Twelfth Week

Hi Everyone,

Twelve weeks – wow, time has flown by since I have arrived! 

The period of final examinations if finally coming near and I have become flooded with final projects that are coming due before our final exams.  Academically, this is a large differentiator between Odette and here at Rouen Business School.  Out of all of my classes, I have only had a midterm exam in one of the classes.  While there was a participation component in some of my classes, the only other measure of evaluation throughout the semester was four spot quizzes in my International Finance class. However, the abundance of end of term projects is quite the contrary compared to Odette. Here is the term project breakdown for my classes:

Financial Analysis – Accounting for 50% of my grade, I have a group assignment in which we provide an analysis of a publicly traded French company.  

Derivative Products – Accounting for 30% of my grade, we have a group assignment in which we solve and explain problems of material covered throughout the semester.  Exercises included relate to Future Contracts, Forward Contracts, Call and Put options, as well as Binomial Trees.

International Negotiation – Accounting for 30% of my grade, we are given two options for our final project.  One option is to videotape and conduct an interview with a senior negotiator.  Alternatively, we can opt to write a case study on a worldwide issue that pertains to negotiation.  My topic of choice is ‘The European Union and International Monetary Fund’s Negotiations to Save Greece’s Economy’.   

I should also note that each of the term projects are completed in groups of two to five people.  While we are given the freedom to select our group, our group members must be of different national origins.  The theme of working with students from a different background has been dominant throughout the semester.  I have been able to network and work effectively with a wide group of diverse individuals, while experiencing the different cultures and how they relate to work. 

During the intermissions, I worked strenuously to hunt down the Rouen Dragons Mascot.

On a more exploratory note, I yet again spent this past weekend in Rouen. I did however take part in a social event this past Saturday and attended a Rouen Dragons hockey game. The night was very enjoyable, even though it did remind me of how much I’m missing being able to watch NHL hockey.  To add to the night’s success, the Dragons beat the opposing team 5-2, and everyone left the stadium ecstatic.  Of course with the GM, Head Coach, and Captain of the team all being Canadians, this didn’t come as much of a surprise.  Surely, this abundance of Canadian talent could also explain how the team has been able to win the French Championship the past two years!

Unfortunately, that’s all the stories I have to share this week. I will be sure to find some adventures to share for next week.

Eleventh Week

I’m continuing to have connection problems with the Wi-Fi on residence.  I apologize for writing to you again a day late. 

For those students who are coming to Rouen Business School next semester, or are leaving the University of Windsor for an exchange elsewhere – have no fear!  From my experience at Rouen Business School, and conversations with other exchange students, the process of arriving to your new campus is fairly straightforward. 

Rouen Business School provides a taxi reservation service from Charles De Gaulle (CDG) and Orly (ORY) airports in Paris.  In your months prior to arriving on exchange, you will receive an email from the exchange coordinator at Rouen Business School providing you the option to reserve a taxi ahead of time.  The cost of the taxi varies depending on how many students they pick up, and ranges between €60 and €180.  While it may not be the most economical method of transport when you arrive, it is direct and hassle-free.

The second option to arriving at Rouen Business School is via public transit.  

From Charles De Gaulle airport, take the regional train into Paris.  This is the RER B train, and tickets for the train are around €9.  Keep an eye out for the stop Châtelet.  While the RER B trains from Charles De Gaulle go to the same location, one of the lines has more stops on the route into Paris.  Depending on train that you take, you should expect to arrive at Châtelet in 25-40 minutes.  From Châtelet, switch to the metro line 14, towards the direction of Saint-Lazare, which will also be your exit.  This metro trip is quite quick, at only three stops.  Be sure to exit the metro system, where you can get your first glance of the magnificent city of Paris!  Unfortunately the trip doesn’t end here, head over to the Gare Saint Lazare to purchase your ticket from Paris to Rouen.  Once inside the station, if you head over towards Platform 24, there will be a kiosk where you can purchase your ticket. I also recommend purchasing your 12-25 Card here.  For €49, the card provides you with a 25-50% discount on all fares in France depending on if you are traveling at a peak or non-peak time.  Depending on the time of your train, you can expect to pay between €10.80 and €16.20 to travel from Paris to Rouen, and the trip takes around an hour and a half.  Once you arrive at Rouen, there is a bus stop outside of the train station.  If you opt to take the bus to arrive at Rouen Business School, wait for the bus line 4 and stop at the bus stop La Varenne.  From La Varenne, walk to the other side of the roundabout and you should be able to see Rouen Business School.  Alternatively, you could take a taxi from outside of the Rouen train station to Rouen Business School for around €10. 

From Orly airport, take the OrlyVal, a quick shuttle that brings you from the airport to the regional train line in Paris.  Once you arrive, purchase tickets for the RER B train, which should cost around €9.  Take this train and get off at Châtelet.  From Châtelet, switch to the metro line 14, towards the direction of Saint-Lazare, which will also be your exit.  This metro trip is quite quick at only three stops.  Be sure to exit the metro system, where you can get your first glance of the magnificent city of Paris!  Unfortunately the trip doesn’t end here, head over to the Gare Saint Lazare to purchase your ticket from Paris to Rouen.  Once inside the station, if you head over towards Platform 24, there will be a kiosk where you can purchase your ticket. I also recommend purchasing your 12-25 Card here.  For €49, the card provides you with a 25-50% discount on all fares in France depending on if you are traveling at a peak or non-peak time.  Depending on the time of your train, you can expect to pay between €10.80 and €16.20 to travel from Paris to Rouen, and the trip takes around an hour and a half.  Once you arrive at Rouen, there is a bus stop outside of the train station.  If you opt to take the bus to arrive at Rouen Business School, wait for the bus line 4 and stop at the bus stop La Varenne.  From La Varenne, walk to the other side of the roundabout and you should be able to see Rouen Business School.  Alternatively, you could take a taxi from outside of the Rouen train station to Rouen Business School for around €10.

If you’re participating on an exchange to a different university, wait for contact to be made with your host university.  They will usually provide some sort of accommodation or assistance to your university from the airport.  

I apologize for not having any exciting traveling adventures.  At this time of the semester, I’m being swamped with a major assignment for most classes, as well as the beginning of my preparation for my final exams.  I’ll be sure to find some adventures next week!

Tenth Week: More Traveling!

Hi everyone!  I’ve been having some problems with the WiFi on residence; I apologize for not writing sooner. 

If you’re interested in participating in an international exchange, there's some work for you to do on your own in preparation of studying abroad.  If you’re interested in studying in France, you must apply for a French Visa to study.  If you’re interested in studying in another country, you may have to research to see if you will need a student visa.  For Canadian students, you must apply for a French B2 Visa.  The process is fairly daunting; be sure to have a look and start the process 2-3 months prior to your departure.

Purchasing your airfare is also a significant step in the exchange process.  University of Windsor students can sign up for an ISIC (International Student Identity Card) free of charge at the UWSA’s office in the CAW Centre, which serves as a discount card abroad.  The ISIC card serves as a discount card for students with discounts around the world. I haven’t personally had any use for the ISIC card, but it may be useful during your exchange.  I purchased my airfare three months prior to my trip, and found that the flight costs were typically cheaper when purchased round trip as opposed to two one-way tickets. My suggestion is to shop around and to compare prices between various websites to find the best deal. 

At Rouen Business School, the past week was our reading week. During this time, I was a host to two friends who had come from Canada to visit me in Europe. As soon as they arrived we quickly began our travels and headed to Berlin and Geneva.

Berlin was a very welcoming city with many places to see and history to rediscover. My friends and I avoided the typical sightseeing tour and instead opted to rent a bicycle and explore the city on our own. Our biking expedition consisted of various stops, including the Brandenburg Gate and the East Side Gallery.  We also took a guided tour 35km outside of Berlin to the Sachsenhausen concentration camp. It was very shocking to think of the horrific events that occurred so recently in history.

The Brandenburg Gate served as one of eight Berlin Wall Crossings during the postwar division of Germany. Click on the photo to view my photo album of Berlin.

Our second stop was Switzerland.  Geneva previously served as the home to the League of Nations and is the current home for the United Nations Office at Geneva. We resided in Geneva but took day trips to Montreux, a community of 90,000 located at the foot of the Alps. Montreux surprised us with a peaceful and quaint atmosphere of the Swiss Alps.  Montreux was filled with countless activities to occupy our time, such as visiting the Château de Chillon and hiking one of the various hiking trails in Montreux.  While exploring the environment, we noticed that Montreux was a popular paragliding destination, and so we researched paragliding expeditions that we could take.  Although a bit pricey, we arranged to paraglide off one of the Swiss Alps, which measured in at a height of 1432 meters above the ground.  While I was a bit nervous prior to the flight, the fifteen minutes in the air elapsed as if I was only airborne for a few brief seconds.

A photo of me as I'm dangling 1,400 meters in the air.  Click on this photo to view my other photos from Switzerland!

  

In case the theme hasn’t been evident throughout my past nine blogs: my international exchange has become one of the most extraordinary experiences in my life!

Ninth Week: Course List and Residence Options at Rouen Business School

Ninth Week

As promised, I am writing a bit more about the academics relating to my exchange this week.  I apologize for the lack of photos this week; as I am currently traveling around during my reading week, it is difficult to find the time to upload them for you all to see. I will be sure to talk about them in my post next Tuesday!

Course Selection

As I have explained before, Europe uses a standardized course credit system known as European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (ECTS).  To get credit for five courses at the University of Windsor, you need to take classes that add up to 30 ECTS credits.  Generally speaking, this means that you need to take six courses at Rouen Business School.  This may vary in some cases, so be sure to consult with the Exchange Office!

Students from the Odette School of Business can take courses in two different levels, both from the Bachelor of Science in International Business (BScIB) and Master Grand Ecole (MGE) faculty.  If you’re from another University, the partnership with Rouen Business School could state that you could only take classes from one of the two faculties.

Fall 2011 Bachelor of Science in International Business (BScIB) courses consisted of the following:

Course Title	Language of Instruction
Brand Marketing	English
Building and Financing International Projects	English
Business Planning	English
Critical Thinking	English
Cross-Cultural Issues	English
Developing International Distribution Networks	English
Ethnology and Cultural Areas	English
Exploring New Worlds : Middle-East and Africa	English
Financial Analysis & Comparative Accounting Systems	English
French Civilization	English
Geopolitics and International Relations	English
Geopolitics and International Trade	English
Globalization, Culture(s) & Identities	English
International Finance	English
International Human Resource Management	English
International Marketing	English
International Negotiation	English
Marketing & Value	English
Purchasing, Procurement and Supply Management	English
Sustainable Business	English
Team Building and Leadership	English
Technique and Strategy for the International Development of SMEs	English
The Economics and Culture of Wine	English
The European Union: How Does It Work?	English
Civilisation Française	Français
Economie	Français
Fondamentaux de la Comptabilité	Français
Français	Français
Français des Affaires	Français
Gestion des Systèmes d'Information	Français
Informatique	Français
Management	Français
Marketing Fondamental	Français
Travailler en France	Français
Veille Economique et Analyse et Gestion des Risques	Français

Fall 2011 Master Grande Ecole (MGE) courses consisted of the following:

Brand Marketing	English
Business Planning	English
Comparative Law	English
Cost Accounting	English
Critical Thinking	English
Cross-Cultural Issues	English
Derivative Products	English
Entrepreneurship - Dream or Reality?	English
Ethnology and Cultural Areas	English
Exploring New Worlds : Middle-East and Africa	English
Financial Analysis	English
French Civilization	English
Fundamentals of Corporate Finance	English
Geopolitics and International Relations	English
Globalization, Culture(s) & Identities	English
Intermediate Corporate Finance	English
International Finance	English
International Human Resource Management	English
International Management	English
International Marketing	English
International Negotiation	English
Managing Domestic or International Projects (IPM)	English
Marketing & Value	English
Marketing Management	English
Microeconomics	English
Organizational Behaviour	English
Strategic Management	English
Supply Chain Management	English
The Economics and Culture of Wine	English
The European Union: How Does It Work?	English
Civilisation Française	Français
Contrôle de Gestion	Français
Droit International	Français
Finance Internationale	Français
Fondamentaux de la Comptabilité de l'Entreprise	Français
Fondamentaux de la Finance (Finance 0)	Français
Fondamentaux du Droit de l'Entreprise	Français
Français	Français
Français des Affaires	Français
Géopolitique et Relations Internationales	Français
Introduction aux Sciences Sociales	Français
Management Industriel & Logistique	Français
Management Marketing	Français
Méthodes Quantitatives	Français
Organisation	Français
Travailler en France	Français
Une Histoire Économique et Sociale de L'Art	Français

While these courses do not guarantee a transfer to a particular course, it helps paint an impression of courses that may be offered during your semester at Rouen Business School.

Residence:

When I applied for residence, I had the option to select between different residence buildings.  There was a four day window in which you apply for your top four choices on which residence you would like to live in for your semester.  Fall 2011 prices for each room were as follows:

Residence	Building		Fees	Total due before 27th June
Bois	Monet or Poussin		Rent : 209.00 € x 4 = 836.00 € Deposit : 190.00 € Bed linen : 26.00 €	1052.00 €
Panorama	Ango Regular – 9m²		Rent : 283.20 € x 4 = 1132.80 € Deposit : 236.00 € Bed linen : 26.00 €	1394.80 €
Panorama	Ango Studio type – 16m²	Rent : 342.00 € x 4 = 1368.00 € Deposit : 285.00 € Bed linen : 26.00 €		1679.00 €
Panorama	Delavigne	Rent : 252.34 € x 4 = 1009.36 € Deposit : 230.00 € Bed linen : 26.00 €		1265.36 €
Panorama	Galois	Rent : 257.86 € x 4 = 1031.44 € Deposit : 242.00 €		1273.44 €
Panorama	Maupassant	Rent : 252.34 € x 4 = 1009.36 € Deposit : 230.00 € Bed linen : 26.00 €		1265.36 €
Pléiade	Pléiade Single occupancy	Rent : 325.45 € x 4 = 1301.80 € Deposit : 306.00 € Bed linen : 26.00 €		1633.80 €
Pléiade	Pléiade Double occupancy	PER PERSON Rent : 217.32 € x 4 = 869.28 € Deposit : 204.00 € Bed linen : 26.00 €		1099.28 €

An additional option would be to stay with a host family in the city.  This option is a bit different, but allows you to experience French culture at a fuller level.  Most families provide breakfast and dinner for you in addition to accommodation.

A final alternative is to rent an apartment in the city of Rouen.  This is complicated as shared housing is not common in France and owners of apartments usually ask for a guarantor from France or Europe.

During the Fall 2011 semester, there were very limited rooms available in Delavigne, Galois, and Maupassant.  I will discuss the positives and negatives of the four main rooms: Ango 9m², Ango 16m², Bois 9m², and Pléiade.

To view the details of the different residences, click here. 

The Ango building, where I am currently living is comprised of only international students, which arguably provides for an easier opportunity to make friends with students in a similar situation as yourself. The rooms come in two different sizes: 9m² and 16m².  Both rooms have a hotplate in each room but the smaller sized room  shares a toilet and shower, while the larger room has a private room and shower. The Ango building is also closer to the Rouen Business School campus than Bois and Pléiade. 

The Bois residence is a bit further from the Rouen Business School campus, and is shared with both international and French students. The shower and kitchen are also shared with the floor.  It is the most economical residence option.

The rooms in the Pléiade residence are the largest of the residence options available. Each room also has a private hotplate and bathroom and shower. It is a bit further away from the campus than Ango and Bois - between 10 and 15 minutes away. With the private rooms and sharing the building with French students, it could be a bit harder to meet other international students than the Ango building. 

Hopefully this information helps to prepare you if you will be going or are contemplating an exchange to Rouen Business School.