Student Report
Name of the University: NEOMA Business School
Exchange semester: Fall, 2013
I. PRACTICAL INFORMATION
Before leaving Norway
We received the information from the school almost half a year in advance of school start and
before the summer vacation we also got the opportunity to register the courses online before
the other French students. The exchange office contact persons in Reims were very helpful if
there were some questions or concerns. We did not encounter any difficulties in the
information process.
Applying for a visa
We did not need a visa or any other documents to live and study in France.
Travel
We traveled with SAS from Oslo-Gardermoen to Paris- Charles De Gaulle airport in France.
There are different airplane companies flying to Paris, and we chose SAS since they offered
cheap tickets and good service, and you can take the train to Reims directly from there
without having to go in to Paris first. From Charles de Gaulle airport we traveled with the
TGV (train) to the station Champagne-Ardenne that is just outside the city of Reims. From
Champagne-Ardenne there is a small train that took us to the train station in the centre of
Reims.
Housing
The international office in Reims provides the student with accommodation in student
facilities close to the campuses. They are located 10 minutes from the city centre. There are
also some located at different locations in the city, which you can apply for.
Two of the students shared an apartment in the city center in a place called Résidence
Hôtelière de Champ de Mars. This was very close to the city centre where you can find
restaurants, bars, stores etc. It takes 15 minutes by tram to the school, but the trams are very
frequent and leave every three minutes. We had an apartment with our own bedroom and
bathroom, and shared a fully equipped kitchenette. The apartment cost 400 euros per person
per month. The receptionist is very helpful and speaks very good English. The apartment
building is located by the famous Mumm champagne cellars and there is also a huge
Carrefour market close by where you can buy food.
One of the students rented a private apartment in the city centre next to Place de l’Hôtel de
ville (the city hall). She rented it through the website www.airbnb.com. This is a well-known
website where private persons can rent private apartments from all over the world, both shortterm and long-term reservations is possible. The process is very simple and secure. The
apartment was approximately 25 m2, two rooms apartment to a monthly rent of 595 Euros.
Costs (approximately)
Rent
3720 NOK
Books
0
NOK
Food
3000
NOK
Transport 400
Other
1500
NOK
NOK
Culture and language
Both the faculty members and the students speak very well English. One may encounter
French students in the class and they are usually at the same English level as the rest of the
class. In general there are a lot of people that don’t know much English, but just knowing a
few words in French helps a lot.
The school organizes language courses in French for the students every week. They also
organizes a lot of trips to places like the Christmas market in Strasbourg, Disneyland and
Pommery champagne cellars in Reims. Since Reims is located at the heart of the champagne
region it is also easy to travel around with TGV or by car.
II. ABOUT THE SCHOOL
Reims Management School (NEOMA Business School) is located in Reims, the “Champagne
capital”, approximately 10 minutes by tram from the city centre of Reims. The school has
gained accreditation by EQUIS (European Quality Improvement System), AMBA
(Association of MBAs) and AACSB (Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of
Business) and is ranked as number 55 out of 80 top graduate business school in Europe by
Financial Times (2012). By the recently merger of Reims Management School and Rouen
Business School, NEOMA Business School has the purpose to be ranked amongst the best
business schools as well as a key corporate partner.
One of NEOMA Business School’s programs that we were a part of is the Grande Ecole
program, the ESC Program (Sup de Co). This ESC Program is rated as the top six Grandes
Ecoles in France with a specialization in management. Its focus is on training student in
practical management decision-making and responsibilities giving the students a more
practical experience to be better prepared when entering the working environment.
Course registration
The semester is divided into 4 sessions that is equivalent to 6 ECTS per session. For each
session we could choose between different courses. We could choose either 1 course (6
ECTS) or 2 courses (3 ECTS each) for one session, and these courses lasted for different
length with a maximum of three weeks. The school offers several courses in different fields of
study, but emphasizes strategy, management and international business. We also had the
opportunity to attend courses taught in French, with a minimum language score equivalent of
level B2.
The course registration is online. We received the course descriptions with information of the
registration process by e-mail in the middle of June. Then we had one week to select first and
second choice of courses in each session. The registration is based on “first come, first
served” basis, but exchange students get priority over the regular students. Two weeks after
registration we could check if our selected courses were confirmed. It was also possible to
change courses after the registration deadline. Information about changing courses and
cancellation was given during the first welcome days.
Academic calendar (date in parentheses is our dates)
Arrival date:
19 September
First day of the semester:
23 (30) September
Last day of classes:
19 (13) December
Examination period:
End of each session
Any special events/holidays:
-
Arrival
During the welcome days we first got a general presentation of the school, the city of Reims
and we got information and help regarding amongst other creating French bank account and
applying for the French housing stipend (CAF). In the evening there was a welcome dinner in
the city centre with all the other exchange students. There was also arranged a day trip to
beautiful Hautvillers, which is a village in the vineyards of Champagne, where we had games,
champagne tasting and picnic.
International Office
The International Office at school provided us with all the information we needed for our stay
through e-mail. Information about accommodation offers, registration processes, what
documents etc. to bring before arrival and information regarding the courses and grades were
given during the semester.
Social activities
Reims Management School (NEOMA) has a strong international focus and 25 % of the
students at school are international, thus there are a lot of exchange students at school from all
over the world (especially India and Germany) making it easy getting to know new people
and different cultures. The International Student Union at school is BDI, Le Bureau de
l’International, which does a great job in welcoming all the exchange students and providing
activities and events, such as trips to Disneyland Paris and coffee dates with other exchange
students and French students. BDI also offers a buddy program that is a great opportunity in
getting to know the French students at school. Another student union at school is called BDE,
Le Bureau des Elèves, and provides parties and events about two times a week. The school
has in total 35 communities ranging over several different fields of interests such as extreme
sport, sailing, theatre and humanitarian projects.
III. ACADEMICS
In the classroom
The teaching style was generally very practical and informal. We used a number of cases and
various in class exercises both individually and in groups, although group work is the most
dominating. The teaching style is informal and most teachers expect dialogues with their
students during class, but it is very relaxed. Most of our teachers used PowerPoint when
teaching. These were also made available online. For most of our courses we had classes from
9-12 and 13-16 each day except Thursday where you have the afternoon off. Our teachers
came from schools all over the world (USA, Canada, South Africa, France, etc) and most
were only at NEOMA for the week(s) they were teaching us.
We only had one subject at the time, lasting between one and two weeks and hence the
workload was, in most classes, quit intense when we had classes. However we also had a lot
more time off, and vacations then we did at BI. Overall we would say the workload is less
then at BI.
Course materials
The course materials consist of cases, articles, book chapters and PowerPoint. You do not
have to buy any of your reading materials as these are provided to you by the school and
handed to you in class. Some material is sent to you through email or the school web page,
and these are usually also provided to you in class. There were big differences between
courses, where some had close to no reading materials while others had up to three cases a
day. However, there are usually fewer readings to prepare for the next day in class, then at BI.
In addition you get 50 Euros on your student card for printing etc, which is more then you
need for one semester in our experience.
Exams
The exams were based on both the curse material and lectures, but in most classes all the
material was suppose to be covered in class and hence the exams where mainly based on the
lectures.
The courses was evaluated differently, using tests throughout the course, final written and oral
exams, presentations, written assignments and papers (usually small, home), a number of
small assignments during class (some to turn in, some were just exercises), class attendance,
class participation both individually and in groups and group work. In addition, Cross
Cultural Management had a voluntary “Cultural Night”, where all the students went for dinner
and drinks.
Library and technology
The school has two campuses, but we only had courses at one of these (Campus 1). This
campus has a library, where you can borrow books, DVDs etc, and they provide a few large
rooms for group work and a silent area for reading where there are also a number of
computers available. There are also chairs and tables places around the campus where you can
work. The library doesn’t open till 9.00 (till 22.00 Monday-Thursday, 20.00 Friday and 17.00
Saturday) and is closed Sundays. The library also provides printers, where you can print, copy
and scan using the schools computers or your student card. You also need your student card to
enter the school. The school provides access to a number of search engines.
Description of courses
All courses were very practical, enrollment was easy as exchange students were given priority
and could apply earlier then the other students (although we got the course list rather late).
We took the courses as free electives and considered all to be relatively relevant to our
studies. We mostly took the same courses, and the practical aspect and constant use of in class
participation, group work and presentations may have been the biggest difference from BI.
Course code &
name
W01E
Global Marketing
Management
Master/
Bachelor
Master
-
(3 ECTS, 1 week,
in combination with
W03E)
W03E
Market Place
Simulation
Master
-
(3ECTS, 1 week, in
combination with
W01E)
W05E Cross
Cultural
Management
Master
(6 ECTS, 2 weeks)
W33E
Entrepreneurship
Master
-
(6 ECST, 1.5
weeks)
W22E Business
-
Master
Exam form/ Evaluation
method
- Two oral group
presentations (project
35% and case 25%)
- Written individual
assignment due after the
course is over (20%)
- Individual class
participation (20%)
- Two oral group
presentations
- Group work and in class
participation
(Business Plan 40%,
Report to Board of
Directors 15%,
Simulation Performance
30% and Individual Effort
15%)
- Group participation
(25%) and individual
participation and attitude
(25%)  A number of
small assignments during
class
- Final exam (50%) (open
book, internet etc more of
a ”learning experience”)
Prerequisites
- Group case presentation
(25%)
- Individual assignment
(10%)
- Two tests (25% + 25%)
- Participation (15%)
None
Free
Elective
- Individual participation
None
Free
None
None
Approved
as
Free
Elective
-
Comments
Free
Elective
-
- A great course! Fun,
applied and interesting.
- All work is done during
class
- Good teacher
-
None
Free
Elective
-
- A lot of work and time
consuming.
- Applied and interesting
- Good teacher
-A great course! Fun,
relaxed, applied and
interesting
-All work is done during
class
- A great teacher! Highly
experiences.
- “Cross Cultural Night”
(voluntary), the teacher
takes the whole class out
to dinner and pays for the
drinks
- Fun, and interesting
- More theoretical then a
lot of the other courses
(teacher appeared to have
academic background),
but also a lot of small
cases relating it more to
“real life”
- Low work load, relaxed
Law
(3 ECST, 1 week,
in combination with
W27E)
W27E Sustainable
Development &
Ethical Strategies
(3 ECST, 1 week,
in combination with
W22E)
W21E
Fundamentals of
Environmental
Finance
(3ECST, 1 week, in
combination with
W06E)
W06E Applied
Business Forcasting
(20%)
- Final exam (80%)
Master
Master
-
Master
-
Elective
and interesting course.
- No group work
- Class participation plus
daily reflection and final
reflection (50%)
- Group Presentation plus
final Group Report (50%)
None
Free
Elective
- Very time consuming
course with a high work
load. But a very
interesting course with a
very knowledgeable and
experienced teacher.
- Assessment during
lectures (MC tests, 20%)
- Final test (40%)
- Group presentation
(25%)
- Group project (calculate
LCOE, 15%)
Requires a
basic
understanding
of financial
principles.
Free
Elective
- The course was very
different then expected,
very little focus on
finance, much focus on
green energy, Kyoto etc
- Class work and class
presentation (50%)
- Final open book case
(50%)
None
Free
Electives
- Used a program called
Statistica that was not
available for Mac and it
proved very hard to find a
solution to this.
- Strict teacher and alot of
work
OTHER EXPERIENCES FROM OUR EXCHANGE IN REIMS
All three participated in a four-week language course in Caen, Normandy, hosted by OFNEC.
The course was intense but worth it, as knowing a little French makes a large difference. All
three visited several champagne houses (Mumm, Mercier, Pommery). We really recommend
doing this. In addition we all went to Paris a few times and also visited an outlet mall near
Paris, situated next to Disneyland. This is easy to reach by the train, as it is only 45 minutes
away. However, book the tickets early or be flexible because prices differ a lot. Two of the
students visited Epernay and drove the “Route du Champagne” together with other exchange
students. We also went on a trip around France with some other exchange students, and
visited Lyon, Avignon, Monaco, Nice, Cannes, Saint-Tropez, Aix en Provence and Cassis.
This was a really nice rout, but you need a car. We also took weekend trips to Brussels and
Geneva. One of the students went to Malaysia and visited Deauville, Honfleur, Épernay and
Étoge. If it is possible, we also recommend bringing a car. A lot of the other exchange
students brought their cars. There are several car rental places in Reims.
We recommend doing some traveling while in Reims. You have the opportunity to have a lot
of time off depending on which courses you choose. We had one week off after the welcome
weekend before starting our courses. We also had three weeks off in the middle of the
semester and a couple of long weekends. Overall we had approximately 7-8 weeks of school
while we were here, and approximately a month off.
On a final note, how will you sum up the exchange experience?
It has been a fun and educational experience.