Student Report
Name of the University: Strathclyde Business School
Exchange semester: Fall 2013
General information about the school
Strathclyde University is located in the middle of Glasgow with a 5-minute walk
to the city centre, George Square. Strathclyde University is home of 168 000
student, which makes Strathclyde the largest university in Scotland. The
business school is among one of the five faculties: Humanities & social science,
Engineering, Science and Professional services. The biggest and most known
faculties are the business school and engineering. In fact Strathclyde Business
School is one of the largest of its kind in UK and Europe with 200 academic staff
and more than 3000 full-time students. SBS has tripled accrediting, AMBA,
AACBS and EQUIS making SBS number 1 in Scotland and number 7 in UK. They
are known for innovation in business and management education. In 2012
Strathclyde was awarded best university of the year in UK and this year awarded
entrepreneurial school of the year.
Current divisions within the business school:
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Marketing
-
Management Science
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Strategy and Organisation
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Accounting & finance
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Corporate connections
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Economics
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Human Resource management
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Hunter Centre for Entrepreneurship
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MBA and International division
I. PRACTICAL INFORMATION
Before leaving Norway
When and how did you receive information from the exchange university,
and did you encounter any difficulties?
Information came during the summer through email by the advisor for
international student at Strathclyde. Everything from information on online
registration, courses, accommodation process and other information came
throughout the summer. We were suggested to joining the Facebook page SBS
international exchange, where the advisors distributes helpful information and
you can ask questions directly to the advisors at the Business school. They were
very helpful during the preparation time and the stay.
Applying for a visa (if applicable)
As a Norwegian citizen you do not have to apply for visa to stay in the UK.
Travel
How did you travel to your destination?
The university is in Glasgow, but there are no direct flights to Glasgow from
Norway. However Norwegian and Ryanair fly to Edinburgh. The best option is to
take direct flight via Norwegian to Edinburgh and then take the bus from the
airport to Glasgow city, which is just an hour away.
Housing
Was housing provided by the university? If not, did you receive support
from the school?
The university offers housing at campus in halls, which is sort of “Studenthybel”..
When we sent the application to Strathclyde University, we also applied for
campus at the same time. There are different standards and prices on the flats,
but most of the halls have shared bathroom and kitchen with other people. If you
don’t get accommodation on campus there are places similar to BSN around
Glasgow.
As I wasn’t offered halls on campus, I had to find a private student
accommodation. The university did send information about accommodations in
Glasgow, however, most of them were for one-year rental period. I booked my
room at St. Andrews Court through Fortis Student Lettings (a private firm that
has no connection with Strathclyde Uni.), which was just 10 minutes walking to
the university. The accommodation was completely new when I moved in, and I
got my own kitchen and bathroom. The prices are a bit more expensive than on
campus, with £125 a week.
As the offer of halls comes a bit late (mid of July) you should take a look at other
accommodations beforehand, because the rooms might be fully booked.
Costs
Approximately how much per month did you spend on rent, books, food,
transportation, and other personal expenses?
The prices in Scotland are in general much cheaper than in Norway. Food, drinks,
taxi and other social activities are among these things. However tickets for
longer train rides are little pricier and similar to Norwegian prices. If you live in
the city centre everything is basically within walking distance, so there will be no
need for a bus- or subway card.
Books could be borrowed for free in the library, but it is only available for 6
weeks rent or so. But buying books cost less than in Norway, consider renting
other books and materials, as you need it for source of information.
Culture and language
-
Did you have any language problems with the faculty or other students?
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How were the possibilities to experience the country and the culture?
The Scottish accent is a little bit different from the “typical” English accent;
especially the Glaswegian accent witch is really broad. It can be difficult in the
beginning, but you get used to quickly. Some examples of the Glaswegian accent:
Little = wee, the letter T is not used in pronunciation of words with T.
The Scottish people are more polite and friendly than Norwegians. Asking “how
are you?” is common thing to do. Thanking people for holding the doors is also
normal.
There are many opportunities to experience the country and the Scottish culture.
You can take a weekend trip to see the highlands and daytrips to see other
famous sits. You get in to the Scottish culture and the experience of it fast. IrnBru is their most famous beverage, more popular than Coca-Cola, which you
should try. Also try some of the many pubs Scotland and Glasgow has to offer.
The pub culture in Scotland is stronger than Norway. Other cultural
considerations are haggis (innmat av får), rugby and football.
As Strathclyde University is known for its diversity, you have the opportunity to
meet people all around the world not just in the business department. This
means that you could learn different cultures, besides the Scottish one.
Another way to experience Scotland is through Student Tours of Scotland. Here
you get to see different places of Scotland like Inverness, St. Andrews, Oban,
Highlands, Aberdeen and Edinburgh. Almost every Wednesday and Friday there
are day trips around Glasgow. On these trips you learn much about Scotland,
Glasgow and the Glaswegian accent. This is because the owner (Garry) knows a
lot of facts. Student Tours of Scotland is open for students in Glasgow, so you can
meet people from Caledonian, Glasgow University and other people from
Strathclyde.
So places to visit in Scotland:
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Glasgow
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Edinburgh
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Inverness
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St. Andrews
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Oban
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Aberdeen
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Highland  Loch Ness, Loch Lomond
There are time to visit other places in UK and Ireland such as Dublin, London,
Newcastle, Manchester, Liverpool and Birmingham. Recommend to book bus,
due to higher prices on train and flights. Book train tickets early, that way it is
cheaper.
There are also good football matches in Glasgow. You can go for Celtic
Champions League matches, tickets goes quick so be fast to order. Tickets for
Scottish Premier League are easier to get. If you go for a club match in Glasgow
remember to wear neutral colours. Glasgow hosts the national teams home
matches, where the atmosphere is amazing.
II. ABOUT THE SCHOOL
Course registration
When and how did you register for courses?
When did the add/drop period end?
When you apply to BI during the spring you register for courses. These courses
are just supplementary courses, which you add for the learning agreement.
Closer to the semester start around late-August/September, the register for
courses starts. Here you can choose courses from a class catalogue, which offers
many different courses. You can take courses from different departments and
you can add and drop courses whenever you want during the first 14 days.
Remember to check class timetable and tutorial time, because some courses can
have overlapping classes/tutorial.
All the registration is on Pegasus similar to AtBi, and course information is on
Myplace similar to Itslearning in BI.
Academic calendar
Arrival date:
15.September
First day of the semester:
Late September
Last day of classes:
13. December
Examination period:
January
Any
events/holidays:
special 30. September bank
holiday, school of.
Other:
The exam period is in January, but you can apply for early assignment. An early
assignment allows you to take another form of examination and you don’t have
to come back for exam period in January. But it is advisable to take exam in
January.
Arrival
Describe the introduction week
First week was called Fresher’s Week which is similar to Fadderrullan, except
that you dint get a buddy or a group. Here you get a chance to meet other
students. Attend to information sessions, where most of the information will be
provided. In the beginning it could be difficult to locate on the campus, but you
get used to it. During Fresher’s Week most of the students go to Union (Student
bar).
The International Office
As an exchange student, did you receive sufficient and relevant
information?
The exchange of information was very good between BI and Strathclyde. Could
have been a newer class catalogue for search of classes.
Promoting BI and Norway
What kind of activities were you involved in to promote exchange to
Norway at your exchange university?
There weren’t any opportunities to promote BI/Norway during our stay, but we
did talk highly about it when asked.
Social activities
-
How was the relationship with native students and that among exchange
students?
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Are there any special activities, student organisations, and gatherings for
exchange students?
There are plenty of social activities in Scotland and at Strathclyde. For
international students at Strathclyde, the Strathclyde International Society
arranges trips and social nights. For example they have trips to Edinburgh,
Sterling and pub nights in different bars at Wednesday’s. Here you get to meet
different kinds of people both exchange students and Strathclyde students. The
native students are open and friendly, and there is not hard to get in contact with
them.
Many international exchange students throw pre-parties in halls. This is a good
way to get to know each other. Also you can go to Union, most freshers (first year
students) go there. They have cheap prices. Glasgow in general has several bars
and nightclubs to go to.
Ansa Glasgow is hosting events and pub nights as well. They have most Fridays
“fredagspils” beer on Friday to get to know other Norwegians in Glasgow. Other
events they throw is “julebord”, pub crawl and other events.
III. ACADEMICS
In the classroom
-
Describe the teaching style (practical, theoretical, cases/lectures,
formal/informal etc.)
-
How is the level and workload compared to that at BI?
The teaching style at Strathclyde was a little bit similar to BI. In most classes
there were Power Points with both practical and theoretical content. The classes
lasted 1 clock hour and you usually have 2-hour class every week. The difference
between SBS and BI is the tutorial. A tutorial is a smaller obligatory class, where
you have homework to each tutorial. In tutorial you are suppose to participate to
the class. If you do not show up in the tutorial you can get lower grade, but a
good excuse e.g. sick or funeral is valid.
Compared to BI the workload is more self-study and assignments to hand in. But
in a way this is better, because then the exam does not count 100 % as BI. Also
you have to find sources from different books and Internet pages.
Course materials
-
Describe the course materials used (books/literature, online articles,
Powerpoint, level of course material etc).
Most of the classes have one main book as in BI. I bought three books, if you are
lucky you can rent books for a longer period in the library. However there are
much more sources from other books and Internet pages. In all my courses I had
PowerPoint notes, which was very good to look at.
The level of each course material was very different. Some had more tables and
graphs than other course material. But the level of material in general was
similar to the English books in BI.
Exams
-
Was the exam based on the course materials or on the lectures?
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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 In-class quizzes throughout semester
o Small assignments and/or papers
o Presentations
o Group work
o Class attendance
o Class participation/debates
o Activities outside of the classroom
o Other – if other, describe.
In most classes there are small/bigger assignments to be evaluated on. However
there are tests and presentation, which counts less than the assignments. The
exams are in January, so if you apply for the early assessment you will get a
alternative assignment that counts as the exam.
Library and technology
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Describe the facilities
Library is very good located around the campus and it’s much bigger. They have
staff to help you loaning books and other issues. The library has quiet area,
group area and other areas for studying. The technology in the library is good;
they have computers, group rooms to loan for 1 hour and computer screen to
connect your computer. One thing is different from BI to Strathclyde is the
charging availability. As you want to work on your own mac/computer it is
limited charging places.
Description of courses
Course code &
Master/
name
Bachelor
Example:FIN123
Bachelor
Prerequisite
Approved
Comment
s
as
s
None
Elective
3 different
Basic
Marketing
Marketing and Social
blogs 500-800
marketing
Media
words,
theory
Finance
MRK326 Digital
Exam form
4-hour written
exam
Bachelor
reflective diary
1000 words
Exam paper
M9318 Competition
Bachelor
Law
Multiple Choice
Basic intro
10%
economics
Assignment
and first year
65%
business law
Exam 25 %
(“forretningsj
Elective
Law
uss)
MG205 International
Bachelor
Business Analysis
Assignment
None
Strategy
None
Strategy
30%
Presentation
10 %
Exam Paper 60
%
Z1212 - Introduction
Bachelor
Individual
Business
to Business Start Up
essay (30%),
group report
(50%) and
group
presentation
(20%)
HR202 – Human
Bachelor
Assignment
Resource
(40%), group
Development
exercise (20%)
and exam
(40%)
AG210 Business
Finance
Bachelor
Class test
Some finance
Finansiell
(20%)
and
styring
Individual
economics
assignment
(20%)
Exam (60 %)