
because the classes are small and the environment in class is really laid back. I had a
combination between lectures and group work in most courses.
The workload is less before the exams, because the exams are smaller and only a small part of
the grade. The relationship between professors and students are more personal than at home.
For example, you will have to email the professor to tell him/her if you are sick and not able
to attend a class. Many of the professors will know you by name.
Course materials
Books are not used as much as at BI. In some of my courses I only used the lecture notes,
which were very detailed. In these courses the exams were based only on the notes and not
the books.
Exams
The courses were evaluated with written final and mid-term exams. Some of my courses only
had a final exam, combined with a project as mid-term exam. You were also evaluated on
presentations, assignments, group work, class attendance and participation, and small quizzes.
Library and technology
All students have access to the library and to the computer lab. You have to dress properly to
enter both (the skirt has to be beneath your knees, you have to cover your toes, etc.)
Most of the exchange students studied more at home or at coffee-shops with free WiFi,
because of the dress code and other rules, like no water or coffee allowed inside the library.
Still, the library and computer lab is a good alternative for group work with other exchange
and Thai students that live far away.
Course list:
Consumer Behavior Analysis 2605314
We were evaluated on a three hour written final exam, an individual assignment and a group
project with presentation. Prerequisites are “principles of marketing”. This was a popular
subject, so you should add it early if you want it. What I did not like about this course was
that the professor decided to give us all the assignments/projects at the same time, and nothing
the first part of the semester. He was also one of the few professors that were pretty unhelpful
and not very supportive.
Business Concepts and Ethics 2602171
Basic principles and concepts in business. The study structure in this course was more like I
was used to, with lectures and written exams. We had both mid-term and final exam, which
both counted for 40% each. We also had homework every week, which was a little bit
annoying, but really helpful at the exams, since the exams were based almost only at the
homework and quizzes we had during the semester.
Brand and Product Management 2605325
Marketing course about the importance of brands and products. Prerequisite is “Principles of
marketing”. We had a written final exam, and several group projects through the semester that
counted for 10-20% of the grade each. It was a helpful and interesting course if you like
marketing.
Principles of International Business Management 2602371
An interesting course about the challenges and difficulties you may meet in the business
world in relation to different cultures. We were evaluated on mid-term and final exam, and the
exams were a combination between written and multiple questions. The professor is from
England and speaks really good English, which made it very easy to follow his lectures.
Logistics and Supply Chain Management 2602376
Basic logistic course. We were evaluated on a big group assignment (hand-in) and a written
final exam. Approximately 40% of the course is mathematics, but very basic compared to the
mathematics you’ve had at home. It is really important for the professor in this class that all
students participate, and he tries to involve the students in all lectures. He also bases a bigger
part of the grade on participation.
Any other experiences/comments about your exchange experience?:
All in all, my stay in Bangkok was an incredible experience that I will never regret. I got to
know so many nice people, experienced a completely different and exotic student life and had
the opportunity to travel a lot in a beautiful country. I will really recommend all students to
study a semester abroad. If you have any questions or want more information, feel free to
contact me through the International Office at BI.