Student Report
Name of the University: University of Pécs
Exchange semester: Spring, 2015
I. PRACTICAL INFORMATION
Before leaving Norway
When and how did you receive information from the exchange university, and
did you encounter any difficulties?
I received my first email November 24th, with the university application. I didn’t
receive any other practical information until right before Christmas.
Even though I didn’t encounter any real difficulties, the information was limited and
came a little bit late; which made me nervous.
Visa/ residences permit
If you are an EEA citizen you don’t need a visa, but if your stay exceeds 90 days you
will need a registration certificate. This certificate is very easy to get, and you can
apply for it in Pécs at any time before you exceed the 90 days limit. Just make sure
you bring your passport, proof of medical insurance and bank account statement from
Norway, the rest you can get in Hungary.
Travel
-
How did you travel to your destination?
I traveled from Oslo Airport to Budapest Ferenc Liszt International Airport by plane.
From the airport to my dormitory in Pécs I used a transfer company called Travel4you.
The cost of this is about 9000 ft. (=250 kr). I would recommend you to do the same, it
made my trip to Pécs much easier. You can order this at http://www.travel4you.hu/
Housing
I got an offer to live in Hunyor Hostel, a dormitory 30 minutes away from my faculty.
In this dormitory almost all Erasmus students stayed. The dorm was very dirty and
messy, there was one kitchen for about 100 students, and it only got cleaned two times
during the semester. BUT; staying in this dormitory was a wonderful experience. It is
basically a party-house were all your new friends lives. It was parties and social
activities in the lobby of the dorm almost every day and it is impossible to get bored.
Huyor Hostel is not for everybody, and apartments are easy and cheap to rent in Pécs.
But my recommendation is to accept housing in the dormitory first, and then you can
move out later if you want.
Costs per month
Rent
Books
Food
Transport
Other/
traveling
1080 NOK
0 NOK
2000 NOK
400 NOK
2000 NOK
Culture and language
- Did you have any language problems with the faculty or other students
The faculty and the teachers spoke good English. The level of English knowledge of the
other students was lower than in Norway, but I could commutate with very few problems.
Most adults in Pécs do not speak English, but this didn’t cause any major issues.
- How were the possibilities to experience the country and the culture?
The Erasmus Student Network (ESN) in Pécs arranged events where every country was
able to present their culture. Three countries presented themselves and made traditional
food every week. This made it possible to get to know a lot of cultures, not only
Hungarian.
ESN also organized trips around Hungary and events like wine tastings and carnival.
II. ABOUT THE SCHOOL
University of Pécs - Faculty of Business and Economics
The University of Pécs is a huge school with faculties all around Pécs. The Business faculty
was an old building with small classrooms. But the school was clean and the quality of
education was good. The school was located 30 minutes from my dormitory by walk. I think
this is a bit too long, but sometime I was lazy and took a taxi that cost about 900 ft (25 kr).
The classes normally had a duration of 3 hours. Participation in class was about 30 % of our
final grade. We also had home assignments every week and a midterm exam in all subjects.
Course registration
I registered for courses about 3 weeks after my arrival. The add/ drop – period lasted 2
weeks, and this made it easy to see witch courses I liked and disliked.
Academic calendar
Arrival date:
First day of the semester:
Last day of classes:
Examination period:
Any special events/holidays:
31.1.2015
2.2.2015
13.5.2015
13.5 – 16.6
Spring break:
April 26th – May 5th
Arrival
All faculties had their own orientation week, were we did different social activates and
learned about Hungarian culture.
The International Office
The International Office was very helpful if I needed any help. They gave out information by
email, but nothing more than the absolute minimum. Please note that if you go to the
University of Pécs, don’t use a Hotmail email-address. Hotmail blocks all incoming emails
from the university and that can be a major issue.
Promoting BI and Norway
The country presentations organized by ESN gave me the opportunity to promote Norway,
but not BI.
Social activities
My stay in Pécs was a very busy period. Not because of studying, but because it was social
activities almost every week, this was organized by ESN, my faculty and other students. We
didn’t meet much Hungarians, but all exchange students did everything together and we
became one big family.
III. ACADEMICS
In the classroom
The teaching style was mostly theoretical. It was not very formal and discussions with the
professor were very common. This is maybe because participation in class counts on your
final grade. It was less and easier courses compared to BI.
Course materials
We usually used PowerPoints and materials handed out by the teacher, books were not
necessary.
Exams
The exam was mostly based on lectures. The final grade was a mix of 40-60% final exam,
30% midterm exam, and ca. 20 % home assignments and class activity.
Library and technology
The library was very new and close to our faculty. You can get a free library card after you
receive your student card. This is a nice place to do some schoolwork, because the dormitory
was too noisy.
Description of courses
Course name
Master/
Bachelor
Bachelor
Exam form
Prerequisites
Approved as
Comments
2-hour written
exam
None
Elective
Operation
Management
Bachelor
1,5-hour
written exam
None
Elective
International
Economics
Bachelor
2-hour written
exam
None
Elective
Hungarian for
Foreigners
Bachelor
1,5-hour
written exam
None
Elective
Very different from the
“forretningsjus” course at BI.
We mostly solved cases and
looked at PowerPoints
We had to do 5 homeworks
through the semester. The
homework was to analyze a
company of your own choice
based on the weeks reading
We had a small quiz based on
the weekly readings every
week.
Very nice teacher and a very
fun course. Hungarian is very
hard to learn, but they didn’t
expect too much of us.
EU/Business Law
This has been the best five months of my life. I made a lot of friends and I feel
that I now have a huge international network. I think BI is a better school
looking at the academic side of it, but the international relations to other students
are priceless. Pécs has very warm summers, cheap prices and rich culture. I
would recommend everyone who wants to have a different and enriching
cultural experience to take a semester at the University of Pécs.