Name of university: Strathclyde Business School
Part of degree: BA Business Administration
Exchange semester: Fall 2014
(Written by two students)
I. PRACTICAL INFORMATION
Before leaving Norway
- We got all the information needed sent by email from the advisor at the International
Office. Most of the information came during the summer; about accommodations, how
to register at the online school system etc. If we did have any questions we could just
send a mail or call the Internatinal Office and they were always there to help. We did
not experience any difficulties.
Visa
-
As a Norwegian Student you do not need to a visa to live in the UK.
Travel
We booked my flight trough SAS, and travelled from Gardermoen to Edinburgh. From
Edinburgh to Glasgow you can take the CityLink bus from the airport, which takes
about one hour.
The flight tickets is being sold out pretty fast, so you should find out when to arrive in
Glasgow and book your ticket as soon as possible. You can also book through
Ryanair. Another option, if you have trouble finding tickets to Edinburgh, you can fly
to Aberdeen that is a three-hour bus-tour from Glasgow.
Housing
- One of us got a room on campus, in Murray Hall. This was the only place at campus
that was not divided into flats. Instead there was a lot of doorms and shared bathrooms
and kitchen. The university is only a ten-minute walk from the heart of Glasgow, so it
is a perfect location to live at.
One of us did not get a room on campus. I was informed about this in August. The
university also sent me an email with different tips on how and where to find a place
to live.
Trust me when I say that you should search for a place to stay as soon as you can,
because it is not easy. I didn’t start looking around before September came, which is
something I regret. There are a lot of private accommodations that you can contact,
but most of them only rent out with a one-year contract. Instead I did use different
Internet sides (pretty similar to finn.no) in hope of finding something there. The
Semester in Glasgow is only from the end of September to the end of December (if
you do not go back for exams in January) so it is hard to find a flat you can rent for
only this short of time. I send about 50 emails to different landlords, had to stay at 2
different motels the first two weeks, before I finally did find a flat 30 minutes outside
the city centre. The International Office at BI really tried their best to get me a room
on campus, and I actually got an offer two days after moving in to the other flat.
Costs
- Approximately how much per month did you spend on rent, books, food,
transportation, and other personal expenses?
Rent
Books
Food
Transport
Other
4000NOK
2000NOK
2000NOK
0NOK
1000NOK
If you do have to take transportation the prices do not differ a lot from Norwegian prices.
There are some very cheap grocery stores and alcohol is very cheap.
Culture and language
- The Scottish dialect is a bit difficult at first, but you get used to it. However, in formal
speak (during lectures etc) there was no problem at all.
-
How were the possibilities to experience the country and the culture?
It was arranged trips and events almost every week, and a lot of possibilities to
experience the country and the culture. Edinburgh, also a beautiful city, is close by and
the Scottish countryside (hiking options and walks). The city centre has cutting-edge
music, legendary nightlife, an exciting selection of places to eat out and much more.
The city is also a dream for vintage-shoppers.
II. ABOUT THE SCHOOL
Please describe:
- Strathclyde is a very big school. It is placed in the city centre, with just a ten-minute
walk to get to the main shopping street. Each student takes 3 classes each semester and
some of the lectures are compulsory.
Course registration
- When and how did you register for courses?
-
We registered for courses before leaving Norway. It went great, without any
complications and there were no troubles changing courses if you wanted to.
When did the add/drop period end?
The add/drop period ended in October.
Academic calendar
Arrival date:
First day of the semester:
Last day of classes:
Examination period:
Any special events/holidays:
Other:
21.09.14
29.09.14
19.12.14
12-24.01.15
20.12.14
Arrival
- During the first week at school, there were a lot of information meetings. You should
attend Freshners Week, which starts about two weeks before the lectures begin. This is
almost like “fadderuke”, but we did not have groups like in Norway. It is the perfect
opportunity to get to know other exchange students as well as all the other students.
There were parties every day and a lot of different things to do.
The International Office
- As an exchange student, did you receive sufficient and relevant information?
Yes we did.
Promoting BI and Norway
We were not involved in any activities were we could promote exchange to Norway.
We talked to many people about traditional Norwegian moonshine, a favourite past ti
me of the Scots.
Social activities
- How was the relationship with native students and that among exchange students?
As the native students were a lot younger than us, we socialized more with other
exchange student from different countries. It was not hard making friends.
- Are there any special activities, student organisations, and gatherings for exchange
students?
The school arranged some parties just for exchange students. You can also attend
Ansa Glasgow’s events, as “fredags pils”, Halloween sub-way crawl, “julebord” etc.
III. ACADEMICS
In the classroom
- The teaching style was both different and the same as in Norway. The lectures was a
lot like BI, but we also had tutorials once a week. The tutorial is compulsory. Instead
of one exam, we had some assignments and tests during the semester, and the exam is
in January.
-
How is the level and workload compared to that at BI?
It was quite the same as BI
Course materials
- Books, articles and powerpoint
Exams
- Was the exam based on the course materials or on the lectures?
The exam is in january
- 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 Group work
o Class attendance
Library and technology
- The library was very big and you had to use your student ID to get in. There was six
floors in the library and there was starbucks, cafeteria and a lot of vending machines
available.
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
Example:FIN123
Finance
AG215
Master/
Bachelor
Bachelor
B
MK209
B
MG210
B
Exam form
Prerequisites
4-hour written
exam
Early
assingment
Early
assignment
Early
assingment
None
Approved
as
Elective
None
Elective
None
Elective
Noen
Elective
Comments
On a final note, how will you sum up the exchange experience?
- Our experience as an exchange student at University of Strathclyde was
very good. We got to get to know a lot of new people, both Norwegian
and from other countries. It was also interesting to learn about the UK
school system, which was different from what we are used to in Norway.
E.g. the experience from an academic, cultural and social point of view,
influences to your future career possibilities etc.