HEC Montréal. KWOK, WING YAN BBA in Marketing and Operation Management. Montréal, Québec, Canada. Class of 2015 Fall 2014 Exchange.

Transcription

1 HEC Montréal Montréal, Québec, Canada KWOK, WING YAN BBA in Marketing and Operation Management Class of 2015 Fall 2014 Exchange Page 1 of 8

2 TABLE OF CONTENT I. Monthly Activity Log P. 3-4 September October November December II. General Exchange Information P. 5-6 Visa Procedures Orientation Activities Accommodations Teaching & Assessment Methods Courses Registration Sports & Recreation Facilities Food Social Clubs & Networking Opportunities Health & Safety Transportation Climate Communication III. Checklist of Items to Bring P. 7 IV. Contacts P. 8 Page 2 of 8

3 MONTHLY ACTIVITY LOG September Semester started in early September. Thanks to the relaxing learning environment and light workload, I got much time to explore the city. I hanged around with my roommates very often in this month. We visited the gorgeous Notre-Dame Basilica of Montréal, sampled scrumptious local dishes, and went hiking on Mont Royal. The weather was absolutely nice for outdoor activities. I also met other Hong Kong exchange students and we spent a nice day together at the Mid-Autumn Festival with Cantonese food and mooncakes. In late September, I kicked off my trips to Québec City and Toronto. Québec City is a tranquil and beautiful city graced with European colors on its culture and historical architectures. While Toronto is a vivid town with diverse immigrants, and the Niagara Falls is definitely a must on your itinerary. As the cities are small and not far away from Montréal, spending few days there at the weekends is pretty enough and relaxing. October October was packed with midterms, projects, and presentations. As I did not have midterms for all the courses, I was mostly spending time on group projects and assignments instead. This month was not too exhausting; in fact I had fun with my classmates every time we discussed academic projects and relaxed after meetings. It was nice to have a group of international buddies to work with. After the midterm period, we had a one-week midterm break to reward ourselves for working hard on our studies. I set off my long-awaited fascinating post-midterm journey in North America: Lake Louise at the Banff National Park was breathtakingly picturesque; night view of Chicago skyline was mesmerizingly beautiful; and seafood in Boston was licking-the-plate delicious! We figured out that traveling to the US is actually less expensive since cheaper flights are available and many worth-a-visit places are located close to Montréal where you can get there by simply taking a night coach. Page 3 of 8

4 November Coming back from the midterm trip, I had to pick up my studies again. The wonderful journey had just made me forgot how to speak French again in Montréal! It started to snow and Montréal was turning into a frozen village. We got ready and looked forward to a white Christmas in real soon. At the end of November, I went on a shopping spree with the girls on Black Friday. Black Friday in Canada was actually less crazy then I expected, but we still came up with some good bargains at Rue Sainte-Catherine. Before entering the final exam period in December, I joined the HEChange Gala, which was their last event in the year for exchange students to farewell each other and to summarize the semester. The experience was memorable and all of us had a good time. December In the last month, I started missing Montréal a lot. Luckily my exam schedule was not very tight and I still had time to treasure my very last bite of exotic life in the city and unforgettable friendship with other exchange students. The whole Montréal Island was covered with thick snow. Lakes were frozen and turned into skating rink. It was time to seize the valuable time to feel the ice-cold winter in this wonderland. I watched fireworks display at the Old Port, engaged in snowball fight with peers, and had international potluck party at friends houses. After the final exams, my exchange voyage was concluded with my final trip to New York City. Some may say New York City is dangerous and complicated despite its prosperous and flourishing side; however, I am truly impressed by the diversity of this city. That was the first time I had ever celebrated Christmas in an overseas country, and it ended up was an amazing trip. Page 4 of 8

5 GENERAL EXCHANGE INFORMATION Visa Procedures A study permit is not needed if the exchange period is less than six months. But if you plan to visit the US, you need to apply for a B2 Visa. You are strongly advised to do it before you set off your journey to Canada. You can still obtain the US Visa in Canada but this is not recommended. Orientation Activities HEChange is the student committee who aligns exchange students and supports throughout their stay at HEC Montréal. Before the start of semester, they hold fee-charging welcoming week filled with adventurous outdoor activities and enjoyable night parties for exchange students to get to know each other. There are also social and cultural activities, and you will meet your exchange buddies. Throughout the semester, you can also engage in their city tours to explore Quebec City, Boston, and New York City with other exchange students. Accommodations HEC Montréal has no on-campus accommodation but it partners with GetYourPlace.ca, which is operated by HEC Montréal alumni to offer exchange students with housing service. However, number of rooms available is limited and the rent is generally more expensive. You may look for alternative apartments online as there are many experienced landlords offering accommodation for exchange students. You can also find other HEC exchange students as roommates online. Teaching & Assessment Methods Business courses are offered in 3 languages: French, English & Spanish. As local students would mostly opt for courses in French, around 90% of the students you would meet in an English course are exchange students, making the class diverse and international. All course materials are available online before the very first class and lectures are well organized. Teaching and assessment methods include group projects, presentation, and class participation. Some courses also include simulation game and company visit. Courses Registration A minimum of 12 credits (4 courses) is required for the program. Lectures are held weekly on a 3-hour basis. You can schedule your timetable easily and the course registration is the same as HKUST SIS. You could also know the exam date and time when you register for the courses. It is good for planning yet you are not allowed to enroll in any two courses with time clash of exams even if the regular class schedule are perfectly fine. Apart from business courses, students may take one language course per semester. I took a French Business Communication course in which I learnt basic French vocabs and expressions which are helpful for my daily communication in Québec. Page 5 of 8

6 Sports & Recreation Facilities There is a CEPSUM sports centre near school where you could do various sports including gym, badminton, squash, and swimming. There are also many worth-a-visit museums in Montréal. You could get a free museum pass for international students and access the cultural institutions such as Planetarium, Biodome, and Museum of Archaeology and History. Food Poutine, smoked meat, and bagels are must-try traditional culinary delights in Montréal. Other delicious dishes like Vietnam PHO and Chinese food in Chinatown are also recommended. But owing to the high tax (15%) plus tips (15%) when dining out, cooking for yourselves is suggested. Social Clubs & Networking Opportunities HEC Montréal is a business school. Although there are little clubs and students societies, they have HEChange Tuesday@loup garou and Thursday 4@7 every week for students to relax and mingle with friends. Apart from school activities, MTLblog is a good tool to look for any interesting and popular events in Montréal like the Rep Your Flag Festival and street arts and entertainment events. Health & Safety It is mandatory for international students to hold medical insurance in Québec. Exchange students are required to purchase health insurance, which costs CAD371 per semester, from HEC Montréal on the registration day, covering medical and hospital expenses and prescription drugs. Montreal is a safe city where locals are amiable and helpful, and most drivers, if not all, would go after you whenever you want to cross the road. Transportation A 4-months transportation pass costing CAD180 is recommended for exchange students staying for a semester. While every single trip costs you CAD3, you could enjoy unlimited metro and bus trips with the pass. Note that there is no mobile signal in the metro. It does good to the phubbers antisocial behavior but it somehow inconvenience. Climate Winter in Montréal could be freezing cold. But as I went there in fall, I needed not experience the fierce snowstorm. During the whole exchange period, the highest temperature was 19 C in September and lowest was -13 C in December. It started from a warm summer and ended in a frosty winter. It was surprisingly not very cold even it snowed. There is heater installed in every indoor environment so it is unwise to wear too much thick clothes. Communication Montréal is a bilingual city. Montréalers know both French and English but French is more preferable for them. Nonetheless, they are nice and amiable that they don t mind switching the language for you when they notice that you don t know French. Road signs, stores, menu are mostly in French. I got confused at the beginning yet I got used to it shortly. Page 6 of 8

7 CHECKLIST OF ITEMS TO BRING NO. ITEMS TO BRING TICK 1 Passport and travel document 2 Acceptant letter 3 Cash (CAD and USD) and credit card 4 Laptop, charger and adaptor 5 Cell phone 6 Camera 7 Clothes for both hot and cold weather 8 Slip-resistant shoes 9 Medicine and skincare products 10 Backpack for travelling 11 Stationery Page 7 of 8

8 CONTACTS KWOK Wing Yan (BBA in MARK & OM- Class of 2015) For further information, please feel free to contact me through the SBM Exchange Team at Wish you a fruitful exchange journey! Page 8 of 8