Student Report
Name of the University: ESC Rennes
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?
We received some information from the exchange office at BI and some information
by e-mail from the international office at ESC Rennes.
Travel
- How did you travel to your destination?
Our trip started with a plane trip to Paris. (SAS and Norwegian with daily flights from
OSL Gardermoen) Then from Paris to Rennes with a high-speed train for about 2
hours.
Housing
- Was housing provided by the university? If not, did you receive support from
the school?
I recived information and the opportunity to get an apartment trough ESC Rennes, but
chose to find an apartment on our own. Eventually found a nice apartment in the
middle of the centre of Rennes. You can also apply for CAF (helps students with
money for housing), but you need a French bank account. The amount of money you
receive depends on your rental costs.
Costs
- Approximately how much per month did you spend on rent, books, food,
transportation, and other personal expenses?
Rent
Books
Food
Transport
Other
NOK 5300
NOK 0
NOK 2000
NOK 280
NOK 0-1000
How much you spend on personal expenses is really up to yourself. You can get an
apartment for 3500 a month also.
Culture and language
- Did you have any language problems with the faculty or other students?
How were the possibilities to experience the country and the culture?
All of the faculty talked English, for exchange student they have mostly teachers from
other European countries. However, the French student are not particullary good in
English, but most of your time is spent with other exchange students.
II. ABOUT THE SCHOOL
Please describe:
- The school (location, size, study structure, special academic areas etc.)
The school is located a bit outside of the sentre of Rennes, takes about 10-15 minutes away
with metro (Only one line, so don’t worry about picking the wrong one). The school has three
campuses (1 – Main campus, 2 – Mostly classrooms and studyboxes and 3 – library etc)
Course registration
- When and how did you register for courses?
After receiving the acceptance letter you receive a link where you can apply online for
what classes you want.
- When did the add/drop period end?
The end/drop period was after 2 weeks of classes.
Academic calendar
Arrival date:
First day of the semester:
Last day of classes:
Examination period:
Any special events/holidays:
Other:
27. August
7. September
28. November
7-19. desember
Week 44 and 12. Nov
Arrival
- Describe the introduction week
When arriving in Rennes you should look on facebook for the international student
group. Then it is one week of getting to know the city and your new friends. The
welcome team arranges trips to St. Malo and Mont St. Michell. And other activites
like bowling and scavenger hunt.
The International Office
- As an exchange student, did you receive sufficient and relevant information?
Yes, I received the most important and relevant information before my arrival in
Rennes.
Promoting BI and Norway
- What kind of activities were you involved in to promote exchange to Norway at
your exchange university?
We did not participate in any activites to promote BI because of a scheduled trip to
Paris at the same day as the international day at ESC Rennes.
Social activities
- How was the relationship with native students and that among exchange
students?
Most exchange students are not that involved with French students at the school.
Among the exchange students the relationship is very good, its easy to make friends
and experience the other cultures.
-
Are there any special activities, student organisations, and gatherings for
exchange students?
At ESC Rennes that have a lot of different activites you can participate in like football,
handball, tennis, volleyball etc. They also have a people that gives students
opportunites to go on fieldtrips and visit other city’s in France. I played football twice
a week, with mostly French students.
III. ACADEMICS
In the classroom
- Describe the teaching style (practical, theoretical, cases/lectures, formal/informal
etc.)
The teaching style at ESC Rennes is more practical than at BI, some case studies and
some deliveries. In the classrooms we had an informal way of talking to the teacher.
- How is the level and workload compared to that at BI?
More work during the semester. In most of the courses you have to do a presentation
during the semester which counts about 30-40% of your final grade. But the teachers
are very nice when the grade the presentations, mostly A’s and B’s. My subjective is
that the level is lower and easier then BI.
Course materials
- Describe the course materials used (books/literature, online articles, Powerpoint,
level of course material etc).
We do not use that much books, mostly papers handed out by the teacher and own
notes taken from the teachers powerpoint presentations.
Exams
- Was the exam based on the course materials or on the lectures?
The exams are mostly based on the lectures and things we talk about during class.
- How was the course evaluated?
o Final exam (Written – 2 or 3 hours)
o Mid-term exam
o Small assignments and/or papers
o Presentations
o Group work
o Class attendance
o Class participation/debate
Library and technology
- Describe the facilities
The facilities at ESC Rennes is nothing compared to BI Oslo. The internet and copy
system at the school is not very good. They do not have enough study space late in the
semester, be early to get a study box.
Description of courses
Course code & name
Master/
Bachelor
Exam form
Prerequisites
Approved
as
Comments
Example:FIN123
Finance
Bachelor
4-hour written
exam
3- hour written
None
Elective
TC_CR401E_1 –
CSR
Bachelor
None
Elective
TC_ST403E –
Bachelor
Entrpreneurship and
small business
management –
Advanced
TC_PM401E – Project Bachelor
management
2 hours written
None
Manditory
from BI as
a Strategy
course
3 hours written
None
Elective
TC_MK444E –
Business to Business
marketing
Bachelor
3 hours written
Maybe some
marketing
class
Elective
TC_FI402E –
Financial Markets and
Portfolio management
Bachelor
3 hours written
Some basic
finance course
0LV2F1 – French
Language
Bachelor
None
FG001N
Bachelor
2 hours written
10 min oral
exam
2 hours written
Manditory
as a
Finance
course
Elective
None
Elective
Good
teacher, a
lot of
groupwork
during
sessions.
Good
teacher and
an easy
course
Same
teacher as
Entreprene
urship, also
pretty easy.
Hard
course with
a teacher
who expect
a lot.
Good
course, but
a bit hard.
Easy and
fun. Very
nice teacher
Funny
teacher, not
very useful.
On a final note, how will you sum up the exchange experience?
The exchange semester was a great experience even though not everything was better then at
home. I still feel that everything was worth it. Made a lot of new friends from all over the
world and had a lot of fun while getting to know them.