Erfahrungsberichte

Land:
USA

Universität:
Manhattan Institute of Management

Semester und Studiengang:
5. Semester Bachelor International Management

Aufenthalt:
Sommersemester 2015

Über die Universität:
I was studying at the Manhattan Institute of Management (MIM) in New York City, USA. This small Institute in the middle of the financial district offers three different programs: One Bachelor, one Master and one MBA-degree program. Each program consists of a study period (2-3 days per week) and an internship period (other 2-3 days per week). All together one program lasts six months and is divided in two quarters.
One should be aware, that the MIM is mainly for foreign students. Only few or no Americans are studying there. Since the MIM has a lot of partner universities in France, be prepared to meet a lot of French people.
The possible choice of lectures is limited to 5 or 6 per quarter and is mainly dealing with business content. There are no language lectures available expect for English.
The lectures, listed on the website of the MIM, are not taking place every quarter. You will get to know the exact classes once you arrive. However, I, as a IM student, was able to find a lot of classes suitable for the requirements of my semester abroad. In addition, I was able to take classes of the higher semesters and transfer them to Deggendorf. Every lecture at the MIM is equal to 3 US credits, which equals 6 ECTS.
In case of questions, one was always able to ask at the MIM office and most of the times the people working there were quite helpful. Sometimes it took a while till you got the answer or you had to remind them of your request in order to get the answer. But, once you received it, they were truly reliable on this. No sudden changes.
Website: www.mimusa.edu
Contact persons: Alexandru Stefan (astefan(at)mimusa.edu) or Mariya Proyss (mproyss(at)mimusa.edu)

Betreuung vor Ort:
In general, the support at the MIM was quite good, but not excellent. However, all basic rules and guidelines, including immigration and general behavior in the city, were explained in two orientation days at the very beginning. This was quite helpful. All together, they were very willing to help you, but did not respond to all requests or sometimes in an insufficient way.
In addition, the MIM was very helpful when it came to find the internship you are doing as well. They had a big catalogue of possible positions in all kind of industries. You will receive this catalogue several weeks before the start of you semester and you can choose your favorites. The MIM will then arrange interview appointments which you will do in the first two weeks of the semester. This process was very well organized.

About the accommodation: You have to organize your place to stay on your own. The MIM is only forwarding some addresses of student accommodation in New York (most of them are only for persons 21 and older) and sometimes some housing opportunities. I personally was lucky and could find my place to stay already before I came there, however, you should be prepared for apartment hunting when you arrive there. Furthermore, be prepared to pay the whole rent in advance! Normally, all landlords require this if you do not have a job in New York City.
Helpful websites: www.craigslist.com and www.airbnb.com

Tipps:
Some hints:
- Do not underestimate living expenses! Food is at least the same price like in Germany. For apartments in a reasonable location you will need to pay at least 900 USD, but more likely 1,100 to 1,300 USD. I personally paid round about 900 USD, however I was sharing a 50sqm two bedroom apartment with two other persons. (One had to sleep in the Kitchen-slash-Living room). And the nightlife in New York is quite expensive...
- Plan up to one week for apartment hunting when you arrive.
- The location of the apartment is very important. It's better to have one close to a subway station (blue and red lines are very good, try to avoid the green line, it's always very crowded) than being close to Manhattan Downtown.
- Like pages like "Timeout New York" and "Free Concerts NYC" to always get the latest updates on what to do
- Be aware of the fact that the public transportation will take a lot time. Expect to have a commute of 45 minutes or even more (one way).
- Best hot dogs are served at "criff dog" (East village, West Village and Williamsburg)! Sounds like a stupid hint, however, when you are living in New York for some months you'll realize the importance :D

Generally spoken, I really liked the time in New York. It was amazing. So much stuff to do and things going on! You will never get bored! However, be prepared to spend money!