Strathclyde Business School
Name of the University: Strathclyde Business School
Exchange semester: Spring, 2015
I. PRACTICAL INFORMATION
Travel
We did not need to apply for a visa or any other types of residential documents. This made the
process quite easy, compared to some other countries. Strathclyde was easy to communicate
with, and they provided us with information along the way.
When traveling to Glasgow from Norway, it is easiest to fly to Edinburgh, and then go to
Glasgow from there. Traveling from Edinburgh to Glasgow can be done by either bus or train.
It is possible to travel to Edinburgh from Gardermoen and Rygge airport. There are a lot of
Norwegian students in Edinburgh and Glasgow, so there is a lot of flights between the
destinations.
Housing
The housing costs in Glasgow is lower than Oslo. We paid around £305 per person, each
month for the apartment. However, the standard of the apartments in Glasgow is generally
lower than in most parts of Norway. On a budget of approximately £350 per person, you will
be able to get a quite good apartment in Glasgow. We rented privately, and it is able to get the
rent cheaper if you live on campus. It can be mentioned that the on-campus housing have a
low standard compared to Norway, but it seems to be very social to live there.
Costs
Generally, the prices for consumer goods etc. is relatively cheap in Scotland, compared to
Norway. However, the currency fluctuations can change the relationship between NOK and
GBP quite dramatically. When we were in Scotland the NOK was very weak, compared to the
pound, which made the trip more expensive. Anyway, it is hard to do anything with this. It is
a wide range of cheap pubs and nightclubs in Glasgow.
Culture and language
Obviously, most Norwegian students manage the English language. Some Scottish people
have a strong accent, and speaks quite fast. However, the accent will be more understandable
within a couple of weeks.
II. ABOUT THE SCHOOL
Strathclyde Business School is one of several faculties at Strathclyde University. The other
faculties are engineering, science and humanities & social sciences. Strathclyde University
has a great location, not far from the main shopping street and George Square. The University
consist of multiple buildings, making it a little bit challenging to find your way around school
but after a week or two this should not be a problem. The University of Strathclyde is one of
the largest universities in Scotland when it comes to number of students.
Course registration
We registered for courses before we went to Strathclyde. Strathclyde assigned us with three of
the courses we had got approved from BI on our learning agreement. We didn’t know which
three courses we were assigned to before we got to the school. The drop/add period for the
courses was within the first 14 days of the semester.
Academic calendar
Arrival date:
First day of semester:
Last day of semester:
Examination period
Any special events/holidays
Other:
18.01.2015
26.01.2015
05.06.2015
04.05-05.06.2015
27.03-17.04 (Spring holiday)
Arrival
We arrived a week before the semester started and found our way to the apartment we had
rented ourselves. There were offers form Strathclyde for someone to meet us at the airport,
but this was just if you arrived one or two days before the semester start. The first couple of
days there were several information meetings and the lectures didn’t really start before the
second week. There were no welcome party arranged by Strathclyde for us exchange students.
The International Office
The International Office at Strathclyde was very helpful and we got all the information we
needed. If we had any question they could answer most of them and the International Office
was not difficult to find.
Promoting BI and Norway
We didn’t really attend any activates or do anything special too promote BI or Norway. But in
conversation with other exchange students we got the chance to tell them a little bit about
Norway and the BI.
Social activities
There were many different societies and sport clubs one could join at Strathclyde, so as an
exchange student you really should join one of these. The International Society arranged pub
nights every Wednesday with different themes for international students. They also arranged
different trips around Scotland and to the highlands, which everyone could join. The sport
clubs and the other societies also had their own gatherings and parties. One got to know both
native students and other exchange students by joining the different clubs and societies. In
most of our classes we had to work in groups for the different assignments so we got to know
the people in our classes quite well.
You can also go to Ansa Glasgow events like “fredagspils”. For exchange students coming to
Strathclyde in the spring semester Ansa also have a 17. May celebration.
III. ACADEMICS
In the classroom
The teaching style at Strathclyde was a little bit different from what we are used to at BI. We
had lectures once or twice a week, normally with power-points. We also had practical
discussions in one of our classes. In addition there were arranged compulsory tutorials or
workshops in all our subjects once a week with practical tasks. The workload was
approximately the same as at BI, but the reading took longer because it was on English. The
content in the subjects was mostly understandable.
Course materials
The course materials were mainly the lecturer´s power-pints. It was also provided information
about books and other relevant articles you should read during the semester to get a deeper
understanding of the subject. The course material was mostly easy to read and understand, but
some of the books were only available in the library.
Exams
The exams were mainly built on the power-points in the lectures, so it was quite easy to get an
overview over the course curriculum, and to prepare for the exams. We had all our exams in
late May.
The courses were evaluated by both assignments during the semester, and written final exams
at the end of the semester that counted for 40% or 60% of the total mark. The assignments
counted for 25-30 % of the total grade, and these were group projects where we had to
collaborate with other students in the class. These assignments were written submissions.
Some of the groups we chose ourselves, and some were decided by the lecturer. In one of our
subjects we also had a individual test early in the semester which counted for 15 % of the total
mark. We had no mid-term exams. Class-attendance was of no significance.
Library and technology
The library was big, and had a lot of different facilities. You had to use your student card to
get in to it. The library consisted of six different floors whereas some had computer areas,
some had group working areas, and some had areas of silent studies. The library was in
general quite modern and easy to use. In the same building as the library it was also a
Starbucks and a decent cafeteria.
Description of courses
We took three courses during our exchange semester. The three subjects are listed in the table
below. All were Level 2 courses, and there were no major challenges with the classes. All
three courses were relevant for our studies, and we also had "Logistikk" at Strathclyde, so we
do not need to take this at BI later. All the three douses were mainly theoretical.
Course code Master/Bachelor Exam form
& name
AG212 Bachelor
2-hour
Financial
written
Analysis
exam plus
one
assignment
and one test
MS211 Bachelor
Managing
Business
Processes
and
Information
Systems
AG217 Bachelor
Portfolio
Management
and Security
Analysis
2-hour
written
exam plus
two
assignments
3-hour
written
exam plus
one
assignment
Prerequisites Approved
as
Students will Elective
be expected
to have
completed a
basic
Accounting
class
None
Elective
Introduction
to Finance
and
Accounting.
Comments
Count as
Norwegian
"Logistikk"
Elective
IV. The exchange experience in Glasgow
Glasgow has a wide range of cultural possibilities. There are several good pubs, nightclubs
and breweries in Glasgow. We also recommend to see the highlands in Scotland. This can be
a great trip for students.
Going on exchange to Strathclyde has been a fantastic experience, the school offers many
interesting and exciting courses and have a wide range of different clubs and societies one can
join.