Student Report
Name of the University: FGV EBAPE – Rio de Janeiro
Exchange semester: Fall, 2013
I. PRACTICAL INFORMATION
Getting There
Flight tickets get more expensive the longer you wait. Try to get an estimate for the
semester by contacting the international office at FGV. We booked tickets that, if
necessary, could be changed free of charge, which was very convenient as the subjects
we chose finished early.
Applying for a visa
The application for VISA Process can be time consuming, so start early. When applying
for a Visa at the Brazilian embassy in Oslo, you will need to provide the following:
• Passport valid for a minimum of six months.
• Proof of scholarship or of sufficient funds for self--‐maintenance for the duration of
stay in Brazil.
• A statement from the Norwegian police that no criminal charges have been
conducted. This can take up to 3 weeks to get hold of, so apply early.
• Certificate of residence (international model) issued by Norwegian authorities.
• Health and travel insurance.
• One passport size photograph (3x4), front view, white background.
• Round trip air ticket reservation with passenger’s name. Itinerary must show
dates and cities of entry and departure in Brazil.
• When in Brazil you have to visit the Federal police at the airport within 30 days
of arrival to get approved your Visa for the exchange period.
You also need to complete at least one form. For further details, look here:
http://sistemas.mre.gov.br/kitweb/datafiles/Oslo/en--‐
us/file/Vitem%20IV%20undergraduate,%20master%20or%20doctorate%20student,%
20internship.pdf or contact the Brazilian embassy via mail at: consular@brasil.no.
We highly recommend that you book an appointment with the federal police well in
advance. They are busy and if you do not register within 30 days, you will end up paying
a fine. Contact the international office and they will provide you with information on how
to register and book an appointment.
Travel
From our apartment in Copacabana to FGV in Botafogo we took the Metro. One ticket is
R$3,20, which is approximately 8 NOK. The taxis are quite cheap in Rio de Janeiro. When
going out for dinner or going out after dark, we took a taxi.
Housing
EBAPE/FGV does not supply housing. International students need to seek private
accommodation. The international office can provide assistance and counselling to
students in this matter. Finding an apartment in Rio might be difficult. Before leaving,
we did some research and ended up finding a Norwegian owned apartment (were we
knew the owners) at Copacabana, which was available for us to rent. This was a big
advantage, as we did not need to spend weeks searching for an apartment after arrival.
The international office provides an information package where long list of different web
pages similar to Finn.no are presented. However, finding an apartment before you go to
Rio is not recommended due to potential fraud. The huge language barrier makes it
difficult. We would recommend you to ask your buddy at the university for help.
Costs
Rio de Janeiro is an expensive city. Depending on the standard, housing expenses will
amount to 3500--‐5000 NOK a month. Food is quite expensive, although, not compared to
Norway. Meat, taxi, alcohol and mobile phone expenses are of the cheaper goods. We
purchased pre--‐paid SIM card from TIM. In total, for 5 months, I think I ended up
spending 300 NOK. The 3G service is not perfect, but it works. You can expect to spend
10.000 NOK per month on housing, food, transportation and fun.
Culture and language
Few Brazilians speak English. The wealthier families in Rio are well educated and speak
English. As FGV is an expensive school, most students have no problem in
communicating in English. You will get the chance to practice your Portuguese
everywhere you go in Rio. Use Brazilian friends to learn the language.
II. ABOUT THE SCHOOL
FGV EBAPE is located in Botafogo, about 10 minutes drive from Copacabana/Ipanema. It
is considered one of the best business schools in South America. FGV is a respected school
and is located inside a building, which contains external offices as well. There is a strict
building dress code needed to be followed in order to be allowed to enter the building.
Flip flops, shorts, tank tops and short skirts are not allowed inside. Inside the building it
gets very cold. The Brazilians love air--‐conditioning, so be prepared and bring proper
clothing.
The international office will find a buddy for you. It was inconvenient that we did not get
the name of our buddy until after arrival. We were able to get in touch with them after
one week at school.
Course registration
We needed to fill out an interest form for the first term and send it to the international
office at FGV by the end of June. There are a selected number of classes offered in
English. This is the list we could choose from:
• 1st term – 5/8/13 until 10/10/13:
o Brazilian Macroeconomics Scenario
o Brazilian History and Culture
o The Politics of Governance in Brazil
o Brazilian Business Environment
• 2nd term – 14/10/13 until 19/12/13:
o Brazilian Financial Markets
o Communications across Cultures
o Brazilian Legislation
o Innovation Management in Emerging Countries
o International Business: An Emerging Market Perspective
o Negotiation in a Global Context
o Strategic Management
o Entrepreneurship
The add/drop period was two weeks after the first lecture had begun. We attended all
four classes the first week and ended up dropping out of one class. This is a good time to
attend all classes of interest and add or drop out according to the classes you find most
interesting.
You have the option to take classes in Portuguese if you are up to that.
We were offered free Portuguese classes for the first term. The class is 1,5 hour, twice a
week and finishes up with a final exam. The classes were very basic and we would
recommend other schools if you really want to learn Portuguese.
Academic calendar
The orientation day took place on August 1st and the first day of lecture was August 5th. .
The school year is not divided into two semesters, but four trimesters. The first term (3rd
trimester) was from august 5th until October 10th, while second term (4th trimester)
started the 14th of October and ended December 19th. You choose how many classes you
will attend each term. We attended 3 classes in the first term and 2 classes in the second
term. Our last class ended December 9th, which is unusual. The school year’s official end
date was December 19th.
The International Office
The ladies at the international office are very helpful and easy to get in contact with. You
can ask them for help with anything and they will provide a good answer.
Social activities
There are very little social activities organized by the school. With about 60
international students there will always be social activities to participate in. REI is an
organisation for international students in Rio de Janeiro. They organize different
activities like hiking, parties, and weekend trips
(https://.facebook.com/REIRJ?fref=ts). They will introduce themselves at orientation
day.
III. ACADEMICS
In the classroom
The classes were small with 10--‐30 students. Each subject is 30 hours divided on 10 days.
75 % attendance is mandatory, which means you can only miss two out of 10 lectures in
each subject. The lectures are characterized by high degree of oral activity and you will
get credit for participation. The workload and level of difficulty were lower than at BI. As
long as you do the required assignments, you will more than pass the subject.
Course materials
The lecturer provided all necessary course material.
Exams
The exam was based on the lectures. You will get a total grade from 1--‐10 in each subject,
which will be based on, depending on the subject:
• Participation
• Group presentations and/or assignments
• Final exam
Description of courses
List of courses we attended.
1st term:
o Brazilian Macroeconomics Scenario:
Participation
One hour presentation
Final Exam
o Brazilian History and Culture
Participation
Assignment
Presentation
o Brazilian Business Environment
Participation
3 presentations
One final assignment
2nd term:
o International Business: An Emerging Market Perspective
Participation
Presentation
Individual case test
o Strategic Management
Participation
Case presentation
Group presentation and final paper based on presentation
Multiple choice exam
The academic level of the courses is not on the same level as subjects on the master
programme at BI.
IV. General Information
Climate
We expected Brazil to be hot and sunny almost every day. In reality, the temperature
varies a lot from one day to another. The first day we arrived in July there were 27
degrees. The day after it was 13 degrees. Be prepared and bring different clothing.
However, normal temperature was around 20--‐25 degrees until October and about 25--‐30
degrees from October until December. We experienced a lot of rain, which was
unexpected. Nevertheless, we had many sunny days as well.
Travelling
We recommend you to travel and experience different parts of the country. Popular
destinations close by are Ihla Grande, Buzios, Iguazu Falls, Sao Paulo, Buenos Aires and
Florionapolis. Great hiking opportunities, as well as things to see surround Rio. We
recommend:
• Dois Irmaos
• Pedro da Gavea (Highest top in Rio)
• Pao de Acucar (Sugar Loaf)
• Cristo Redentor
• Escadaria Selaron (famous stairs in Lapa)
• Santa Marta Favela
Surfing is also a popular and easy accessible activity in Rio, and Barra da Tijuca (an hour
south of Rio) proves as a great windsurfing spot.
We had an amazing time in Rio de Janeiro. It was an adventure and experience for life
getting to know a different culture, language and people.
Please feel free to contact us through the international office at BI for any additional
information or questions you might have.