Photo: Sunset at Oslo Opera House. BI Norwegian Business School. Exchange Report 2015 Spring. Li Chi Ho Dennis. BSc in Economics and Finance

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1 Photo: Sunset at Oslo Opera House BI Norwegian Business School Exchange Report 2015 Spring Li Chi Ho Dennis BSc in Economics and Finance

2 Table of Content Page Part I: Activity Log 3 Part II: General Exchange Information 7 Part III: Checklist 12

3 Part I Activity Log January 2015 I arrived at Norway in 1 st January and stayed at hotel for one night, since the SiO housing did not provide room key collection service during the New Year holiday. On the second day, I travelled to Kringsja to check in my housing. One thing to know is that you may choose from the available rooms in the student village (given the room type you applied for), so I chose Block 8 where is 5- minute walk from the Kringsja metro station. In January, I participated in most of the orientation event, including bus tour and Binner (free dinner offered by BI). These are highly recommended to let you know more people in the first few days of your stay. Sightseeing was done mostly within the city of Oslo and more trips were done in the following months. February 2015 Winter is the best season for chasing the Northern light due to the short daytime. In mid-february, I travelled to Tromso for 3 days (a Northern city in Norway) with my friends. A bus tour is recommended to provide tourists a better chance of seeing the Northern light (~900NOK). Although we did see the Northern light during the bus tour, we successfully chased and captured it again near Tromso University (of course this is free of charge). I heard from my Vietnamese friend that she could not see it during her stay; thus it mainly depends on the weather and your luck. I also travelled to Copenhagen to meet my friend, which is an interesting experience to stay in my friend s dorm. In terms of career, I understood that it is difficult to look for internship while I was in Norway as some companies may not be willing to make overseas calls to interview candidates. Multinational company may be a target for those who would like to get internship during exchange. March 2015 As the course workload was not heavy in BI, there are a few assignments and no midterm test in the courses I took. It was the best travelling time before final exams in April and May. I had fun during my trip to London, Paris and Bordeaux. Thanks my HKUST friends, who had their exchange in Paris, for offering me an accommodation. It was a nice experience to visit the Disneyland in Paris, especially when having a good weather.

4 Photo: Northern light captured near Tromso University Photo: The Happy Wall in Copenhagen

5 April 2015 The academic workload was heavier since the final exam of Norwegian Culture and History would be in late April. The exam covers all required and suggested readings, including those may not be covered in the class; hence, I did my revision two weeks in advance to finish all the reading materials. In addition, it was a close-book exam so students had to memorize many critical events in the Norwegian History and make your personal comment on the exam topic. I recommend this course to students who are highly interested in Norwegian History. May 2015 I was much relaxed in May since other exams were held in late May and were in MC format. Many tourist attractions in Norway are the Fjords as well as mountains. As snow and ice started melting in late March, soon Norwegians will go hiking/cycling instead of skiing/ice-skating. Ferries near National Theatre would also start operating in spring. I went to Stavanger to visit to the Pulpit Rock, which is a 5-hour walk in total. Another attraction you should not miss is the Constitution Day on 17 th May. Norwegians will dress with their traditional clothes and the royal family will appear to meet the public. Photo: Constitution Day on 17 th May (The Royal Family is standing on the balcony behind)

6 Photo: Pulpit Rock Photo: Total Solar Eclipse Photo: Dinner with HK & Korean friends

7 Part II Exchange Information 1. Visa Procedures Visa is not required for Hong Kong residents. However exchange students need to apply for a residence permit with Norwegian Consulate 1-2 months before your departure. You may send an to norwayhk@ncchk.org.hk and get a student visa visa guide. Following the guide to prepare the necessary documents, you may then make an appointment with the Consulate through phone call. You will get the permit in a month. Upon your arrival in Oslo, you need to report to the Norwegian police office with appointment required. BI will connect with the police and assign you with a timeslot to report. 2. Orientation Activities The welcoming night is worth to join as it provides all the orientation event schedules in the first few weeks. In the first week of school, you should get your free SIM card from arrangement of BI. The free SIM card from BI is really a good deal since it provides users 2GB free of charge whenever you top up the card. 3. Accommodations BSN or SiO is available for exchange students. BSN is student village for BI students especially, where is located at a hill near BI. 15 to 20-minute walk is required to go from BSN to BI. It may be a bit inconvenient to walk up/down the slope (with the slippery ice/snow). SiO provides housing at various locations in Oslo. BI or UiO (University of Oslo) students may prefer housing in Kringsa. From Kringsja housing to BI, it takes 20 minutes to travel with metro. I stayed in Kringsja Block 8 (which is close to the metro station) during my exchange semester. There is also a supermarket Kiwi minipris near the housing, so it is very convenient. Additionally Kringsja is near the metro line 6 terminal station Sognsvann. There is a lake in Sognsvann and it is also the starting point of hiking, so you may enjoy the beautiful natural scene in Norway.

8 Photo : Ice lake in Sognsvann in winter Photo: Sognsvann lake in spring

9 4. Course Registration You can get the course registration information from BI in advance. You can take 4-5 courses (30 ECTS in maximum, 7.5 ECTS each). Please refer to the course equivalency system for your information 5. Teaching & Assessment Methods The teaching style is quite interactive and students may feel free to raise questions. Among the four courses I took, there is no midterm in my courses taken and only 1 course requiring students to submit assignment during the semester. It is quite relaxing to be a BI student. However when it comes to final exam, you may put more time in revision as you do not have midterm/assignment to keep track on your learning progress. 6. Costs/Expenses Total spending during my stay is around 90,000 HKD. HKUST students in BI prefer to have a Citibank account as you can withdraw money in Norway with Visa Plus ATM card. The account will not charge you transaction costs on withdrawal and this also applies in other European countries. 7. Food Dining out is an expensive option in Oslo. However, Mamma Pizza, TGI Friday and Jensen Bofhus are restaurants which are reasonably priced. A lunch set in TGI Friday is around 150NOK while Jensen Bofhus is around 100NOK. Middle East cuisines like kebab & pizza are quite common in Oslo. You may also look for some Norwegian cuisines in Oslo S. Apart from dining out, I suggest that cooking your meal is a better option (better reserve more money for travelling, right? ) To buy ingredients, a convenient place is supermarket. Kiwi and Rema1000 are pricing a bit lower than other supermarkets. If you would like to buy fresh ingredients, you may go to Gronland by metro. The food market there is commonly called the Asian Market, where you may buy instant noodles or even HK seasonings/sauces.

10 Photo: Mamma Pizza in Oslo S Photo: TGI Friday (Restaurant)

11 8. Transportation Transportation in Oslo is very convenient. Buying a student Ruter pass (around 400NOK) in any convenient store, you may take any public transportations in Oslo (buses, metro, trams, and ferry) 9. Climate Winter in Oslo is very cold (January to March). The temperature varies from -20 to 5 Degree Celsius, depending on when the snow melts. Even though snow does not fall in one to two weeks, the weather may suddenly change and cover the city with snow in a few hours. Part III Items to bring 1. Student Visa 2. Passport 3. Adapters 4. Thick Clothes 5. Computer 6. Gloves 7. Cooker (if you are not a master chef ) 8. Medicines 9. Some Cash If you are interested in BI Norwegian Business School, I am glad to share my experience.