Erfahrungsberichte

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Land:
Niederlande

Universität:
Hogeschool Rotterdam

Semester und Studiengang:
3. Semester Master Strategisches und internationales Management

Aufenthalt:
summersemester 2017

Über die Universität:
I joined a course on the bachelor's level called Hey, good story! - Creative Branding & Management, which is part of the study programme Creative Marketing and Sales. It is not possible as a Master student to attend one of the Master classes at the Hogeschool Rotterdam. Nevertheless, it was possible for me to get the courses of the 3rd semester recognized in advance after a talk with Prof. Nagengast.
The content and way of teaching is quite different, but I consider it as a big enrichment to my studies here in Deggendorf.
Creative Branding & Management is a practice-based 12-weeks programme (February - May) in which your team will give a Rotterdam-based company advice on their branding. You will work in a team with Dutch and other international students. During the programme you will take four courses which provide you with the theory needed to turn your branding project into a success. We worked on a big project for a real marketing agency in Rotterdam. So after this programme I really have a feeling, how it would be to work in a marketing agency.
You can receive a total of 16 ECTS, from which I got 11 ECTS recognized for "Change Management" and "Management Abroad".

Betreuung vor Ort:
To find a room was quite easy, as I applied for one of the reserved accommodations of SSH, the largest provider of student accommodations in Netherlands. Important here is to apply as fast as possible, as there are not enough rooms for everyone. I had a room in the Erasmus International House, where I shared an apartment with a girl from Madrid. I really enjoyed this student house, even though it is a bit old. The view is amazing. And it will get renovated in August 2017. The only problem was that I had to rent the apartment for at least 5 months, even when I only stayed 3. But it was still the cheapest option, as private accommodation is very hard to get in Rotterdam.

We were only three exchange students (me and two girls from China) in this programme, together with about 40 Dutch students. In the orientation days we received a lot of support, but after that I sometimes had the feeling that we were forgotten. The teachers were always helpful with any problem, but they had not had any experience with exchange students before. The local International Office didn't give a lot of support.

It was the first time for my Dutch classmates and the teachers to have classes in English and it was surprisingly quite a big challenge for them. Nevertheless, it was always possible to communicate in English, also everywhere in town. Movies in the cinema are in English and the sports programme at the university as well. As a consequence most international students don't bother to learn some Dutch, which I find a pity.
I was able to participate in a free Dutch beginner class and enjoyed the fast learning process in this language, which is quite similar to German. And the locals appreciate it very much, if you can at least speak a little bit Dutch.

Tipps:
I can really recommend you to study in Rotterdam. It's a very modern, intercultural city with a lot to offer and right in the centre of Holland. It is very easy to visit other Dutch cities, as most of them are less than an hour train ride away.
With the NS group ticket you can travel to any city in the Netherlands by train for only 7€ (return ticket). You just have to get a group of 10 people together in a Facebook group (there are a lot of these FB groups), and you don't even have to travel together. I saved a lot of money with that.
Also get the Rotterdam pass. For students it is only 12€, you can apply for it at the city library. And with it you get entrance for free for most sights, museums, cinemas etc. in Rotterdam, but also cities nearby.
As already often mentioned the local market on Tuesday and Saturday is a cheap alternative to the otherwise quite expensive supermarkets.
I really liked the Erasmus sport centre at the University, which offers a lot of sport courses and has a gym. Also there are a lot of student clubs, which is a great way to integrate better. I joined the horse riding club Marcroix, which allowed me to join the horse riding lessons at the nobel stable in the city park. But also did the club many activities together.