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EXCHANGEREPORT–SPRING2018UNIVERSITYOFINNSBRUCK,AUSTRIASCHOOLOFMANAGEMENT

POHEICHANBBAinInformationSystemsandManagementYear3

TABLEOFCONTENTS

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PARTI:MonthlyActivityLog 1

PARTII:GeneralExchangeInformation

1. VisaProcedures

2. OrientationActivities

3. InternationalServices&Activities

4. Accommodations

5. CoursesRegistration

6. Teaching&AssessmentMethods

7. Sports&RecreationFacilities

8. Finance&Banking(includingcurrency/expenses)

9. SocialClubs&NetworkingOpportunities

10. Health&Safety

11. Food

12. Transportation

13. Climate

14. Communication

15. Cautionarymeasures

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PARTIII:ItemstoBring 12

PARTIV:UsefulLinksandContacts 13

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PARTI:MonthlyActivityLog

March

Myexchangejourneystartedon26thFebruary,2018. Itwas stillwinter and snowing even inlateMarch. IgottomeettheotherexchangestudentsoftheschoolofManagement(Sowi)andtheAustriansweresoniceandkindthoughtheydidn’tspeakfluentEnglish!

Thefirstweekwasallabouttheadministrativeworkandschoolstartedon5thMarch.Duringtheweekends,IwenttotheEastermarket,thehighest Zoo in Europe, and also skied for thefirsttimeinmylifewiththefriendsImetthere!

Therewerealsoafewwelcomingactivitiesforustogetalongwithother students includingcitychallenge,JointStudyProgramgatheringandofcourse some parties. I met a lot of gorgeouspeopletheresomakesureyougoaswellJ!

At the end of March, I had a two-and-a-half-weekofEasterholidayso Iplannedtogoonalong trip! I went to Paris, Geneva, Zermatt,Venice and Rome where I was amazed byeverything!Planaheadandmakesureyouwon’twastethelongestholidayhereinInnsbruck!

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April

Since I had my first midterm (they called itexam but it was like a midterm with 35MC questions) and a final exam in May (itwasablockedcourseandIwillexplainitlater)in the second week of April, I resumed tomy study after my 10-day trip. Besides, itwasthetimethatweshouldstartworkingonourprojects, therefore I basically studiedand worked during April but as I had threeschool days per week only, I made aweekend trip to Berlinwithmyfriend!Don’tforgettoplaywhileyouworkJOthertimes,I went on a hiking to the Lansersee, visitedthe Zoo, joint some partiesandsitalongtheriverandchill!

May

It was another month of study as I had threeprojects towork on.Though Ididn't go tovisitsome other places, I enjoyed the time here inInnsbruck. By going to the famous lake –Baggersee,hiking,cookingwithmyfriends,andmerelywalking through the streets in the city,youcouldrealisehowtimecouldbesoslowandhowrelaxingitistochillinthenatureforawholeday!

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JuneAllIdidwasbasicallytravelingsinceIonlyhadthree schooldays in June. Iwent to London,Vienna, Munich, Vaduz and Salzburgrespectively. These are all great cities thatshouldbeineveryone’smust-golist.However,Ididn'tforgettotravelwithinInnsbrucksincemyparentscametovisitmeduringthesecondweek of June. I brought themaround to theAmbras Castle, Nordkette, the SwarovskiCrystal World, and a lot other must-dos inInnsbruck.Whatworthnotingisthatthereisalsoalakejust outside Innsbruck called the Archensee,make sure you visit it and it will neverdisappointyou!

JulyIwent toCopenhagenandAmsterdamduringthereadingweek(1stweekofJuly)beforethefinalexamweek(2ndweekofJuly).Copenhagenis one of my most favourite cities and theScandinavians are not as cool and detachedtowards people as they are generally known.Likewise,AmsterdamissuchaninterestingcitythatIsawlotsofthingsthatIhavenevereverseenbefore(youknowwhatImean)!Myexamstookplaceonthefirsttwodaysoftheexamweekandformycourses,all it requiredwasagoodmemorizationofthecontenttheytaught during the lectures and seminars, sotimewasneededbutitwasn’tdifficultatallJI enjoyed the last fewdays in Innsbruckand IfliedtoLondonandwentbacktoHongKongattheendofJuly.

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PARTII:GeneralExchangeInformation

1. VisaProcedures

IfyouarestayinginAustriamorethan90dayswithin180days,youwillhavetoapplyforthe

residencevisaD. You couldgoogleall the things youneedon theirwebsite including the

applicationform,documentsforapplicationandotherinformationsuchastheopeninghours.

Youshouldmakeacopyforallyourdocumentsyoubringthere,includingyourIDphoto(so

bringtwophotos).Pleasenotethatthereisnoapplicationfeesinceyouaregoingtobean

exchangestudent,andyouwillneedtomakeanappointmentbeforeyougototheembassy

as theyhavenewly introduced the appointment system in this February. If youhave any

furtherquestions,donothesitatetoemailthemandask.

Foryourreference,thedocumentsyouwillneedtobringareasfollow:

1. Applicationformmustbedulycompleted,signedandsubmittedinperson

2. Passport-photonotolderthan6months(criteriakindlysee:www.passbildkriterien.at)

3. Validpassport(validforatleast6monthsafteryourreturntoHongKong/Macau)

4. HongKong/Macau(Permanent)ID-Card

5. HongKong/MacauStudentsID-Card

6. Birth-Certificate(inoriginal;ifissuedfromanauthorityoutsideHongKongorMacau

pleaseletthebirthcertificatebelegalizedbytheauthoritiesoftheissuingcountry)

7. Proofofsufficientfinancialmeansofyoursponsor/parents(f.e.:recentbank

statement;statementofregularsalarybytheemployer;workingcontract)

8. Proofofanexistingscholarshipprogram(ifany)

9. SupportingletterfromyouruniversityinHongKong/Macau

10. LetterofAcceptancefromtheAustrianUniversity/theAustrianStudentsExchange

Program

11. ProofofproperaccommodationduringyourtimeinAustria(f.e.rentalcontract)

12. Flightticket(round-trip,thedestinationcomingbacktoHongKongcanbeoutside

Austria)

13. Travel/medicalinsurance(minimumcoverageisEURO30.000,--;validityfortheentire

Schengenareaandtheentiredurationofyourstay)

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14. Parentalconsent(incaseyouarelessthan18yearsold,bothparentsorlegalguardians

havetogivetheirwrittenconsent)

15. Furtherdocumentsmayberequesteddependingontheindividualcase

Please,submityourapplicationatleastTHREEweekspriortoyourdeparture.Andpleasegoto

theirwebsiteforthemostupdatedandaccurateinformation!

2. OrientationActivities

Therearesomeofficialorientationdaysincludingtheregistrationday,theuniguidancetour,

computer lab registration (whereyouregister foryourcourses), joint studywelcomeday.

Makesureyouattendallthesectionsasitiscompulsoryandthatisthechanceforyouto

meetotherexchangestudents!Checkthedatebeforebookingyourflightticketsasitshould

beapproximatelyoneweekbeforetheschoolstarts.

3. InternationalServices&Activities

IfyouaregoingtoInnsbruckalone,don’tpanicJThereisagroupwhoorganiseseventsfor

exchangestudentscalledESN.Ifyouwouldliketoknowmorepeopleoutsidetheclassroom,

makesureyouapplyforitandjoinsomeoftheiractivitiesandparties!EventsincludingCity

Challenge, Pub Crawl, Welcome Party, International Dinner and Farwell Party are the

opportunitiesforyoutoexperiencethecityandyouwillfindalotofamazingpeoplethere!!

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4. Accommodations

Ilivedinthepartydorm–RösslinderAubyHome4Students.Iwouldregarditasthebest

accommodationintermsoflocation,facilities,livingcondition,thoughitisthesecondmost

expensivedorminInnsbruck(EUR399,-/month).Itisjust5minutes’walktotheMainCampus,

15minutes’walktothecitycentreaswellasthebusinessschool(Sowi).Besides,it’swell-

furnishedandthereissmallsupermarketrightdownstairs!Thereisalsoalaundryroombut

youwillhavetopayEUR1everytimeyouusethewashingmachinesandthetumbledryers.

Thereisareasonwhyitiscalleda‘partydorm’,andapparently,thereispartynearlyevery

Wednesday toSunday, sometimesMondayandTuesdayaswell. I personally think that it

mightbeabitnoisybutIcanstillworkandsleepinmyroomatnightefficiently.However,

theworst thingabout theparties is that thekitchenwillbehorriblydirtyeveryweekend,

thoughthecleaningladywillcleanitafterthat.Hence,ifyouareapersonthatdoesn’tneed

averyquietenvironmenttoworkandsleep,andifyoudon’tmindthekitchenmightbeabit

dirty,thiswilldefinitelybeyourbestchoiceJ

Onethingtomentionisthat,youmightrealisethatthereisan‘official’websiteforyouto

applyyouraccommodationinInnsbruckcalled‘OeAD’. It isawebsitethatyoucanchoose

fromallthedormitoriesthereareandtheyprovidepicturesandpricesforyoutojustifywhich

is thebestplace for you to live.However, onedrawbackof this organisation is that they

requirealotofadditionalchargesincludingtheEUR35administrationfeeyou’repayingonce

youapplythroughthem,EUR60bookingfee,EUR40transactionfeeandalsoEUR30cleaning

feefromyourEUR950depositaftercheckingoutyourdorm.Ifyouwanttoavoidthosefees

oratleastpayless,youmightwanttoapplydirectlytothedorm(i.e.Home4Studentsformy

dorm).I’mnotsureaboutthefeesoftheotherdorms,socheckitoutonOeAD.

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5. CoursesRegistration

The system is quite complicated but Christoph, your coordinator will guide you through

everything.Sorestassureandmakesureyoudoeverythingbeforethedeadlinesandattend

thesessionstheyhaveONTIME!Austriansaresostraightonthat.Longstoryshort,whatyou

candoinadvanceisfirst,tolookuponHKUST’scoursedatabaseandseewhichcoursesyou

canregisterforcredittransfer.Then,theuniversitywillreleasethetimeslotsofthecourses

theyprovideinthecomingsemesteronetotwomonthsbeforethebeginningofsemester

andhence,youcouldmanageyourcoursecombinationtoavoid‘disapproved’timeclashes.

YoucanonlyapplyforyourcoursesonceyouarriveInnsbruckonthedaywhenyouhaveyour

ComputerLabRegistration.

What’ssointerestinghereisthattheyactuallyallowsome‘timeclashes’betweencourses.

Thecoursesareconstructedbytwoparts–thelecturepart(VO),andthepro-seminarpart

(PS).Thelecturepartisnotmandatory(inmostofthecases),whilethepro-seminarpartis

actuallymandatory(youcanonlymiss1-2sessionsdependsonthetotalnumberofseminars

youhave)!Soifyouhavealectureclashinganotherseminar,it’sactuallyallowed.Thisisjust

oneexampleaboutthesystemandChristophwillexplaintoyouthoroughly,sodon’tworry!

Bytheway,remembertoregisterboththelectureandthepro-seminarparts.

6. Teaching&AssessmentMethods

Theyencourageinteractivelearningduringthelecture,sotrytoengagemoreandinteract

with your professors, thismightmake a huge effect on your grades if they have a good

impressiononyousincetheyalwayshaveapresumptionofexchangestudentsgoingontrips

andplayingaroundinsteadoflearningandstudying.Letthemknowthatyoutakethecourses

seriouslyandtheywilladmireit!

Asaforementioned,thereisalectureandapro-seminarpartineverycourse,theydonormal

teaching inthe lecturepartwhile they focusmoreonandguideyouthroughtheprojects

duringthepro-seminarpart.Thelecturetimeisunexpectedlylongandineffective,ranging

from2hrs45minsto9hrs(I’mnotkiddinglol)eventhoughtheyhavebreaksamidthelecture

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time.Yet,thecontentofthecoursesiseasyandmanageableforHKstudents,henceit’snot

stressfulatall.

Fortheexamination,youareonlyallowedtotaketheexamonceyoupassthepro-seminar

session.Inotherwords,youwillreceiveagradeofyourpro-seminarpartbeforeregistering

fortheexam.Youwillbetestedontheknowledgetaughtinbothlectureandseminarparts,

somakesureyoustudybothifyouwanttopasstheexam.Normallyspeaking,youwillhave

toget60%topassthecourse,forexamandpro-seminarrespectively.

Blockedcourses–coursesthatwillbefinishedwithintwomonths.That’swhyIhadafinal

examinAprilandsomelecturesfor9hrslol.Basicallytheysqueezeeverythingtheyhaveto

dointwomonths,twolecturesperweek,andoneseminarperweekaftertheyfinishedthe

lecture part. Therefore, the workload might be a bit heavy, but it’s good for exchange

studentsasyouwillhavemoretimetogoonsometripsafterthecourseisfinishedJ.

7. Sports&RecreationFacilities

Goskiing,goskiing,goskiing!(it’ssobloodyimportantsoIrepeatthreetimeshaha)Skiingis

themostfamouswintersportshereandpeoplecomebecauseofthat!Bewareoftheskiing

seasonbecauseifyouarenotaprofessionalskier,thebestskiresortwillbeSchlick2000and

itoperatesonlyfromNovembertoMarch/April!Itmightbeabitexpensive,approximately

EUR50pertimeincludingentrancefeeandrentalfeeforthegears,butit’stotallyworthit!

Makesureyoubringasunglasseswithyouifyoudon’twanttobuyasungogglestherewhich

isquiteexpensive(andapairofwinterglovesaswell).Bringyourfriendsalongwithyouas

wellandifyouhaveextramoneyforthat,youmightwanttotakeabeginnerlessontherefor

EUR105andanotherEUR25forthesecondpersonandsoon(themorepeopleyouhave

withyou,thecheaperitwillbeonaverage).

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8. Finance&Banking(includingcurrency/expenses)

ThelegaltenderinAustriaiseuro,whichisthesameasmostoftheothercountriesinEurope.

ItwillbeeasierifyoucreateanaccountinAustria,butIheardtheychargeafeeforthat(EUR

5permonth).However,IappliedforSparkasse’sstudentaccountandtheydidn’tchargeme

any additional fees, and they are super helpful so if you want to apply one, I would

recommendSparkasse.PleaseaskChristophforthemostupdatedinformationaswell.

Myexpensesareasfollow:

EUR

1. TotalLivingExpenses 1880

2. TotalAccommodationFee(includingalladditionalfees) 1745

3. TotalTravellingExpenses 5000

4. TotalAirfare(gotoInnsbruckandbacktoHongKong) 1094

TOTAL 9719

P.S.Theexchangeratefluctuatedalotthroughoutthewholeperiodoftimefrom9.1to9.8,

sotheamountofmoneyIusemightnotbethemostaccuratebutI’msureitcanbeusedas

areference.

9. SocialClubs&NetworkingOpportunities

Theschoolitselfdoesn’tnothaveanyclubsforyoutojoin,excepttheorchestra.Ifyoudo

playmusic, I encourageyou to join theorchestrabut theydo require interviews for that.

Exchangestudentswillorganisesomeinternationaldinnersandpartiesthemselvessoyou

couldalsojointhemtoknowmorepeoplewhostudyinInnsbruckbutinanotherschool(MCI).

10. Health&Safety

Thecity issupersafecomparingtoothercities inEurope,almostthesame inHongKong.

However, the streetwill bedarker than that inHongKong at night, especially during the

winter,somakesureyou’rewithyourfriendswhilestayingoutlate.

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Ifyouneedtovisitadoctor,tellChristophandhewillmakeanappointmentforyou.Thisis

themostconvenientwaytodososinceyoudonotknowifthepeopleontheothersideof

thephoneknowsEnglishornot.Ifyouwanttoavoidanytroubles,trytobringsomemedicines

withyouandI’msureitwillhelpJ

11. Food

Cookingwillbethebestwaytosaveyourmoneysincethepricetohaveamealinarestaurant

willbeEUR12orupincludingthemaindishandadrink,excludingfastfood.Youcandodaily

groceryshoppingatSPAR,Hofer,Billa,MPreisorMerkur, theyhaveeverythingyouneed.

Besides,Ifounditsocheaptobuymilk,bread,chocolateandofcourse,beerhere.Soifthese

areyourfav,youaredefinitelygoingtotherightplace!Mostimportantly,therearesome

traditionalAustrianfoodanddrinksyoumusttryat leastoncebeforeyouleave, including

sachertorte, schnitzel, frankfurter, weisswurst, currywurst, knödel, kaiserschmarrn,

almdudler,andalsoradler.Youwillregretitforsureifyoudon't.

12. Transportation

Youcantraveltoeverycornerofthecitysimplybybusesandtrams,it’ssoconvenientand

youcanbuyasemesterticketforthat.ItcostsapproximatelyEUR130butit’sworthitifyou

willuseiteveryday.Foryourreference,asingleticketofabusoratramwillbearoundEUR

2,40,youknowwhattochoose.However,Ididn’tbuyitaseverythingisjustwithinwalking

distancetome,soIboughtthe8-timeticketincaseIreallyhavetogosomewherefaraway.

Youcouldalsobuyorrentabikeforyourdailyuse.Innsbruckisa‘bike-friendly’citybutbe

awareofthetrafficandthecarsasyouwillberidingontheroadwithcarsjustnexttoyouJ

Makesureyouknowsomeoftherulesforbikingsuchasturnsignalsetc.Ifyou’retravelling

to other cities, ÖBB is the train company of Austria and you can always go to the

Hauptbahnhof(maintrainstation)nearthecitycentretotakethetrainbutyouwillhaveto

bookaticketinadvance.Flixbusisanotherchoiceifyoudon’tmindtotravelforanincredibly

long time on the bus. You can buy the bus ticket on the bus but if youwant to have a

guaranteedseatandjourney,pleasebookitwiththeirappaswell.

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13. Climate

ItwasstillsupercoldwhenIarrivedInnsbruckinlateFebruaryandeveninMarch.Theyhad

minusdegreesduringthetimebutitwasnotascoldasIthought.ItgotwarmerinApriland

becameashotasitisinHongKonginMay.Therefore,bringbothsummerandwinterclothes

withyou,buyingclothesherewillnotbeawiseaction.

14. Communication

IuseTHREEduringthewholetime.Themonthlypackagewithdata,messageandphoneusage

withinAustriaisEUR10andthatwithinthecountriesintheEUwillbeEUR15.Otherwise,

youcouldalsobuyaSIMCardandalsovoucherseverytimeyouwanttotopupyourcardfor

phoneanddatausageSEPARATELY,dependsonyourpersonalusage.

15. Cautionarymeasures

Ifyouhaveanychancetodealwiththecopsorinvolveinanyaccident,callChristoph,hewill

helpyouwiththatsincethecopsandpeoplearoundmightnotspeakEnglishtoagreatextent.

Trytobesupercautiouswhenyougoskiing,theinsurancepackageofferedbyHongKong

companieswillNOTcoverit.MakesureyoubuyaninsuranceinInnsbruckforskiingifyou’re

reallyworriedaboutit(Ididn’tbuythough).

LearnafewGermangreetingsorwords,peoplewillbenicertoyouevenifyoumightspeak

itwrongly.MostoftheshopkeepersoutsidetheMainStreet(thetouristplace)doNOTspeak

English,andtheydohaveaverystrongdialectwhenspeakingGermanaswell.Sosmileand

saythankyoueventhoughyoudon’tunderstandthemJ

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PARTIII:ItemstoBring

1. Acceptanceletterandalldocumentsforadministrativeuse

2. Insurancedocuments

3. Passport(andcopies)

4. HKID

5. Cash,botheuroandhkd

6. Creditcards

7. Skincareproducts(e.g.bodylotionandlipbalm,youwilldefinitelyneeditinthewinter)

8. Sunscreen(youwillgetburninthesummerifyoudon’twearit)

9. Nailcutter

10. Clothes

11. Shoes(atleastonewaterproofshoesforthewinter)

12. Flipflop

13. Bags

14. Spareglasses(ifyouwearglasses)

15. Hangers(ifyouhavesomeclothesthatcannotbeputinthetumbledryer)

16. Laundrybag

17. Towels

18. Toothbrush,toothpaste,anddentalfloss

19. Hairdryer

20. Umbrella

21. Medicine

22. Waterbottle/Cup

23. Powerbanks,cables,adapters

24. Earphones

25. Computer

26. USB(ifnecessary)

27. Stationary,folders,notebooks

28. HKsnacks(incaseyoumisshome)

29. Locks(foryourbaggageifnecessary)

30. Ricecooker(ifnecessary)

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PARTIV:UsefulLinksandContacts

ESN:http://innsbruck.esnaustria.org/

Flixbus:https://www.flixbus.com/

GoEuro:https://www.goeuro.com/

Home4Students:https://www.home4students.at/en/living/dormitories-innsbruck/73-

studentenheim-hoettinger-au/

HostelWorld:https://www.hostelworld.com/

Innsbruckofficialwebsite:https://www.innsbruck.info/

LFU(schoolwebsite):https://lfuonline.uibk.ac.at/public/lfuonline.home

ÖBB:http://www.oebb.at/en/

OeAD:https://housing.oead.at/en/accommodation/wien-en