STUDENT REPORT
Name of the University: European Business School
Names of the students: Terese Bolle
Exchange semester: Fall 2007
1. ACADEMIC INFORMATION
General Information about the School
The European Business School is situated at the country side by the river Rhein. It is one of
the nicest places in Germany, and the area (Rheingau) is on the UNESCO’s world cultural
heritage list. The wine yards are right outside your door, and if you want to visit an old castle
you don’t need to go far. Even the school is an old castle. In other words the most beautiful
place I have ever visited. This also means bigger distances and not so many people. The
school is divided into two buildings around 3 kilometre away from each other. (20min walk).
But one of the buildings is only used for the introduction weeks and for language courses. The
main building (Schloss Reichartshausen) is situated right between the village Hattenheim and
Oestrich Winkel. It is about 1200 students at the school, with around 26% women and 15%
exchange students. The European Business School is one of the most reputable schools in
Germany, and one of the few schools with good master opportunities. Most of the exchange
students were taking their master here.
The Teaching situation
European Business School has about 50% of the courses thought in English. In some of the
courses you can even choose between English and German. If you do not know German
good enough, you should not choose a German course. The lecturer does not take into
consideration that you do not understand German in these courses. The level of study is very
varying. Some of the courses are rather easy, and some are very hard. One of the courses I
atended lasted two days during the weekend, with 12 hours each teaching each day. The
exam was hold two weeks later. This was one of the hard courses. (Controlling 1).In general
German students are very structured and they know how to work under time pressure. And at
this school it is for sure a lot of time pressure, so be prepared!
The semester usually starts the 3rd of September, but the exchange students often do not
have lectures until a month later or so. This means a lot of free time to explore the nice
surroundings. The teaching is primarily theoretical, but it is also a lot of practical work. The
practical work is often done in group work or case studies. The impression I got was a close
and good relationship between faculty and students. Also the relations between students
were very good. All the German students I met were very friendly and willing to help.
Required Literature
Hand outs are given in almost all the courses, and you do not need books like at BI. The
exam is based on the slides and on the lectures. It is therefore at most importance to attend
all the lectures, and make good notes. Detailed knowledge is required in some courses, and it
is therefore very important to pay attention to the lecturer as some of the literature behind is
only to be read in German.
Exams
The exams are both oral and written. Some of the courses have 50% oral exam, for instance
in shape of a group work, and 50% written exam. To my opinion the finance courses were
more difficult and required more knowledge than for instance a marketing course. The school
is world known for its knowledge/high level within finance and economy. To pass the exam
you need to know the slides and in some cases extra information from the lecture. This is very
different from course to course.
Other
There is a library at the school, but this is not very good. It mostly consists of books written of
the schools own professors. So if you need a library there should be a good one in Mainz, a
city not far away. The library at the school is open every day, and is the place to study if you
want to study in quiet surroundings. It is allowed to bring your computer and hand outs into
the library. Here are also a few computers available. The other building has got more
computers and opportunity to connect your own computer with a cable for a more consistent
internet connection. We have the campusnet, which works just like blackboard, where all
important information will be distributed.
Description of Courses
Course name:
Exam_______________
LI.0017 Introduction to management Accounting and Control
Written + Case -Difficult
LI 0037 Business Field Strategies
Written
LI.0039 New Institutional Economics on Marketing
Written
LI.0047 Retail Marketing
Written + group work (presentation)
LI.0048 Services Marketing
Written
LI.0051 Consulting
Groupwork (Presentation)- difficult,
but interesting
LI.0052 Organisational Change
Written - easy
LI.0057 Market Research
Written +group work (presentation)
LI.0185 Communications
Written
LI.0159 Vertical Brand Management
Written
LV.0058 Study skills in German – Intermediate
Written + Presentation
LII.0021Qualitative Research Methods
Written
LV.0064 Business German II
Written + group work (presentation)
2.
PRACTICAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE SCHOOL AND THE EXCHANGE
EXPERIENCE
Information before you left
I received most of the information in the end of May, beginning of June. Don’t worry if it you
have to wait for it a while, it will come.
Visa Procedure and travel experiences
I traveled with SAS, and did not have any difficulties. The school contacted me before my
travel to make sure that I got to the destination. They also arranged a pick up service for
those who needed that. I did not order a Visa in Germany. This is not necessary unless you
absolutely need to open a German bank account. Instead I chose to order a visa from ANSA
(Association of Norwegian Students Abroad), which was very favorable. (Check
www.ansa.no)
Academic Calendar
I arrived at my apartment the 19th of August. That was just one day before the introduction
weeks started. These two weeks of introduction and language course are very important to
participate as it gives you a lot of valuable information and is a good opportunity to make
contacts. The first day of the semester was the 3rd of September, and the last day of classes
was the 19th of December. Some courses have the exam after the teaching period, but most
of the exams are hold at the end of the semester, end of November/ December. During the
semester we had the Symposium which is a big happening at the European Business School.
This is a weekend where several big companies (both German and international) gather to
inform and give answers to the students. It is a bit like the “karrieredag” at BI.
Housing
The school helped me regarding the housing. It was a semester with exceptional many
exchange students, and the renting possibilities were very limited. This lead to a lot of offers
far away from the school, and the standard was very varying. I got a nice apartment, but it
was in Erbach, about 5,5 kilometers away from the main building. The landlord was very nice,
and the apartment was good, but a bit too far away. And we were only 4 exchange students in
that village. Some students even got placed in Rüdesheim. This is around 10 kilometer away
from the school. So try to get an apartment within Oestrich Winkel or Hattenheim if you don’t
have a car.
Costs
Apartments usually costs from 300 – 400€. I did not spend any money at books, since we get
hand outs in every class. And the food is cheaper than here in Norway. Rewe is the most
expensive supermarket, and retailers like Plus and Aldi are discount stores.
The International Office
There is an international office at the school. I have had contact with both Philippe Chatillon
and Nicola Kownatzky (a very nice lady!). They helped me a lot. For more information:
http://www.ebs.edu/index.php?id=415&L=1. So if you want any information at the school, they
are more than happy ho help you.
Social Activities
Again, during the first two introduction weeks it is important to make contacts. I traveled all by
my self, and was the only one from Norway at the school. But it was no problem at all making
contacts. Just make sure to participate at the social events. The German students are a bit
more difficult to make contact with, since we don’t see them the first weeks. But once you get
to know one, they are very friendly and they just love exchange students (most of them). If
you get a nice buddy, it will help you get in contact with the German students. The school has
got its own “International Students Relations Ressort” (ISR) which only consists of German
students, and they are there to arrange social gatherings and to help with “exchange
problems” you may have. I had a great time during my stay at the EBS, and I do not regret my
choice!
Culture and Language
This school is situated a few miles away from Frankfurt am Main (50 min with train), the
business city and the gateway to Europe. So if you have time for it, it is rather easy to travel
around and the distances are in many cases small. We trawled to Holland, around Germany
and to Prague. But the best way to experience the local culture is to take a walk up in the
wine yards. Here can you visit castles with own produced wine and eat local food, for instance
“Flamkuchen”.
Other experiences:
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The wine is very cheap and good! Arrange a wine tasting at one of the
wine yards. It is a unique experience.
Sometimes you don’t need to pay for the bus transportation within the area
if you show your student card from European Business School. (Depends
on the driver..)
The food which is being served in the canteen at the School is heavier than
the dinner we eat in Norway.
If you want to exercise just take a jog along the Rhein. It is just so
beautiful down there.
You WILL NEED a car if you do not get an apartment in Hattenheim or
Oestrich Winkel. It is true!
Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions!
Terese Bolle
terese.bolle@gmail.com