GUIDELINES FOR WRITING THE STUDENT REPORT
Student Report
Name of the University: Rotterdam School of Management
Exchange semester: Fall 2014
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 all my information via email. I received the tirst welcome mail in march,
and the final information mail in july. In this period all the registering for courses etc
is taken care of and you will always receive updated on email. So the communication
was good and i didn’t experience any difficulties.
Travel
- How did you travel to your destination?
Its easy yo get here. I travelled with plane (SAS) from Oslo to Schipol (Amsterdam).
And we could register for a pick up service so when i arrived in Amsterdam i just met
up with people from ESN (student organization) and then we drove in busses to
Rotterdam (which is about 1 hour) and they stopped in all the different housing
locations. I would recommend to use this “pick up service” if its still offered, because
then you don’t have to worry about how to get to your housing location (this is if your
housing is through SSH, but they stopped at some private residences as well).
Housing
- Was housing provided by the university? If not, did you receive support from the
school?
We got information about housing, but it was not provided directly by the university.
But its very easy to apply. I used SSH (which is a short stay solution), and simply just
reserved a room. With SSH there are different housing opportunities (Hatta building,
Casa, Student Hotel, F building etc). I chosed to live in the Hatta building since this is
located on campus, and i do not regert that.
Costs
- Approximately how much per month did you spend on rent, books, food,
transportation, and other personal expenses?
Rent
Books
Food
Transport
Other
NOK 4700
NOK 1000*
NOK 1500
NOK
3
NOK 30
*All books where bought in the beginning of the semester. So this a “one-time”
payment.
GUIDELINES FOR WRITING THE STUDENT REPORT
Culture and language
- Did you have any language problems with the faculty or other students?
Lectures are held in English and the books are English as well. So its very easy to
communicate with both students and teachers, as long as you speak English. Almost
all of my friends were international students so i used English all the time.
-
How were the possibilities to experience the country and the culture?
When living in Rotterdam its easy to experience other cities. There are trains going in
all directions and since the Netherlands is a small country, it doesn’t take that long to
travel. I visited Amsterdam a couple of times as well as Maastricht. The hauge is also
a popular place to visist, as well as Utrecht. But if you really just want to see some
dutch culture you can just take your bike (which i highly recommend that you buy)
and its only a bike ride away.
II. ABOUT THE SCHOOL
Please describe:
- The school (location, size, study structure, special academic areas etc.)
Rotterdam School of Management is a part of Erasmus University Rotterdam and its
of course located on campus (Campus woudenstein). Its a very beautiful campus in my
view and its much larger than what im used to back in Norway. The campus is located
near Kralingse Zoom (metro stop). There are many buildings on campus but its easy to
get to know it (it just takes some days). I personally didn’t have that many lectures but
you are expected to much “self-study”. The courses has assignments, presentations,
tests etc so its important that you always are prepared and don’t fall behind.
Course registration
- When and how did you register for courses?
The preliminary course registration is in mid-May. You will receive there avaialbe
coruses much earlier so you have plenty of time to review the courses that you are
interested in taking. The approval of coruses is received on email in mid-july. The
coruse registration was online, so it was very easy.
- When did the add/drop period end?
Its different depending on which courses you take. But i would guess late septemebr or
mid-october.
Academic calendar
Arrival date:
First day of the semester:
Last day of classes:
Examination period:
*Any special events/holidays:
Other:
22. August
3. September
21. November
End-October to
beginning of
December
No
GUIDELINES FOR WRITING THE STUDENT REPORT
Arrival
- Describe the introduction week
You can attend to something called the ESN introduction days which is for all
international students. This i three days where you get to know new students and also
get to know Rotterdam better as a city. This the organized through RSM but you will
receive information about it and how to register. We alsp had a integration trip which
was oranizied through RSM. We spent 3 days at a hostel in Maastricht and you really
get to know all your fellow exchange students.
The International Office
- As an exchange student, did you receive sufficient and relevant information?
I didn’t experience any problem. The international office is located in one of the
buildings on campus and its easy to access them. You either send an email or just go
visit them on campus.
Promoting BI and Norway
- What kind of activities were you involved in to promote exchange to Norway at your
exchange university?
I was participating on an Exchange fair at campus. I was basically just promoting my
home university for the people who were interested in studying in Norway.
Social activities
- How was the relationship with native students and that among exchange students?
The dutch people are very nice and i didn’t experience any problem among native
students. The relationship with the students are usually very good, since everyone
wants to get new friends.
-
Are there any special activities, student organisations, and gatherings for exchange
students?
You will definetley know ESN (Erasmus Social Network). This organization have a
lot of different activities during the whole semester. Some of the activitites are:
nightlife, city-trips, food, music, sports etc
III. ACADEMICS
In the classroom
- Describe the teaching style (practical, theoretical, cases/lectures, formal/informal etc.)
I find the teaching style very similar in some of the courses (this is: lectures in big
auditoriums). But there are also courses with fewer students and these are held in
smaller classrooms. And here you are expected to participate actively and its therefore
a bit different then what im used to here in Norway. So its important to always pay
attention in these type of lectures.
- How is the level and workload compared to that at BI?
I think the workload is a bit bigger than it is at BI. You have to start with assignments
(in my case) from the beginning of the semester. But its not to much, and i really felt
that i could attend to whatever i wanted to (activities, events etc) as long as you plan
your work according to the time table.
GUIDELINES FOR WRITING THE STUDENT REPORT
Course materials
- Describe the course materials used (books/literature, online articles, Powerpoint, level
of course material etc).
All the lectures i had were held with powerpoint presentations. The course material are
usually these slides, as well as obligatory literature (books). I also had a course which
used online articles, which you have to find yourself by for example using Google
Scholar.
Exam
- Was the exam based on the course materials or on the lectures?
In my experience the lecture slides came in most handy when studying for exams. Its
also important to look at old exams when preparing. Obviously you also have to read
the books which are obligatory literature if you want to be well prepared.
-
How was the course evaluated (include all that apply)?
o Final exam (include form: written, oral, home assignment, presentation, etc.)
o Mid-term exam
o Small assignments and/or papers
o Presentations
o Group work
o Class attendance
Library and technology
- Describe the facilities
You can find places all over campus but mainly there is a huge library which most
people use. You can also use your desk at home if thas what you prefer. In the library
there are computer rooms, as well as printers etc. You have access to everything here
so its a good place to study.
Description of courses
Please list below all the courses you took while on exchange. Your comments are useful for
BI and for future exchange students, include information on the qacadmic level, challenges,
relevance to your studies, if the course was practical/theoretical, any enrolment issues, etc.
Course code & name
BKBMIN009 - Alternative
investments: beyond
stocks and bonds
Master/
Bachelor
Bachelor
BAB19 - Quantitative
Decision Making
Bachelor
BAB21 - Organizational
Theory & Dynamics
Bachelor
Exam form
Prerequisites
Approved
as
Strategy/fin
ance
Comments
3-hour written
ecam (60%),
assignments
(30%),
presentation
(10%)
2-hour written
exam (one mid
term in October,
the other half in
December)
3-hour MC
exam (50%),
Final report
(50%)
None
None
Elective
Second
year course
6ETCS
None
Elective
Second
year course
6ECTS
Minor
15ECTS
GUIDELINES FOR WRITING THE STUDENT REPORT
On a final note, how will you sum up the exchange experience?
- E.g. the experience from an academic, cultural and social point of
view, influences to your future career possibilities etc.
The 4-5 months spent in Rotterdam as an exchange student is probably on of the best
experience in my life. You get to know loads of new people from all over the world and you
will quickly discover some cultural differences which is interesting. Rotterdam School of
Management is a good European business school and the academic experience from it is a
good thing to have. You also the discover that the people you hang out with isn’t always
people from your school and class, but the people who lives your student housing building.
And in that way you get to know people who are not only studying business but also other
students from other faculties.
All in all i think my experience down here will influence my future career in a really good
way.