Exchange Report Kozminski University Warsaw, Poland Lam Ching Man (2016 Spring Sem)
Monthly activity log February I arrived Warsaw, Poland in the Mid-February. My exchange buddy, who was an ESN member, picked me up at the airport, lead me to my apartment and stayed until the lease was signed. Two days after settle down in the apartment, the orientation week for incoming exchange students started. ESN Kozminski held a school tour to help us get familiar with the new environment. They also organized a city game around Warsaw Old Town. We learned more about the History of Poland while having fun together. Another highlight during the orientation week was visiting the Warsaw Uprising Museum. It is a great museum that presents a full picture of history from the German occupation of Warsaw, the uprising, and its aftermath. The day time was educational, the night time was for chill and relax. Every night during the orientation, ESN prepared some pre-parties and club events. We could enjoy the music, partying and drinking. Classes started in late February. March After staying in Warsaw for half a month, I was getting more familiar with the living and study environment. Warsaw is a nice and quite place. I can hear the birds singing while walking in the crowded Warsaw Old Town. I met some new friends. We sometimes gather in each other s apartment and made dinner together. Or we would try out some new restaurants here and there. We went to the City Zoological Garden in Warsaw, which was nearby Kozminski University. The school workload at the beginning of the semester is not too high. Therefore, we could go travel almost every weekend. We went to Krakow, Oswiecim concentration camp and Wieliczka Salt Mine in the first weekend. Then we went to Gdansk, Poland in the second weekend. We enjoyed the wonderful scene of Baltic Sea at Sopot, Poland. In the third weekend, we went to Prague, Czech. It is the home of numerous cultural attractions and is a must visit place. In this trip, something unexpected happened. We booked the return ticket at the wrong day. So we had to stay in Prague for one more day. Fortunately, we were able to find a Hotel immediately. We went to Barcelona, Spain, and Paris, France during the Easter holiday.
Street artists were everywhere in Barcelona. Eiffel Tower and Louvre Museum were two attractions that can not be missed in Paris. April In April, we continue our plan to travel to different places. In the second weekend, we went to Berlin, Potsdam, Lübbenauer, Germany. We found some nice church, castle and a small quite little town there. In the following week, we went to Vilnius, Klaipeda, Lithuania. We spent a day riding the bicycle at Nida, Lithuania. We saw some wild animals on our way. We were so lucky that we could enjoy the wonderful sunset beside Baltic sea and starry sky in the wood.
May In the fist weekend of May, we went to Zakopane, Poland, which is the best place I have even been to. We went hiking to Morskie Oko, it took us about 3 to 4 hours to get to our destination. The scene was so stunning. We could see the clear reflection of the maintain covered by half melting snow on the water surface. Then I kept going up and I saw another pool which is covered by a layer of ice. This place was so nice and I would say it is a must visit attraction. Final examinations were held between mid-may to late June. So instead of traveling around, I spent more time on studying and preparing for final examinations, presentations, take-home examinations, etc. June After finishing all the exams, I could relax and enjoy the rest of my stay in Warsaw, Poland. I found that renting the city bike was very cheap and available almost everywhere in Warsaw. It cost nothing for the first 20 minutes and it charged 1 zloty (~2HKD) from 21 to 60 minutes. I just need to register an account at Veturilo city bikes website, then I could rent and return a bike at any location. I would have ridden a bicycle to and from school every day if I had known about how easy it works.
General Exchange Information 1) Visa Procedures Students need to apply for National Visa which allows you to stay in Poland for 91-365 days. It costs HKD600 and the processing time is 10-15 working days. Registration on Consulate website before visiting their office is needed. Please be reminded to prepare all the documents needed for visa application, including but not limited to insurance valid for the whole period of stay, confirmed air ticket, accommodation proves and acceptance letter from the host institution. 2) Orientation Activities ESN organized different orientation activities for incoming exchange students, for example, welcome breakfast, school tour, pub crawl, cultural lecture, city games around Warsaw, visiting museum, etc. ESN also invited us to join the party in various clubs or bars every night during the 5-days orientation. 3) Accommodations Kozminski University does not provide a hall for students. Exchange student would have to look for their own accommodation. Ewa, who is the Incoming Students Coordinator at the Kozminski University, sent us a lot of accommodation information through e-mail to assist us in finding a suitable accommodation. 4) Courses Registration Ewa sent the list of course available, the description of the course and the schedules of courses to us through e-mail before we start choosing the course on the Kozminski Virtual University. Exchange students can choose the course from different programs, semesters, years from the same level of study. Approval is needed for choosing courses at the different level of study. 5) Teaching & Assessment Methods Courses 1. Quantitative Methods The course is about the use of calculus for one-variable functions, integration and the application of calculus to economic models. It is a calculus course for a beginner. Assessment method: written exam 2. Corporate Strategy and Planning 3. Principles of Finance It about examines an organization and to evaluate its longterm prospects for success by an analysis of its strategy in relation to the environment in which it operates. Assessment method: written assignment and written exam Finance course for the beginner. It introduces the financial system, capital and money markets and instruments, time and money, etc. Assessment method: written assignment, two written exams. 4. Psychology This course is held as discussion seminar. Our lecturer
of Money 5. Sustainable Development 6. Quality Management 7. Project Management 8. Audit and Assurance Service encourages students to share their own perception of what money is and how it influences our everyday life. Assessment method: Written assignment, presentation, participation. The course is about understanding how to develop people, economy, and society while sustaining nature, life support, and community by discussing issues of global concern and diverse sustainability policies. Assessment method: presentation, written exam The course shows the relations between the quality level of the product and strategic targets of the company on the basis of the best American and Japanese practices in quality improvement. Assessment method: written assignment, two presentations The course is about how to plan a project, analyze a situation in a project, start a project and end a project with success. Assessment method: case study, simulation game The course focuses on demonstrating the application of international standards for risk, audit, and ethics. Assessment method: written assignment and written exam 6) Finance & Banking (including currency / expenses) Zloty and Euro are the currencies that can be used in Poland. The general price level in Poland is lower than Hong Kong. Not to mention comparing to other European countries. For example, a bottle of 1.5L milk cost only 1.89 zloty (~HKD4). HKD($) Visa 600 Air ticket 8,000 Accommodation 10,500 Transportation 500 Food and beverage 4,500 Travelling 27,000 Total 51,100 7) Health & Safety Poland is pretty safe in general. Just need to be aware of the drunk people walking around the street at night. 8) Transportation ZTM is an organizer of public transport within the territory of Warsaw, Poland. They offer a combination of tram, bus, metro transportation service. Tickets can be purchased at ticket machines. Time tickets and single-fare transfer tickets are two types of tickets that entitle passengers to travel an unlimited number of journeys for a period not exceeding 20 minutes and 75 minutes respectively.
A student may use their student card to purchase 30-days or 90-days tickets at the ticket machine. During the first journey, the ticket should be validated after boarding the vehicle. 9) Language The official language in Poland is Polish. Most of the official documents in Poland are in Polish only. Not every citizen in Poland understands English, so it would be better to learn some basic Polish. Items to Bring 1. Passport 2. ID card 3. Cash (Euro), ATM Card (activate the overseas ATM cash withdrawal function), Credit card 4. Laptop 5. Mobile phone 6. Earphone 7. Charger, Adapter 8. Calculator 9. Clothes for winter and summer 10. Medicine Useful Links and Contacts Zarząd Transportu Miejskiego (organizer of public transport within the territory of Warsaw) http://www.ztm.waw.pl/?l=2 Kozminski University web page for International Exchange Students http://www.kozminski.edu.pl/incoming/ Veturilo city bikes https://en.veturilo.waw.pl