GUIDELINES FOR WRITING THE STUDENT REPORT
Please write this report in English
Name of the University: Instituto Tecnologico de Monterrey – ITESM
Names of the students: Ane Haugen, Cecilie Landberg, André Evju, Maarten Fagerholm,
Peter Skjønberg, Petter Hoxmark og Tina Aarholt Nilsen
Exchange semester: Spring, 2009
I GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL
The Campus:
The campus is very big compared to BI. It is a large area with several buildings. The campus
is really beautiful with lots of vegetation and animals like deer and peacocks walking around.
There also is a gym and a Starbucks amongst other things.
The teaching situation:
The classes were small with approximately 25-35 students. The teachers knew English, but
some of them were worse than others, but there was usually no problem understanding them.
The Mexican students were very good in English, and seeing as the classes are small you are
likely to make a lot of friends.
The academic level is a bit lower than at BI, but there is a lot more to do. We got homework to
almost every class; this homework could be group work, assignments or problem solving.
Even though this might seem like a lot, it didn’t take too much time because the tasks were
relatively simple.
At ITESM they take attendance, you can only miss so many classes before you fail, so you
had to make sure that you don’t have too many. The teachers had very different ways of
doing things, so you have to adapt to different teaching styles.
Number of students:
About 20,000 students attend to ITESM, and out of them approximately over 500 were
exchangestudents.
Study structure:
Each class has three partial exams and one final exam. The written exams usually last 1,5
hours, these can be open questions or multiple choice. The exams can also be presentations,
group work and essays. Homework and verbal activity do also count in some classes.
II PRACTICAL INFORMATION
Information before you left
We got brochures and information about the school sometime during fall. We had to take a
test online so ITESM would know how good we were in Spanish. We also had to register our
classes online before we left.
Visa Procedure and travel experiences
 What problems, if any did you encounter?
No problems with travelling. We had some problems with the visa process. We did it
through the lawyer’s office recommended by the school. They were very slow and failed
to give correct information. We all did it with the lawyers so we don’t know how it is to do
it yourself.
 Does the visa cost anything?
The Visa costs ca. 1000 kroner and the fee for the lawyers is ca. 1000 kroner as well.
 How did you order your ticket – any problems?
We did it in different ways. Some of us booked through Kilroy while others booked online
using finn.no.
Academic Calendar
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Arrival date – introductory week
The arrival date and introduction week
First day of the semester?
One week after arrival day.
Last day of classes?
The beginning of May
Examination period?
During the year there are several exams but the finals are from 01.05 - 15.05
Any special events?
Nothing special
Reception
 How was the reception at the school?
Well organized and professional with a cultural show and all necessary information at
arrival day.
 Was the administration and faculty well prepared for your arrival?
Yes, but some of the speeches and presentations were in really poor English or only in
Spanish.
 Did the school’s students participate in the reception of the exchange students?
To some degree with dancing and information.
Housing
 Did you have housing at your disposal or did you have to find your own housing?
If you want, you can live in residence halls on the campus. But the rule’s here are really
strict. So 3 of my other friends found an apartment for us the day after they arrived. The
apartment was really nice, and we only payed 15000 pesos (7500 NOK) a month.
 What support did you receive from the school in locating housing?
The international office helps you to find a place to stay if you want. In the beginning of
the semester the office is full of announcements regarding available rooms. Also there
are signs about rental all around the school
 Any special issues or good ideas for prospective students?
I would recommend the prospective students to find their own apartment. The rules on
the residencies are very strict. There are not many international students living there, it’s
more Mexican students who lives there because of their parents would like to “have
control” over their children.
Costs
 Describe the most important expenses such as rent, books, food, etc.
Mexico is really cheap compared to Norway. The most important expenses I had was the
rent and traveling. And the schoolbooks was a bit expensive compared to other things in
Mexico. But compared to Norway it was cheap. Food, alcohol, cabs, clothes and etc is
really cheap.
The International Office
 Is there an international office?
Yes, there is one in the 8th floor in the CEDES building. The only problem here was that
not everyone that worked here speaked English.
 Who is responsible for incoming exchange students?
 The international office program, with Marcelo Bravo in the front is responsible for the
incoming students. You could reach him the most of the time if there was something. We
also got his cell number in case of emergency.
 How does the international office function?
 The people working here is very helpful. They can help you with all questions, doubts and
queries you might have. This can be everything from housing, robberies, trips or
translating of Spanish papers in to English.
 Do you receive all relevant information?
Yes, we did. They kept us updated on things by email. For instance, during the Svine flue
period we got emails daily where they kept us informed about the situation.
Exchange promotion

What kind of activity did you take part in to promote exchange to Norway at your
exchange university?
Nothing organized, but by word of mouth in get-togethers and at school with our
classmates.
Social Activities
 How is your relationship with other students?
We got a very good relationship with both other international students, each other and
Mexicans. Everyone were easy to get in touch with and open-minded.
 How is the relationship among the exchange students?
Very good! We became one large group and spent both holidays and spare time together.
 Is there a student organization, and if so, are the exchange students part of it?
There are student organizations but we didn’t notice them or got information about them.
 Are there any special activities and gatherings for exchange students?
Yes. The school is arranging different trips and excursions for the exchange students.
 How do you like it at the school?
Very good. The campus is beautiful and it was a nice place to be to study or meet with
friends.
Culture and Language
 Do you have any language problems with the faculty or other students?
No the faculty and the student’s spoke well English.
 How are the possibilities to experience the country and the culture?
There are many opportunities both with the school and by yourselves.
Cultural and Social Effects from the Exchange Experience
 How do you think the exchange experience will affect you from a cultural and social point
of view?
Experiencing other cultures and getting to know people from other countries and cultures
are invaluable experiences that you most likely won't learn at any university, and it will
also help you to expand your horizon and build networks around the world.
 How do you think the exchange experience influences your future career possibilities?
As business is continuing to be more and more global, getting foreign experience and
building worldwide networks of colleagues and friends, will most likely make you more
attractive to businesses that wants to expand globaly and to businesses that have foreign
partnerships.
III ACADEMIC INFORMATION
The Teaching situation
 In which language are the courses taught? Any problems?
The courses that we took were taught in English, and most of the teachers spoke fluently.
Some misunderstandings could occur, but nothing major.
 How would you evaluate the level of study in relationship to the level at BI?
The level of study at ITESM is very good, but BI might be a little bit better. It's a little bit
hard to compare since the courses are taught very differently.
 Is the teaching primarily practical or theoretical?
Pretty evenly divided.
 Are the professors using cases, group work or lectures (or a mix)?
The professors are using a mix of cases, presentations, tests, group work and lectures.
Also, most of the courses have several partial exams (usually 2 or 3) during the semester.
 How is the workload compared to that at BI?
The workload is about the same as in BI. As most courses at BI just consist of one final
exam, most of the workload is a the end of the semester in the exam-period, plus
individual study for class. Since ITESM has homework, presentations and partial exams,
the work is more spread out over the entire semester. But in the end, the workload is
about the same.

How is the relationship between faculty and students?

The relationship between the faculty and the students is very good, and the faculty is
more than happy to help you out if you have any questions ore problems.
What is the relationship between the students in the classroom?
The relationship between the students was very good both in the classroom and
elsewhere. Most classes taught in English is divided pretty much 50/50 between
international and Mexican students, so it is easy to get to know people fast.
Required Literature
 Is the literature in English?
Yes
 How do you estimate the level of the literature?
Good
 Is the literature used for detailed knowledge or a broad overview?
A mix of both. Mostly it was used for a broad overview of the course, but some aspects of
the literature was examined closely.
 Is exam based on the literature or on the lectures?
Mostly on the literature, and if it was based on something else that was taught during a
lecture, the teacher would let us know beforehand, so that the students could take notes
and pay close attention.
Exams
 What types of exams were you given?
Most of the courses had partial exams (usually 2 or 3) and a final exam and/or a final
project.
 What knowledge level was required to pass the exams?
The knowledge level for the exams and the course is 70%. This might seem like a very
high knowledge level to some, as we also thought when we got the information, but it
really isn't that high.
Other
 Do students have easy access to the library and it’s resources?
The students have access to a big library on campus and to all it's resources.
 How is the access to the computers?
The entire campus has wireless connection, and there is also a lot of computers that the
students have access to.
 How is IT used in the teaching or as a distributor of information?
Most of the teachers uses blackboard and/or communicates through e-mail. The faculty
also sends out a lot of information on e-mail.
Description of Courses
Please list all the courses you are taking in the form below:
 Name and code of the course
 Prerequisites, if any
 Exam form
 Comments: Relevance, Difficult/easy, Practical/theoretical, Enrolment problems
Example:
Course name:
Prereq.
Exam
Major at BI
Approved as
(Common/elective/extra)
1234 finance
None
Written
Finance Elective
…………………………………………………………………………………………..
Please fill in all the courses you have taken
CD00-881.5 - Logística empresarial – Logistikk at BI
MT-2009.4 - Mercadotecnia entre negocios – Markedsføring på bedriftsmarkedet at BI
MT-2008.1 - Mercadotecnia de servicios - Tjenestemarkedsføring og kundelojalitet
at BI
HI-1007.1 - Español lengua extranjera l A - Intercultural Communication i spansk
muntlig at BI
CF-1003.4
- Contabilidad administrativa - Operativ økonomistyring at BI
MT-2007.2 - Investigación de mercados cualitativa - Metode og dataanalyse at BI
HI-1003.1 - Destrezas comunicativas l - Intercultural communication in english muntlig at
BI
IN00-875.1 - Administración de proyectos - Logistikk at BI
NI00-882.2 - Análisis de la competitividad internacional - Anvendt mikroøkonomi at BI
NI-3017.1 4 - Negocios internacionales y recursos humanos - Organisasjonsatferd,
ledelse og HRM at BI
HI-2013.1 4 - Destrezas comunicativas ll - Intercultural communication at BI
FZ00-881.5 4 Finanzas internacionales – Finans 1 at BI
Any other experiences:
We highly recommend BI – students to go on a exchange semester to ITESM. The school is
great and it has a beautiful campus. Monterrey is also a very modern and vibrant city with lots
to do, both during the daytime and during the night. It is also very easy and cheap to travel
around Mexico, and the US is just a few hours away. The social-life at ITESM is also
fantastic, and you will get to know both Mexican and other international students right away,
as people are extremely friendly and outgoing. You are more than welcome to contact us if
you need any help or advice regarding your stay in Monterrey.
Names and e-mails:
The International Relations Office will appreciate if you will inform about your e-mail
addresses, so that other students can contact you for more information.
Peter Skjønberg – peterskjoenberg@gmail.com
Ane Beate Haugen – haugen_ane@hotmail.com
Petter Hoxmark – hoxmark@gmail.com
Maarten Fagerholm - maafagerholm@gmail.com
Cecilie Landberg
Andrè Evju
Tina Aarholt Nilsen