Exchange report Virginia Tech

Transcription

1 Exchange report Virginia Tech First name and Surname: Sabrina Schellenberg Host University: Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech) Period of study: August December ACADEMIC INFORMATION General information about the host university Brief description of the host university Virginia Tech is a campus university with a broad academic offer in undergraduate and graduate courses in many different areas. Faculties College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, College of Science, College of Natural Resources, College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences, College of Architecture and Urban Studies, College of Engineering, Pamplin College of Business Number of students (23,500 undergraduates, 6,500 graduates) Study structure There are two semesters, fall from August to December and spring from January to May. There is also the possibility to take courses during the two Summer Terms in June August. Four years of undergraduate studies can be continued with a two year graduate program. It is also possible to enroll in a five year PhD program directly after the undergraduate studies. Teaching situation In which language are the courses taught? Any problems? The courses are taught in English and are very well understandable. Most of the professors are also used to foreign accents since there are a lot of international students (both exchange and not). How would you evaluate the level of study in relationship to the level at USI? Certain classes are very similar to the teaching style at USI, in others there is more of a seminar/discussion approach. Type of teaching: practical or theoretical? Both. There is a lot of theoretical background, but practical applications of the theories are encouraged through case studies, assignments and research projects. Methods of teaching. Both ex cathedra and discussion. Generally, the students are very involved and their participation is required for the discussions to take place, since in many classes they play a relevant role. How is the workload compared to that at USI? The workload during the semester is very high. In most of the classes, a part from reading students are required to write short (one to two pages) papers most of the weeks, to do assignments or cases and sometimes to prepare presentations. Since a large part of the grade is acquired through these frequent homework assignments as well as through mid-term exams (which take place in almost all classes), in some classes there is no final exam and it generally does not count a lot for the final grade. To sum up, during the semester the workload is higher than at USI, for the finals it is lower. What is the relationship between faculty, professors, and students? The relationship is very open and in some cases almost casual. Professors normally answer e- mails really quickly and students can meet them during their office hours if they need assistance or have any kind of questions. Generally professors are closer to students than at USI. Course description Communication Theory COMM 5014 A broad survey of contemporary theories and processes of interpersonal, public, and mediated human communication.

2 Co-requisite: Communication Research Methods COMM 5024, this means that these two courses have to be taken together. Midterm exam (final exam was cancelled) Weekly (two page) reaction paper about the reading material, one page of summary and one of reflection about the summarized text. Literature review paper (15 pages with line spacing 2) about one of the topics of the course Communication Research Methods COMM 5024 Advanced treatment of a variety of research related issues germane to the discipline of communication studies. Topics include the scientific method; elements of the research process; experimental, quasi-experimental, and non-experimental research designs; and legal and ethical issues in research. Co-requisite: Communication Theory COMM 5014, this means that these two courses have to be taken together. Midterm exam (final exam was cancelled) Two individual article presentations and written evaluations of these articles Group research project with hand-in of research proposal and final paper Product Strategy MKTG 5254 Strategic product planning and new product development within the context of marketing. Topics include the role of the product manager, strategic marketing planning, product/market identification, new product development, and diffusion of innovations. Strategic Marketing at USI (or any kind of marketing course) Midterm and final exam, both take-home Group presentation of reading material Group elaboration and presentation of a marketing plan Weekly short (half to one page) memos Extra credit for class participation Managerial Statistics BIT 5724 Introduction to basic statistical (inference) tools necessary in managerial decision-making. Topics include, but are not limited to, descriptive statistics, elementary probability theory, sampling and sampling distributions, portfolio management, hypothesis testing, regression analysis, quality improvement, and Six Sigma concepts and methodology. Graduate standing Two midterm and one final exam Frequent homework assignments Three cases with write-up of a short report

3 Comments: Relevance, Coherence with the USI study programme, Difficult/easy, is it possible to attend courses offered by another faculty?, would you recommend it? The course which best fits into the USI study program is Communication Research Methods. This course offers many useful insights about research and research writing, not only from a theoretical but also from a very practical point of view. The course Communication Theory is a co-requisite of Communication Research Methods, which means that the two courses have to be taken together. Probably it would be possible to avoid this restriction if one mentions that this course is not required by USI. Indeed, this course covers many theoretical aspects of communication which are more general than what the USI Master courses are. The course Product Strategy fits into the USI study program, especially for the program in marketing. Indeed, while there is a specific focus on the product part of the marketing strategy, the course also offers an interesting overview of all other relevant aspects in this area. Managerial Statistics fits into the USI study program, though the focus is different than that of Data Analysis. As the name says, Managerial Statistics gives a lot of weight to statistics. This course also uses software for statistical analyses, but the software used is JMP, not SPSS. Virginia Tech students (and also exchange students) can download JMP for free, while SPSS is for sale for around $45. Generally Virginia Tech offers great software deals to students, from which also exchange students can benefit entirely. Packages such as the Microsoft Office Professional are for sale at really convenient prices. It is easily possible to choose courses from different faculties, the only thing which is recommended is to apply for the courses as early as possible (even if this means to get up at 6 AM, when enrolment opens), as places are limited. Other Brief description of the library The library of Virginia Tech has a wide selection of books for all the fields of study. It has long opening hours (up until midnight) and there are places where students can study. Graduate students can borrow up to 100 books at a time and the lending period is normally three months. The best thing is that as a student of Virginia Tech, either on campus or off campus, if logged on to the Virginia Tech VPN, one has access to a large number of databases for scientific articles. In particular, as one researches on Google Scholar, next to the result Get VText appears. Clicking on this icon there is a direct link which shows where and how (digital/print, article/journal, etc.) the research result is available. This is a great opportunity to research scientific articles and very helpful since this system saves a lot of time! Brief description of other facilities: canteen, PC rooms, There is a large choice of different canteens, so-called dining halls. Basically there are two different types, one where payment is per item and the other where a certain fee is paid and food is all-you-can-eat. There is something for everybody and everything from healthy salads, to typical American hamburgers and French fries to delicious deserts enjoy! Students have access to different PC rooms in different buildings, in some there are PCs, in others Apple computers. Particularly interesting is the Math Emporium, open 24/7 where there are 537 large screen Macs in one huge room and students can get assistance for certain basic math courses as well as for computer problems. Unfortunately, students do not have the possibility to print for free anywhere, black and white copies are $0.10 at the library, but since printing is often required many students buy their own printers. It might be useful to consider Craigslist ( an Internet platform where people sell and buy almost everything. 2. PRACTICAL INFORMATION Information before to leave Why did you choose this university? I wanted to experience something new and see another university in another country. I chose Virginia Tech because I was looking for something completely different (which I found). It was also a great opportunity to improve my English and one advantage of Virginia Tech was that no TOEFL is required if one studies in a Master program which is taught in English. This was one administrative hassle less which was certainly an advantage. How did you collect the information concerning the host university?

4 First through the USI Education Abroad Office website, through former experience reports and the fact sheet and afterwards also directly on the Virginia Tech website. Which are the relevant application forms? Time requirements? The forms for USI have to be handed in for March, 1 (for the fall semester). Afterwards until the deadline which will be communicated by the USI Education Abroad Office, the forms from Virginia Tech have to be filled in. There are forms for personal data and course request forms, where one has to fill in the courses he wants to take at Virginia Tech. After a long waiting period, students receive other forms from Virginia Tech and have to choose their courses again and finally the courses have to be chosen online. Hereby, as already mentioned, it is important to go online right at the time when the online enrolment opens as this is the best possibility to get a free seat in a class. If the classes are already full, once arrived at Virginia Tech it is normally still possible to enroll in a class, but a form has to be handed in and it just makes it unnecessarily more complicated. Travel Means of transport Airplane, in my case from Zurich to Atlanta and from Atlanta to Roanoke. From Roanoke there is the Smart Way Bus which runs to the Virginia Tech Campus in about an hour. The Smart Way Bus runs Monday through Saturday until around 7 PM. This fall semester on the Sunday a week before classes started, there was a shuttle from Roanoke Airport to Virginia Tech, organized by the Cranwell International Center, so if one arrived on that day he could inform the Cranwell Center that he wanted to take their shuttle. Elsewise there is also a taxi running from the Airport to any place in Blacksburg and on campus for $66 and the ride can be shared which reduces the cost as they are equally split by all passengers. Other relevant information Booking ahead might reduce costs, also some cheap flights can be found if the flight has more stops. Arrival How was the reception at the university? Introductory activities? When I arrived on Sunday a week before classes started I could immediately pick up the key for my room, so I did not have to go to temporary housing as some of my friends who arrived earlier had to. During the whole first week there are a lot of introductory activities, most of them organized by the Cranwell International Center, such as general information for international students, information for graduate students, trips to Walmart. This makes it all a really nice reception and gives the opportunity to meet a lot of people from the first moment on. There are also a lot of free food activities during the first weeks. First day? The first thing an international graduate student has to do is to sign in at the Graduate Life Center, where all visa documents have to be brought. Thereafter at the Cranwell International Center all relevant information is provided and many other administrative things have to be done, such as getting a Hokie Passport, hand in documents for insurance and check if there are any further vaccinations which have to be taken. However, the people at the Cranwell International Center are really friendly and provide a program booklet which contains relevant information for all the administrative tasks as well as regarding a variety of leisure activities. When is it advisable to arrive? Personally, I can really recommend to arrive on Sunday one week before the classes start. On the one hand this allows to move directly into one s dorm room without having to stay at the temporary housing, on the other hand it is right on time to be able to participate in all the introductory activities, to meet a lot of people, to deal with the jetlag and to make yourself feel at home before the classes start. Housing How did you find it? I applied for housing in a dorm when I applied for my semester at Virginia Tech and was lucky enough to get a room which might not always be the case. However, it is also possible to find a room in one of the many off campus apartments in Blacksburg. Where did you live? Bad/good points. I lived in the Main Campbell dorm, right on the Drillfield and enjoyed a beautiful view on the Burruss Hall every day. The best point is that I met a lot of people from the beginning on and I never felt alone because of the great company. Main Campbell has a kitchen, two study lounges, a ping-pong and a pool table as well as two tv sets, one even with game consoles and there is

5 also a piano, so a lot of fun is guaranteed. The location is also great, close to the dining halls as well as to the buildings where classes take place. A minor disadvantage is that the Main Campbell dorm is part of the 10% of the Virginia Tech Campus which are not covered by wireless Internet. Any special issues? Since most of the people in the third floor of Main Campbell (where I lived) were other exchange students, I did not connect that much with American people and I felt I did not get into contact with the culture that much. Also, as one lives on campus, almost all the live takes place in a rather small area. If one wants to get more in touch with the American way of life, it might be recommendable to live off campus. On campus is certainly very comfortable, since all the furniture is already provided and everything is nearby. Costs of the most important expenses. Housing and Dining contract: ca. $4,125 Additional dining expenses: $ 350 Flight: CHF 1,095 Other living and travelling costs (depending on personal expenses). Generally life is much cheaper in the United States than in Switzerland. International relations office How does it work? The Cranwell International Center works very well and exchange students should go there immediately on the first day. The people working at Cranwell as well as the volunteers are really kind and helpful. Though the Cranwell is the most important contact point for exchange students, it is the Education Abroad Office which can be compared to USI s International Relations and Study-abroad Office. Here students have to register during the first week and have to hand in a form at the end so that the transcript of the grades will be sent back to the home university. Otherwise there is no contact with the Study Abroad Office during the stay. Who is responsible for incoming students? Mostly the Cranwell International Center with its staff and volunteers. Good/bad points Very nice reception once arrived, from both the Cranwell International Center and the Study Abroad Office. A lot of administrative hassles before departure. Social activities Relationship with other students. There are a lot of opportunities to meet other students, especially through one of the many student associations at Virginia Tech, in any kind of sport activities or in the dorm as well as also in class. Relationship with other exchange students. During the first week there are a lot of introductory activities for exchange and international students which is a great opportunities to meet other students from the beginning on and which allows to share nice experiences since the first moments at Virginia Tech. Are there any special activities for exchange students? There are a lot of introductory activities during the first week and there are some special activities for exchange students throughout the semester, as for example a field trip to the beautiful nature nearby or international dinners. Also, if one stays on campus during Thanksgiving, for international students there is a possibility to sign up for a dinner with a local family which is a great experience and allows to celebrate this traditional American feast in a very nice and welcoming atmosphere. Language Which are the languages spoken? English. Any problems? Sometimes it is difficult to understand people with southern accent and sometimes people (especially in restaurants) do not understand different accents. But these are really only minor issues and will disappear after a while. Did you need proof of good language skill?

6 No, since my Master program is in English I did not need any proof of my language skills. Otherwise a TOEFL is required. Other Would you recommend this experience: yes / no, why? I would absolutely recommend this experience, it was a great and very enriching time. Comments I m at disposal of other students, so that they can contact me for more information: yes, sabrina.schellenberg@usi.ch X no