Student report
Mannheim University, Germany
Exchange semester Fall 2012
1.Practical information
BEFORE LEAVING
Received information from Mannheim University (MU) not long after I had accepted their spot.
The portal is called “Mannheim - meine Universität” and it describes very well what to do before
your arrival, and when you arrive.
I was well informed about requirements, and which courses I could attend. I got a list of which
courses were within my field (Business) and which were in English and German. The
international office of MU regularly sends out newsletters to keep you updated, so read them
carefully to know what is going on.
When it comes to housing, the student dorms fill up fast, so if you want to live there, register as
early as possible, they will be gone before you know it. Some are in the city, some outside. This
is through the Mannheim portal. Me personally, I preferred private accommodation, so I used
the link which was in “Mannheim - meine Universität”. Here outgoing German students rent out
their rooms or flats for other ingoing internationals. There is a great variety, but also very
different standards and many people applying. Be ready to write many emails, do skypeinterviews, etc, but hopefully you can make the perfect match. More on housing will come
further below.
Also you will have to pay a small tuition fee and for summer academy if you wish to do so. I
recommend it, but more on that later.
VISA
No visa is required for Norwegian students, but please remember to buy travel insurance and/or
get the free health insurance from HELFO. It literally takes 3 seconds to order from their
websites, and saves you tons of hassle down there (I forgot mine). I got my travel insurance
from ANSA, who have a good deal with AON. Remember, you need an insurance that covers
your entire stay, not just travel insurance for 1 month.
TRAVEL
Lufthansa flies directly to Frankfurt from Stavanger, which is the closest major airport. Getting a
ticket to Germany should not be a problem for Norwegians, but as always, be early to get
cheaper tickets. Those who feel adventurous could always drive down there, I heard of some
people who brought a carload of stuff for their semester. Your choice. After you arrive in
Frankfurt, take the train to Mannheim. The fast train takes about ½ hour, the regular one takes a
bit over one hour. Fast train costs of course more, about 25 Euros, but it is worth it after being
on the go and you just want to arrive.
HOUSING
As said, you can either go private or go with the dorms. Some dorms are new, some are old, but
I would definitely, most definitely recommend one inside the city. Living central saves you
transportation expenses and you don’t have to rely on public transportation during the night.
The private housing is a good option, as previously said. You can live alone, or move in with
other internationals or germans. The chemistry can be hard to predict of course, regarding your
flatmates (mine turned out a bit flaky). German houses can be a bit old, and there isn’t always a
living room, just a kitchen used as a common room, so read the descriptions thoroughly. If all
goes well, you have a room ready for you when you arrive, and nice people to live with.
If you live inside the city, or in other words, inside the Quadrat as they say, try to avoid living
next to the main road that goes around the city. You will be hearing all the cars and traffic,
unless you buy earplugs. Of course, when living in the city, noise is always an issue, whether it
is traffic or people, but I say it is worth it. Everything is within walking distance and convenient.
COSTS
Rent
ca 2300
NOK a
month
Books
ca 0 NOK
(not required,
but an
option)
Food
ca 600 NOK
a month
(really cheap
food, though
this excludes
drinking)
Transport
200 NOK a
month if in
city. If you
stay for one
year, the city
gives(!) you
a
semesterpas
s which
covers public
transportatio
n. If you stay
for one
semester,
you have to
either buy it
yourself, bike
around or
just buy the
occasional
ticket.
German
public
transportatio
n works!
Other
A good
german beer
costs 20-25
NOK out in a
bar. Eating
and drinking
out is cheap,
but it can be
expensive in
the long run.
Travel
Use money
on traveling
around
Germany &
Europe.
Worth it.
CULTURE AND LANGUAGE
Most young germans and the teacher have a good grasp on the english language. Out in shops
and the elderly, not so much so. Though, with the help of norwegian, english, and sign language,
you can always be understood. I do however, REALLY recommend the summer academy,
which start one month earlier than official semester start, in other words, it is in august. Here
you will meet many new friends, and take part in very many varied cultural activities, like city
scavenger hunt, hiking, brewery tour, wine tasting, movie night, and of course German lessons
during the day. The classes are based on an initial test the first day, and the teachers are very
good. The classes are between 9 and 13:00 something, with optional classes in the afternoon
for the eager ones. The germans students who will take care of you are the HUGOs and the
Visum, both excellent and enthusiastic teams.
EFFECTS
The exchange experience is a wonderful opportunity to broaden your horizon and experience
something greater than plain old Norway. Just being abroad gives you new inputs, new flavours,
new thoughts, and will without doubt benefit you from a cultural and social point of view.
As for career opportunity, it is too early to say. It certainly looks good on paper, but how much it
will benefit you back in Norway, is up to you and how well you do down there. Many exchange
students use the semester to kick back and party, while others are more serious. You decide if
this semester matters for your future.
II. ABOUT THE SCHOOL
The school is an old palace smack central in the city. It is beautiful and big, so take some time
to get to know the different rooms and foyers. The campus is spread over several buildings in
the city, and each faculty has its own library. Most of the classes will however be in the palace,
which has many good auditories, fully equipped with projector screens. In some classes though,
spaces will be limited, and people might have to sit on the floor.
MU mainly specialises in Business, Economics and Law. Other fields are of course available,
but MU is famous for these areas, so choosing this university does bring some academic weight,
at least inside Germany. There are about 500-600 exchange students per semester, and many
opportunities to get to know them, thanks to the Visum parties and events.
My subject structure was varied, with some intense block seminar which only lasted one week,
or weekend, while others lasted the entire semester. It really depends on your subject selection.
COURSE REGISTRATION
It it possible to register for courses a short time before semester starts, and it stays open for
some weeks, so that you can juggle your subject around and see what fits and sticks. Be
warned, some subject fill up fast, so don’t wait too long. Some subject actually require no
registration, so student attendance there can be sporadic. For courses that do require
registration, there is a certain international quota that needs to be filled, so that is an advantage
for us. When it is full, you are put on a waiting list.
One point; the system for course registration is not intuitive. You will have to navigate some
cumbersome menus, and sometimes there is no link, so you will have to send an email to the
course administrator. It is all possible of course, but could have used some streamlining.
Academic calendar
Arrival date:
First day of
1st August for
summer academy
(optional)
1st
the
semester:
September
Last day of
classes:
25th
November
Examination
period:
1st
December till
21st
December
Any special
events/holid
ays:
3rd October
Holiday
Other:
Arrival
The arrival went fine and there were plenty of instructions given the first day of what to do, and
where to go. You are required to register at the international office and the city administration,
so expect the first period to be a bit bureaucratic. Bring something to read, something to play, or
chat with the person next to you. She/he might just be your classmate, as all the students will
swarm at the same time to do this paperwork.
If possible, arrive earlier a day or two to handle this, as this way you avoid the massive lines.
With the official opening of the semester, the dean welcomes you and all the other internationals
with some food and drinks, and the introduction week kicks off. Here there are plenty of
activities to engage in, but if you did the summer academy some of it might seem superfluous.
Though this is an excellent opportunity to meet the new arrivals, so go ahead.
The International Office
The international Office exist and serves us internationals well. Their office is open long hours,
and are always ready to help. All in all, I felt well informed, and up to date.
Promoting BI and Norway
The uni arranged an international exchange day where students could make a stand to
represent their country and schools. All the material was already present, though it is not always
easy to answer all their questions. It does help to browse through the material you are handing
out, to get an overview over BIs opportunities. Other than that, many Germans do wonder about
the weather, the costs and what life in general is like in Norway. Those questions anyone can
answer.
Social activities
The student team serving internationals, called Visum, arrange the parties, and there are
several events per week. Once in awhile there are also city trips to Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Munich
and Berlin. For the big cities, there is high demand, so a lottery system is used to sell the tickets.
There are newsletters that regularly tell you what is up, and how to sign up for different events.
Also join the Visum facebook-group to stay updated. and I got to know their names and faces,
so that I could always ask them for whatever I was wondering. Great crew.
You will get to know many internationals through the events, but getting to know germans is
harder. Most of them speak english quite well, but not everyone, so those will tend to be with
“their own”, but this is always the case. I found that a great place to meet germans was not in
class, or in the international-only excursions, but in the social events on mondays, tuesdays and
thursdays. Germans are quite fond of beer, so strike up a conversation or two about football, the
EU, or cars, and you will be set.
Some of the parties require you to buy a ticket in advance, and the lines for these are long. If
you want to get a piece of that action, get to the school cafeteria an hour or so before to get
tickets. Other parties you can just show up, so those are less stress. However, expect great
crowds of people at the parties at the start of the semester. The numbers will decrease as the
semester progresses, but wait for the final party when it climaxes again.
There are plenty of student organisations to join, though I did not do it myself. Internationals can
join Visum if they want to too. The uni gym is located 5 minute walk away from the palace, so
quite close. It is pretty basic, but free, so can’t complain. Do try to avoid the evening rush though,
between 5 and 7. There are free weights, machines and treadmills. If you want something more
upscale, there are gyms you can pay for with more hi-tech equipment, neon lights and tanning
salons.
III. ACADEMICS
In the classroom
Most of my teacher were fine, speaking in a clear concise manner with good pronunciation. This
was in English, so if you choose to take classes in German, the language might become a
barrier for some. Not all subjects are available in English, so if you do command the German
language, that frees up your selection quite.
The academic level is high, and the teachers expect you to come prepared. Some are fond of
calling out students and asking them questions, but most will leave the students to themselves.
For some of my classes where it was a lecture type based session, the lecture would
sometimes ask questions out loud for students to answer, but people were not exactly supereager to raise their hands and engage themselves. Many just sit there passively, or doing other
stuff, but I guess you only get what you give.
The workload during the semester was light I would say. Not so many assignments, not so
many mid-terms, but there could be presentations. The teaching was primarily theoretical for me.
This meant that there would be a final exam worth 100 %. I would say that most professors are
quite open and available, and they would always try to help, either face to face or through email.
It was hard to get to know other students in big sessions, but in tutorials, students were more
approachable.
Course materials
Most material was available in powerpoint form the day or night before the lecture. They don’t
want you to read up on it in advance for some reason. There are optional readings online and
books, but most never bothered with those. There are some articles to read, but for the most
part, you can manage day to day by just studying the powerpoints.
Exams
Exams are mostly based on lectures. There were little to no quizzes, and small assignments. It
all varies greatly with the subjects, so sometimes class participation is evaluated. What matters
most though is the final exam, which lasts frighteningly short. It could be 45 minutes to 1.5 hours,
but seldom more. Be concise, be efficient and be fast.
Library and technology
The libraries are nice, but get easily booked up during exam period. You can not bring food,
jackets and your backpack into the library though, so you have to use their lockers to put your
stuff away, and their library-bags to carry your laptop, books etc.
The computers might also be on the slow side, with only half of them equipped with Office pack.
There are some pretty slick digital whiteboards to use though.
Description of courses
Course
code &
name
Mast Exam
er/
form
Bach
elor
Prerequis
ites
Approved
as
Comments
Business
Model
Innovation
Bach
elor
Takehome
group
exam
Marketing
Compulsory
Great lecturer. Block seminar
In class
group
exam
Marketing
Compulsory
Great lecturer, (same) Block.
Micro
Elective
Good subject, though only over 2
Corporate
Strategy
Biases in
Bach
elor
economic
decision
making
Presenta
tion +
paper on
chosen
subject
economics
45 min
exam
None
Elective
EGovernment: Bach
Implications, elor
Effectiveness
and EDemocracy
1 hour
exam
None
Elective
Inequality,
Poverty, and
Public Policy
International
Income
Distribution
Analysis
1.5 hour
exam
Basic
Statistics
Elective
Information
Systems in
the Service
Industry
Bach
elor
Bach
elor
Bach
elor
days
Theoretical based
Hard subject, lecturer not
engaging
I regret nothing. I urge whoever reads this text to take a leap of faith and just go do what they do,
where they want to be. There is so much to experience beyond Norway’s borders, and you will
come back a richer, more humble person.