STUDENT REPORT FROM HEC MONTREAL (Quebec), fall 2009
Sigrid Teigen Bekkeli, BI Trondheim
FIRST OF ALL: GO TO MONTRÉAL!!!
I GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE CITY AND THE SCHOOL
Montréal is the second largest city in Canada and largest city in the French province of
Quebec. Even though the official language is French, most of the people here speak both
French and English, and you can easily get around with English only.
HEC Montréal is the business school or faculty of la Université de Montréal. HEC (full name
École des Hautes Études Commerciales) has several times been awarded for being one of
the best business schools in North America. HEC is a French school, but in addition to French
courses, there is also possible to take many courses in both English and Spanish.
The school offers courses in business, economics & finance, marketing and human
resources. These courses are offered in a Bachelor, M.Sc., MBA and PhD level. The school
has two buildings, approximately with a walking distance of 10 minutes from each other; Côte
Sainte-Catherine and Decelles. The campus is situated around 25 minutes with the Metro
from downtown Montréal, the metro stops just outside both the buildings. The school has
more than 12.000 students, around 3.800 of these are international students. In the fall of
2009, we were 209 exchange students.
II PRACTICAL INFORMATION
Information before I left Norway
I received an information package from HEC in May. The school was very helpful with any
question I had. The only field where I found a lack of information was regarding the
description of courses, it was not very detailed. In contrast to BI, you have to sign up online
for the courses you want to have. Many students sign up for more courses than required,
(which they later might withdraw from), so if possible, sign up for classes the day the
registration starts. More complementary information about the courses and biography are
given in the first classes. It is possible to withdraw from courses during the first two weeks.
Visa Procedure and travel experiences
Visa: You can study in Canada for 6 months without a visa, so I did not bother to get one.
What you do need though, is all the letters (acceptance letter etc) you have received from
school in addition to a letter received from Lånekassen, which proves that you have enough
money on your account to be able to support yourself during your stay in Canada.
Ticket: I ordered my ticket through www.finn.no, and found a round-trip ticket for NOK 5.200,
which was very reasonable considering that my flight back was very close to Christmas. I had
been informed that I at least had to pay around NOK 8.000. It is also important to buy a
round-trip ticket, because otherwise it can be hard to be allowed into Canada because of
immigration restrictions.
Reception and Academic Calendar
I arrived Canada the 18th of August. The school did not start until the 31 st of August, but the
school and their “Exchange crew” (faddere), consisting of other students who either had been,
or were going on exchange themselves, are arranging a “Welcome week” (fadderuke) that
started the 19th. During this week, there were two days for general information and to
complete all necessary registrations documents (be prepared for LONG and many lines, this
country is very bureaucratic). I also had to register for the medical insurance which is free for
Norwegian and other Northern European students. I brought an insurance card from NAV,
which I in addition to all the papers from school and a proof that I actually live in Quebec,
delivered downtown at Public Health Office.
Last day of classes this fall was week 50, and the exams started right thereafter. Last
possible date for exam was 22nd of December. Before school started, and when you had to
order your plane tickets, you will probably not have too much information about your personal
exam dates. You might find this confusing, but like I experienced, the most of the exchange
students had booked their flights on the very last possible day for the exams. So even though
it turned out that you finished one week before your return ticket, you only had more days just
to enjoy beautiful Montréal and to hang around with your friends.
In Canada, they operate with both mid-term exams and final exams. After your mid-terms, you
have one week vacation. Together with 27 other students I spent my vacation on lovely Cuba,
which I strongly recommend, as the prices for going from Canada to Cuba is much cheaper
than from Europe to Cuba.
Housing
HEC provide housing in their student housing area, but only for students who spend at least
one year in Montreal. The administration provides help for students to find accommodation
through Gia Gestion, an agency that will find rooms in student apartments for you. Information
about this was given me in the package which I received from HEC in May. To get an
accommodation, you have to apply, but there are not enough apartments to serve all the
exchange students. Gia Gestion works according to the principle of “first come are first
served”. And when you apply for accommodation, you have to send CAD 700 in deposit along
with the application. Personally I found this amount too big, and I decided to try to find an
apartment on my own.
To find an apartment in Montréal is not too hard, and the students who did not have an
apartment before arriving Canada, got it in a couple of days. Either if you rent through Gia
Gestion or if you find an apartment on your own, you have to pay around the same rent- CAD
500 a month with gas, electricity and internet included. The houses provided from Gia Gestion
are mostly situated in walking distance from school, but not very centrally located for anything
else. I lived on “the plateau”, close to Mont-Royal metro station, which can be compared to
Oslo’s Grünerløkka with lots of shops, restaurants and bars- in other words a very hip
neighborhood. The travel distance from the local metro station is 10 minutes to down-town
and 25 minutes to HEC. When you apply accommodation through Gia Gestion, you will end
up living with only exchange students, which you sooner or later are going to be close to
anyway. I lived with students and graduates from the province of Quebec, and I was very
happy with that. Now I also have native Canadians as friends, friends which I doubt I had met
if I have lived in a student apartment via Gia Gestion. I also recommend living with local
students if you want to improve your French, because you normally will be speaking English
with the other exchange students.
Costs
The most important expenses are the rent described in the section above. Books are very
expensive here compared to what other things costs and despite that the books mostly are of
Canadian or American produce. The prices on books are close to Norwegian prices. To buy
books from other students are not normal. Food and drinks are in general cheaper than in
Norway, and it is much more normal to order take-away or eat in restaurants than back home.
In Quebec they have a fantastic system which allows you to bring your own alcohol to some
restaurants, which makes it less expensive to eat out. The general prices of the food in these
restaurants are at the same level as in the restaurants without this privilege. You will easily
spend a lot of money in traveling, as it is both easy to travel in North America from Montréal ,
and there are also a lot of exciting places to visit. The metro also costs money, around CAN
40 each month.
Remember that the taxes are not normally included on price tags in shops or on menus, and
will be added on the bill when you pay. This is very annoying because you never know exactly
how much you are going to pay. The tax is made up of a government tax and a local tax,
which will vary from place to place. In Quebec, the tax level is about 13%.
The International Office
There is an International Office, situated in the Decelles building. Like all the other teachers
and office staff at HEC, they are very friendly and helpful.
Exchange promotion
HEC arrange an “exchange information day” where the school provides you with a stand
where other students can come and ask you any questions they might have. BI will send you
information and brochures if wanted.
Social Activities
Like written before, the exchange starts with two introduction weeks- the big “Welcome
Week”. This welcome week consists of different activities during day times, like sightseeing,
picnic, trips to the beach (yes, they do have a beach in Montréal), a visit to Six Flags (an
amusement park) and climbing in obstacles up in threes. There are also two days of French
course (optional) and the two other orientation days as described earlier. During the nights of
the Welcome Week, there is a new party every day. The welcome week costs around NOK
1000, but the money is well spent! You get to know other exchange students very easily and
rapidly. I believe the social program in HEC is very unique compared to other schools, from
what I have learned from friends who have been exchange students other places.
Our exchange crew did not only guide us through the Welcome Week. During the semester
they arranged parties, trips both inside and outside Canada, and other activities such as
apple picking day, curling, ice skating, hockey matches etc. In the end of the semester there
is held a gala, with great food, handsome looking boys in suits and girls in lovely dresses. The
gala comprises of competitions, nominations for “best of this and that” and at last but not
least, lots of tears, because we all realize that the exchange period is about to come to an
end. Other events worth noting are:
 Café Campus (student pub with beer for CAD 2 and 80’s music)- every Tuesday
 Salon L’Oreal (happy hour at school with very cheap drinks)- every Thursday, 5 to 7
 Diable Vert (HEC’s official night club)- every Thursday
Activities like Salon L’Oreal and the Thursdays at Diable Vert made us get in contact with the
local students more easily, but the relationship between the exchange students where much
closer than with us and the other “normal” students.
The summer in Montréal was extremely warm and humid, the fall was beautiful and sunny,
and the winter cold and snowy as in Norway. In other words it was a lot of tempting outdoor
activities.
Culture and Language
Like stated before, HEC is a French school, but it is possible to take courses also in English
and Spanish. Even though I have been living in France for a year, and speak French fairly
good, I decided to take all my courses in English. I’m happy I did. The French in Quebec is
very different from the French spoken in France, and it was hard to understand from the
beginning. Most of the Quebecois luckily also speak English, so if any language problems
occur, they will not be worth mentioning. After a while though, you got used to the dialect and
were able to improve your French, But to take all the courses in French if you don’t speak it
fluently might be risky.
Canada and Montréal is just amazing, and the Canadians are nice and friendly. The culture
and the people is a mix between Europe and America and the rest of the world. While
Quebec is more European, the rest of Canada is American. Montréal is a great starting point
for exploring Canada and its culture. Toronto, Ottawa, Quebec City, Boston and New York are
all cities which are close, within one hour by plane, but too expensive to get to from Montréal.
To experience the beautiful nature which Canada offers, you are recommended to visit one or
more of the country’s national park. I unfortunately did not have time to see any.
The exchange has given me a new perspective on life in general; experienced a different
academic way of approach, the meeting of other cultures and simply to live in another
country. I have seen the endless amount of opportunities that is out in the big world. My
language skills have improved both in English and in French. To speak a third language and
to have the experiences which I have, I believe can help my future career possibilities.
III ACADEMIC INFORMATION
The Teaching situation
Most courses are taught in French, but I took all my courses in English. It is also possible to
take some courses in Spanish. Being an exchange student, you do have the possibility to
take the courses in one language and the mid-term and the final exam in another, for instance
having a course in French to improve that language, but having the exams in English.
The level of study is a bit lower than in Norway, but the workload is a lot heavier. Like many
other exchange students I took one course less than in Norway, because of the workload.
Unfortunately, the teaching is primarily theoretical with lectures. Cases and group works and
other teaching methods are also used, but this is after school and as home work. Though the
teaching is primarily theoretical and can be a bit boring, the relationships between the faculty
and the students and between the students inside the classroom are very good. The classes
are not bigger than around 40-50, so it is easy to give comments out load, one listens to each
other’s opinions, and this makes the class environment very nice.
The local students tend to be more prepared than the exchange students, probably because
they are used to more even reading than in Norway and many other countries. It might be
smart to prepare for the classes more than you are used to, to keep up with the locals and for
being listen to. In most of the courses, the class attribution counts with a little percentage of
the final grade.
Required Literature
The books are in the same language as your courses are being taught. I found the books to
keep a good level. Compared to the average prices the literature is very expensive, the prices
for the books are at the same level as in Norway.
Exams
All my exams were written, whom one of them was a take-home exam and another one was a
open-book exam. The exam is based both on the books, the lectures, cases and examples
taught in class- similar to home at BI.
Other
The library at HEC is big and really, really nice and is situated in Côte Sainte- Catherine.
There are many desks for studying, among thousands of books in French, English and
Spanish. There is a computer lab inside the library, but there are also several computer labs
situated in other parts of both the buildings of HEC.
When it comes to IT used in the teaching, it is very similar to BI. Power Point is used, and you
can choose whether you want to bring your computer to classes or not. Information, the
teachers’ notes and other documents are put on Zonecourse, similar to BI’s Blackboard. One
big problem which HEC Montréal has, is that the wireless internet is very bad and hardly
never works even though your computer tells you that you have full signal. The use of cable is
necessary, and in addition to the lack of outlet in the walls, the whole situation can be very
annoying.
Description of Courses
Major at BI: Reiselivsledelse
2-308-97 Human Resources Management
In this course we had one mid-term exam and one final exam. You had to have at least 50%
on both tests to pass the course. We also had one other, smaller test and one bigger
assignment in course. Class attribution also counted on the final grade. Course approved as
personalledelse at BI
3-438-09 Strategic Management in Organizations
This was the course I had who had the heaviest work load. During the semester we simulated
online game, Globstrat, where each group consisting of four people, had a simulated
company in a simulated market controlled and played of the others in the class. There was a
lot to do all the time, we had to take new strategic decisions every week in addition to making
a business vision, a business plan, and an oral presentation- all of the simulated company. In
addition you had to make an individual report of what you had learned working with Globstrat.
The last hand-in we had in this course was an individual assignment on how to make the best
and most strategic decisions in general. We finished with an open-book final exam. Class
attribution also counted on the final grade. Course approved as Strategi at BI.
2-438-07 Ethics and Management
No mid-term in this course, but several smaller tests, 3 assignments and one final take-home
exam. Class attribution also counted on the final grade. We had especially many discussions
and active learning in this course.
2-418-04 Small Business Management
No mid-term in this course, but we had two smaller tests and one exhibition where we
presented a smaller company of our own choice on which we also wrote an analytical
diagnosis.
For any questions, do not hesitate to contact me: sigteibek@hotmail.com
Sigrid