Student Report
Name of the University: St. Gallen
Exchange semester: Fall, 2015
I. PRACTICAL INFORMATION
Before leaving Norway
I got the information from the University almost straight away, after BI had nominated me.
Everything was well organized and all you have to do is to follow the instructions given in the
e-mails. You will also be contacted by the “Buddysystem”-group. They will assign you with a
local student you can contact, and they host great events almost every week throughout the
semester.
Applying for a visa (if applicable)
No need for VISA in Switzerland.
Travel
I traveled from Gardermoen to Zürich in Switzerland. From here it’s only an hour by train to
St. Gallen. The train is easy to find, and you don’t have to leave the terminal to access it (It’s
like taking NSB Gardermoen-Oslo). You can fly there with any airline you like, but my
preferred choise is SAS (Sometimes it’s cheaper to buy a business class ticket in order to get
an additional bag included in your ticket. That is if you have a lot of bags.)
Housing
I got my housing provided from the University’s housing office. This worked very well, and
you get to live with other exchange students who are there for the same experience as you.
The apartments are decent, but they very in condition. You can be either lucky or a bit
unlucky. The rooms are furnished with everything that you need. My building also had a
laundry service for my bed linen.
If you are only concerned about the price, it might be cheaper to rent privately. You might
want to check out the Facebook-page “Sharing is caring University of St. Gallen (HSG)”.
This is like a market place (finn.no) for students at the university, where they post housing
adverts and books for sale etc. But you can also ask them anything you like.
It’s nice to get an apartment that is close to the center of the city. Markt Platz or the train
station are two places it’s nice to live close to.
Costs
Rent
Books
Food
Transport
Other
6200 NOK
0 NOK (books not needed in most courses)
2500-3000 NOK (Pretty much the same as in Norway)
0 NOK (St. Gallen is small – don’t need transport.
Elsewhere it is comparable with Norway)
500 NOK (Beer is cheaper in Switzerland)
Culture and language
All of my courses were taught in English. All the students and personell at the University
speak good English, but the local people prefer German. However, it always works out and it
wasn’t really a problem. It can be handy to know at least some German, so I recommend the
introduction course in the beginning of the semester. Plus you get there earlier and get to party
for two more weeks. Culture wise it is quite similar to Norway, but noticeably more formal
(For instance at company presentations at the University. Wear a suit!)
Everything is close in Switzerland. It’s also easy to go to other countries, as the train-system
is great. The Alps are obviously close, so if you like skiing, you have come to the right place.
II. ABOUT THE SCHOOL
Please describe:
Compared to BI, it is a rather old campus. It’s not as modern, but everything works and in
good condition. The University has about 8000 students, so it is comparable to BI. It is
located about 10 minutes outside of the city, so most people walk there, and you save money
on transportation. There are a lot of nice facilities. They do for instance have a gym that is
free to use, if you take a short introduction course. There also are a lot of grouprooms
available, but these should be booked in advance as they are always taken.
Course registration
The course registration is done through a special bidding system. You get 1000 credits and
need to spend it on the courses you want the most. There are several bidding rounds, and it
feels very chaotic when your not used to it. However, it always works out and people gladly
give out their best tips.
The bidding starts well in advance of the first lectures, and goes on for a few weeks after the
semester has started. You can therefore try out different courses and drop the ones you don’t
like. It’s important to drop the courses you don’t want early, so that other students can get
your spot. There are a lot of information about this on the Universitys homepages.
A good tip is to bid a lot of points on the courses you really want first in the bidding round (23 courses for instance). Then you can bid a lot of points (300-500) and increase your chances
of getting it. You will most likely get the rest of the courses you don’t want so badly in the
other bidding rounds anyways. Pay attention to the spots available in each course – few spots
means you need to bid more points. Try also to get courses that has a lot of credits. Then you
don’t need that many courses, and it reduces your stress level at least a little bit.
Academic calendar
Arrival date:
First day of the semester:
Last day of classes:
Examination period:
Any special events/holidays:
Other:
01.09.2015
16.09.2015
10.12.2015
25.11.2015-19.12.2015
There are two weeks break during the semester. Perfect
for travel.
Arrival
One week before school starts, a German course is provided to learn the basics. The
buddysystem arrange a lot of activities such as bowling, hiking, city tours, parties etc. Two
first weeks of school is really relaxed, because your final courses are not yet set, and people
are still “testing” classes.
The International Office
Gives you all necessary information and are very helpful. You can arrange a meeting, or they
answer your mails quickly.
Promoting BI and Norway
They arrange an exchange fair for the local students in St. Gallen. A great opportuinity to
promote BI and Norway. We really need it as most local students going on exchange to
Scandinavia chose to go to either Sweden or Denmark.
Social activities
A lot of social activities throughout the semester. At least one every week! The Buddysystem
does a great job. The activities are great fun and many people participate. You get invites on
facebook, so it is not hard to keep track of the events. They are also good at promoting events.
Joining the Buddysystem is a must, and you will regret if you don’t.
III. ACADEMICS
In the classroom
Courses in St. Gallen is really different from BI. Small classes of 20-40 students are normal
and parts of the grade is often given by active participation, presentations and papers. This
means that the classes are more interactive, and in many courses you are required to read
material before class. That being said, the professors are great and the learning outcome is
better.
The workload is big, as expected of a school like HSG. It does depend a bit of the courses that
you bid for. Some are easier than others. But the fact that we only do 24 credits helps, and
makes you able to do more fun things like travel and party.
Course materials
Most course material are available online on the student webpage, free of charge.
Exams
The exams were based on the course material provided for the course. Mostly slides, but also
papers. The evaluation in the courses differs, but it is mostly papers, participation and final
exams.
Library and technology
The library is great and you can borrow books for free with your student card. Besides from
that there are computers around at the school that is free to use for students. You also have
specific computer rooms. For the examination you need another calculator than the one we
use at BI. This can be borrowed for exams in the library as well.
Final judgement. How do I sum up?
It is a truly amazing experience. The school is great and academically you develop a lot.
Further, the Buddysystem makes your social life amazing, and you get to know a lot of people
from all around the world who are there just to have fun and enjoy themselves. Also, you get
to practice your language skills, both German and English. Travel is easy, and Switzerland is
a very beautiful country. Swiss people are nice, and more polite than people in Norway. I
would really recommend to go to St. Gallen, and I would do it again a thousand times.