Student Report from LUISS Guido Carli (Rome)
Name of the University: Libera Università Internazionale Degli Studi Sociali
Exchange semester: Fall, 2012
Practical information
Information before you left
During the month of June the information package was received. This contains
detailed information about everything you need to know before you leave.
Visa Procedure and travel experiences
The semester abroad in Rome did not require any visa. The plane ticket was
ordered only a few days in advance. When arriving at the airport in Rome you
can either take the bus or the train to get to the city center. The train takes
approximately 30 minutes and costs 14€.
Academic Calendar
You can choose to attend a 2-3 weeklong language crash course (this course does
not qualify you for the language scholarship), which begins around 3. September.
The semester starts in mid-September (18. Sep.), and there is an introduction
meeting for exchange students the first day of the language crash course. For
exchange students the semester ends in December. The examination period is
short (December 10-19), and you may risk having several exams in one week or
on the same day. This is usually not a problem since most of the exams are only
1-2 hours long.
Reception
The people in the reception were very polite and helpful, and there weren’t any
communication problems. You receive Student ID and username and password
for the computers the first day. For exchange students there was a welcome
party and it is also possible to sign up for a Buddy program. If you apply for a
Buddy, you will receive a regular student to show you the facilities of the
university and show you around the city.
We received housing through the school; we had a couple of opportunities to
choose from. If you haven’t found a place to stay before you leave it is no
problem. There is a Facebook-page that is very useful. However, I recommend
you to find a place before you leave.
Costs
Basically all expenses are lower than in Norway except from rent, which is the
same (I paid €700 a month). You usually don’t have to buy any books. Food and
drinks are also cheaper compared to Norway. In general you should live very
comfortably on the “lånekassen” study loan. Transportation is also very cheap;
either it is taxi, tram or metro (local transportation ticket for students costs
approximately 35 € a month).
The International Office
LUISS has an international office like BI. The international office is open Monday
to Friday (0900-1200), and you can drop by and ask if you have a problem or just
a question. They are very helpful.
Exchange promotion
Well, being Norwegians in Italy is promotion itself. A lot of people were very
interested in our culture and so on, so by sharing our knowledge and experience
we promoted Norway in a favorable manner.
Social Activities
We recommend you to take part of the Italian crash course. The classes are small
and it is easy to get in touch with new people. During the language course there
are also social activities that makes it easy to get new friends. The Welcome
Week at the beginning of the semester also offers a lot of social activities, like
dinners, parties, trips etc. Through out the exchange period there are many
parties for international students and it is easy to get in touch with people. There
are a lot of organizations that are responsible for organizing these parties and
special events for international students. There are different clubs that give
special offerings to international students (CC and 2 drinks for 10 euro). The
exchange students have a lot of the same classes and it is easy to come in touch
with students from other countries, so it will be quite social at school.
Culture and Language
There were some language difficulties during the exchange, Italians are not that
fluent in English. However, the professors all spoke proper English and talking to
the other students was not a problem at all. When not at school the language
difficulties grew dramatically. When shopping for groceries, going out, taking a
taxi and so on, there were only a few Italians who could communicate in English.
We would therefore recommend attending the language course to pick up some
of the basic phrases. If you choose not to, Italians are nice people, so you will get
far with some pointing and body language.
There are lots of possibilities to experience the country and the Italian culture.
Most of the exchange students travel to several places in Italy when they have
the time.
Cultural and Social Effects from the Exchange Experience
Going from the familiar to the unfamiliar was a unique opportunity. We have
enjoyed learning and embracing a new culture that is very different from
Norway, which was a challenging and interesting experience. Being on exchange
you get to know people from different countries and cultures. Probably make
some good friends and improve your English. There are a lot of happenings
during the exchange and sometimes exchange period felt like being on the
vacation.
We would strongly recommend everybody to go to exchange and try to
experience different lifestyle. An international exchange is an enriching
experience on many levels. It affects both personal and professional
development, stimulates creative ideas, enhances relationships, and strengthens
multicultural understanding.
Academic Information
The Teaching situation
The courses are taught in English. The level of study and workload is a little
lower compared to BI. The teaching style is almost the same as in Videregående.
The relationship between the teacher and students is very good and so is the
atmosphere in the classroom. Be prepared for both home assignments and
presentations in some of the courses. The teachers have lower expectations than
on BI, which makes it easier to achieve a good grade.
Course materials
As long as you choose English courses, everything is in English. All the teachers
publish their PowerPoint presentations on the courses homepage, so books are
overrated. If the teacher asks you to read something for the next lesson, it is
normally an article. Exams are very much based on the lectures (PowerPoint
slides) compared to BI.
Exams
Final exams are both oral and written depending on the course. Some courses
also have an oral presentation during the semester that accounts for 20-40% of
the grade. The written exams are normally 2 hours long and the oral exam is
usually in front of the whole class.
Other
The Library is in another building and is approximately 10-15 minutes by walk
from the main building. There are one or two computer rooms on every floor in
the main building, but these get very crowded in the exam period. Every course
has its own homepage where the teacher publishes information.
Description of Courses
Primarily you have to attend in over 80% of the classes, but in my case the
teacher never checked if I was there or not, but it depends on the teacher.
Economics and Management of Energy Business
Final grade was based on: presentation (30%) and written exam, 2 hours (70%)
Prerequisites: none, but you should have basic knowledge about
microeconomics. This was a Master course.
Entrepreneurship and Venture Capital
Final grade was based on: oral presentation (100%, you had to pitch an idea)
Prerequisites: none. This was a Master course.
Financial Economics
Final grade was based on: closed book written exam, 2 hours (100%)
Bachelor course. Prerequisites: math skills.
Management
Final grade was based on: group work, 3 hand-in assignments (10+10+10%) and
oral exam (70%). Bachelor course. Prerequisites: none.
If you have any other questions please do not hesitate to contact me through the
international office.