MarcoPoloStudyAbroad–RubendeGroot(S2529645)
EasternMichiganUniversity–Ypsilanti(MI)
2015-2016(FallSemester)
GeneralReport
Hostinstitutionandexactdatesofsemesterabroad
ThehostinstitutionistheEasternMichiganUniversity,whichislocatedinthecityYpsilanti
inMichigan,whichisaround30minutesawayfromDetroit.It’soneofthelargest
universitiesofthestateofMichigan.
Istudiedthereduringthefallsemesteroftheyear2015-2016.Myfirstdayofschoolwason
September8th,howeverIflewthereonSeptember2nd,sincetheyorganizeaninternational
orientationforalloftheexchangestudentseveryyear.Thisorientationtakesaroundthree
daysandisreallyhelpfulinordertogettoknowotherpeopleandtheuniversity.Besides
that,someadministrationalstuffhastobedone,soIreallylikeditbeingthereafewdays
beforetheactualsemesterstarted.IwasdonestudyingatDecember18th,whereuponI
finishedmystudyabroadwithaweekinNewYork.Soeventually,Iflewbackonthe25thof
December.Noticeyouhaveamonthtoleavethecountryafteryourvisaexpires,whichison
thelastdayofthesemester.Soyoucanstilltravelforamonthafteryou’redonestudying,if
youwouldliketodoso.However,incaseyouleavetheUnitedStatesduringthatperiod,
youcan’tre-enterthecountryanymore.Also,everyyeartheychangetheexactdatesofthe
semesteralittlebit,butusuallyit’sfromthebeginningofSeptemberuntilthemiddleof
December.
Contactwithhomefaculty,preparationandjourney
InordertogetintotheStates,lotsofadministrationalstuffandpaperworkhastobedone.
ThiswasalittlebitmorethanIexpected,andthatinthecombinationwiththefactthat
havingcontactwiththehostuniversityintheUSandtheUSconsulateinAmsterdamisn’t
theeasiestthingintheworld,makesmesaynowIshouldhavestartedthepreparations
earlier.However,Imanagedtodoeverythingintime,butstillIwouldadviseanyonewho’s
planningonmakingthesametriptostartwiththepreparationsearly.
Mainly,youhavetosendlotsofpaperworktotheEasternMichiganUniversity,ofwhicha
largeproportionhastobesendbyMAIL(note-mail).Thatcantakesometime,especially
sincemycontactpersonatEMUusuallydidn’treallyrespondtomye-mails,andtherefore,it
washardformetobeincontactwiththeStates.So,startthisprocessassoonasyoucan.
Also,thingssuchasthehousingprocessandthecourseselectionprocedureatEMUhavea
deadlineandcanbefullsoon,allofwhichwasn’treallycleartome.Besidesthat,whichis
themostimportant,youhavetoapplyforavisaattheUSconsulateinAmsterdam.Youcan
onlydothisonceadmittedtoEMU,andafterthey’vesentacoupleofimportantpapersto
theRUG.Applyingforavisaisaprocessthatcantakeacoupleofweeks,especiallysinceyou
havetomakeanappointmentwiththeUSconsulateinAmsterdam,whichsometimescan’t
bedonesoon.Besidesthat,itwillcostyouaround300-400euro.Butmostimportantly,start
theprocessofapplyingassoonasyoucanaswell,otherwiseyoumightnotbeabletoenter
theStatesintime.
Mycontactwiththehomefacultywasreallygood,howeverIdidn’treallyneedit.Youcan
alwayse-mailpeopleorgototheStudentSupportDeskifyouneedhelpwiththe
preparations,becausetheycanbereallyhelpful.DuringmyperiodabroadIoncee-mailed
mycontactpersonattheRUGP.Smid,becauseIhaddecidedtochangeacoupleofcourses
onceabroad.Thiswasdoneveryeasily,soIhadnoproblemsatallbeingincontactwiththe
RUG.
Thejourneygavemenoproblemsatalleither.IflewfromHamburgtoLondon,whereuponI
flewtoDetroitstraight.Trytobookareturnticket,sincethey’rerelativelymuchcheaper
thantwosingleones.Ialreadybookedacab,whichbroughtmefromDetroitMetropolitan
WayneCountyAirporttotheuniversity,whilestillbeingintheNetherlands,sinceIwas
advisedtodoso.However,Iwouldn’tdothesamenow,sinceitistooexpensive.Iwould
advisetogettheUberapponyourphoneandjustorderacabonceyou’reattheairport.It’s
reallyeasyanditwillonlybearound$15insteadofthe$70Ipaidinadvance.Ifyoudon’t
reallytrusttheUberappalready,whichyoucertainlywillafteryourperiodabroad,youcan
alsojustorderaregularcabwhilebeingattheairport,whichalsowillbemuchcheaperthan
whatIdid.Itwillonlybea20-minutedrivetotheuniversitycampus.
Residenceabroad
AsIalreadysaid,themostimportantarrangementyouhavetomakeistoapplyforavisa.
Again,thiswilltakesometime,sobeginassoonasyoucan.First,you’llneedtoapplyonline,
whichmeansyouhavetocompletequitemuchpaperworkandsendittotheUSconsulatein
Amsterdam.Afterthat,youhavetomakeanappointmentwiththeconsulate(it’spossible
youhavetowaitamonth!),whereyouwillbeinterviewedshortly(mainlytheywilljustask
youwhatyouaregoingtodointheStates).Besidesthat,youhavetobringsomeimportant
paperwork,suchasaproofofpayment,aDS-2019formfromthehostuniversity(therefore,
startearlywithsendingpaperworktoMichigan)andyourpassport.Notethatyoureally
bringallofthepapersneeded,otherwiseitmightbepossibletheywon’tgiveyouavisa,and
youhavetomakeanewappointment,whichcantakeweeks.Thesecuritycheckatthe
consulateisverystrict,socheckwhatyouareandaren’tallowedtobringtotheinterview.
Forexample,youaren’tallowedtobringamobilephoneinsidetheconsulate,whichmostof
thepeopleseemtoforget.Eventhoughtheactualinterviewisreallyshort,you’llstillbein
theconsulateforacoupleofhours(mainlywaiting).Aftertheinterview,they’llsendyour
passportandvisatoyourhomeaddress.Thiswilltakearoundfourdays.
Ididn’tneedanyvaccinationsandalsodidn’thavetodoahealthcheck.
Iarrivedafewdaysbeforetheactualsemesterstarted.Thisinordertoattendthe
internationalorientationdays,toalreadygettoknowmyroommatesandotherpeopleover
there,togetmyroomready(youpracticallyhavetobuyeverything,suchasbedsupplies,
towelsetc.)andtodosomeadministrationalstuff(f.e.animmigrationcheck-inyouhaveto
doatEMUandapplyingforastudentIDcard).IwasadvisedtodosoandIwouldalsoadvise
thesametoanyoneelse.Thosefewdayswerereallyhelpfulandfunaswell.Ireallyenjoyed
ithavingsomefreedaysovertherebeforetheactualsemesterstarted.IlefttheUnited
Statesaroundaweekafterthelastdayofthesemester.Again,youhaveamonthtoleave
thecountryafteryourvisaexpires,whichisonthelastdayofthesemester.
Youhavetoapplyforhousingassoonasyoucan,astheysaytherearelimitedcampus
apartments.TheyputusinternationalstogetherinTheVillage(withtheathletes),whichI
enjoyedbetterthanthetraditionaldorms(thelargetowers).They’vechangedthatacouple
oftimesinthepast,soit’spossibletheywillchangeitagaininthefuture,butIreally
enjoyedTheVillage.Isharedanapartmentwithsixotherguys,andwehadtwobathrooms
andonekitchentogether.MybedroomIalsohadtoshare,whichIfoundveryannoying
afterawhile,butsavedmearound$1000.Ihadtopayaround$2500forthehousing
beforehand,thesameapartmentswithasingleroomarearound$3500foronesemester.
Thetraditionaldormsarecheaper,butyou’llhavetoshareyourroomaswell,you’llshare
onebathroomwithtenpeopleandyouwon’thaveakitchen.Also,youhavetopractically
sharealivingroomwiththewholedorm.Itispossibletoalreadystayinyourroombefore
thesemesterstarts,butyou’llhavetopayalittleextra.Thebestwaytoarrangethisisby
sendingane-mailtothehousingdepartmentbeforearrival,butit’salsostillpossibleafter
arrival,likeIdid.Onthelastdayofthesemesteryouwillhavetoleaveyourroom
immediately,howeverIwasluckyandcouldstaytwomoredaysforfree,beforeIflewto
NewYork.
Noticethatyou’llhavetocheck-inyourapartmentbetweenspecialtimes,usuallybetween2
p.m.and4p.m.So,ifyouwon’tbeabletoarrivewithinthattimeframe,you’llhavetosleep
somewhereelsethefirstnight.Afterthat,youwillreceiveassistancewithmostofthethings
youstillhavetodo.Alsoreallyattendtheorientation,itwillhelpyoualotaswell!Youhave
toapplyfortheorientationbeforearrival(itmightbeclosedafter).
Besidesstudying,therearelotsofwaysyoucanbeactiveattheuniversity.Forexample,you
canjoinafraternityorsorority,youcanjoinanydifferentassociation(therearelotsof
them),oryoucanjoinasportsteam.Thesportsfacilitiesatcampusaregreat,andbesides
thesportsfacilities,alsotheotherfacilitiesareverygood(there’savideogamehall,there
aremultiplelibrariesetc.).I’veplayedsoccerfortheuniversityteammyself,whichIreally
enjoyed,sinceIhadtoplayotherlargeuniversities(sometimeswehadtodriveacoupleof
hoursandstayedinahoteletc.)andIgottoknowalotofAmericans(besidesallofthe
internationalsfromtheorientationandTheVillageetc.).Mostofthesportsteamsdohavea
try-outweek,soifyouwouldliketodothesame,justgotoanopenpracticeatthe
beginningofthesemester.Ididn’tjoinafraternity,since,inmyopinion,joiningthemfor
onlyonesemesterwasn’tworththeeffort,howeverIreallyenjoyedtheirparties.Especially
thoseatthenearbyUniversityofMichiganinAnnArbor(15minutesdriving)aregreat!
TherearealsosomeregularclubsandbarsinAnnArbor.Thepublictransportsystemis
terriblebytheway,soifyou’llneedtogosomewhere,useanUberorcallacab.Orjustget
toknowsomeonethathasacar(almosteverysingleAmericanstudenthasacar,sinceyou
justneedoneinMichigan).Theclosestsupermarkets(Walmart,Meyer)arearoundten
minutesdriving.Youcanalsorentacarifyouwanttomakeatripsomewhere.I’vemade
plentyoftripsduringmyperiodabroad.Usually,there’snoschoolonFriday,somakinga
weekendtripispossible.Besidesthat,youwillhaveaThanksgivingbreakattheendof
November,whichisaroundfivedays.Andit’salsopossibletotravelbeforeandafterthe
semester.I’vebeentoTorontoinCanada(notethatyouwillhavetogetaspecialI-94paper
andhaveallofyourotherpapersready(DS-2019,Visaetc.)),Chicago,Boston(Iflewthere),
Detroit,Washington(flewthere),andNewYork(flewtheretoo).Furthermore,I’vebeento
otherplacessuchastheNiagaraFalls,CedarPark(hugefunpark),andLakeMichigan.Also,
I’veseenlotsofsportsgames,suchasthreeNBA-games,anAmericanFootballgameinthe
largeststudentstadiumoftheUnitedStates(120,000placesattheUniversityofMichigan),
andanIceHockeygame.AlsotheEasternMichiganUniversityplaysAmericanFootball
gamesandBasketballetc.ThereareacoupleofgreatsportsteamsinDetroitandMichigan,
andIwouldreallyadviseyoutohavealookattheirgames.So,inshort,therearelotsof
thingsyoucando!
Ididn’thaveanyproblemswiththeEnglishlanguageandIthinktheaverageDutchstudent
won’t.
Grant
TheamountoftheMarcoPolograntis1200eurofortheUnitedStates,whichisthelargest
amountpossible.Youwillreceive70%(€840)beforedeparturetotheStatesandtheother
30%(€360)afterwritingthisreport(plusyouhavetohandinsomepapersattheRUG).In
ordertoobtaintheMarcoPolograntyou’llonlyhavetohandinsomepaperworkbeforea
certaindeadline.Itispossibletoobtainothergrants,howeverIdidn’thaveany.Other
grantsmightbehelpfulthough,especiallysince1200euroisn’tthatmuch(it’sprobablyjust
enoughtocovertheflight)andlivingintheUnitedStatesisquiteexpensive.Someofthose
grantsmightbequiteeasytoobtaintoo,soIwouldadviseyoutotrytodoso(IregretI
haven’ttriedmyself).
AsIalreadysaid,livingintheUnitedStatesisquiteexpensive.Especiallythebasicdaily
needssuchasfood(especiallyfruitsandvegetables)aremoreexpensivethaninThe
Netherlands.However,youwon’treallyhaveotherexpensesduringamonth,sinceyou
alreadyhavetopayyourhousingbeforethesemesterstarts.It’salsopossibletotakeameal
plan(you’llgetcredittopayyourmealsattheuniversityeveryday).Thisisquiteexpensive
however(aroundthe$2000inadvanceagain)andit’salsopossibletopayformealson
campusjustbycreditcard.So,Iwouldn’tadvisetodoso,especiallysinceeveryapartmentin
TheVillagehasitsownkitchen.NoticehoweverthatthefoodintheAmericansupermarkets
isreallydifferentfromthefoodintheDutchsupermarkets.Itsometimesmightbehardto
obtainthefreshfoodweareusedtoinTheNetherlands,andifitisavailable,it’sgoingtobe
moreexpensive.Americansjusteatalotoffastfood,it’strue.Therefore,Ifoundthe
differenceinfoodalsothehardestculturaldifferencebetweentheUnitedStatesandThe
Netherlands.
Youprobablyalsowanttotravelduringyourstayabroad,atleast,Ireallylikedtodoso.If
youwanttodothesame,savesomemoneyeverymonth(checkyourlimitonyourcredit
card)!Travellingisexpensiveobviously(especiallythedailyexpensesandthepricesfor
sightseeingsinlargecities),howeverifyouplanyourtripintherightway,youcansavelots
ofmoney!Buycomboticketsforlargecities(you’llgetaticketforallofthemajor
sightseeingsinacityforareducedprice)andrentacartogetherwithotherpeople,soyou
cansharethetravelcosts.Ifyouwanttofly,trytobookyourticketassoonaspossible.
Especiallyduringholidaybreaks(Thanksgiving,Christmas)thepriceswillincrease
dramatically.Butifyouwillkeepcheckingalloftheavailableoptions(differentwebsites,
differentdatesetc.)chancesaregoodyouwilleventuallyfindanaffordableplaneticket(at
leastImanagedtodoso).Incaseyoudidn’tknowitalready,you’llreallyneedacreditcard
topayforeverythingintheUnitedStates.
Study
StudyingatEMUisn’thardatall.There’snotsuchathingasarealfinalexamthatcountsfor
mostofthepoints,asweareusedtoattheRUG,buteverythingwillbedividedoverthe
wholesemester.Thismeansthatyouwillhavemanyassignmentandexamsthroughthe
wholesemester,whichallonaverageaccountforthesamepercentagetothefinalgrade.
ThismeanstheworkloadcanbeseenashigherthanattheRUG,sinceyoubasicallyhaveto
doaloteverysingleweek(you’llgethomework,justlikeatHighSchool).However,thestudy
levelismuchlower,and,forexample,alloftheexamswillbemultiplechoice.Also,there
canbeahugedifferencebetweenthedifferentsubjectsandteachers.Someoftheteachers
arequiteprofessional,someofthemsometimesdon’treallyknowwhatthey’redoing.
There’sawebsitewhereuponyoucanfindalloftheratingsofthedifferentteachers(made
bystudents).Thiswebsitemightbehelpfulwhenselectingyourcourses.EMUdoesn’treally
provideyouwithlotsofinformationaboutthedifferentcoursesinthecourseselection
procedure,whichsometimesmakesitdifficultchoosingtherightones.It’sstillpossibleto
changeacourseaweekafterthesemesterhasstarted.Usuallya400+courseisharderthan
a200+,sincethe4standsfora4thyearstudentscourse,andthe2for2ndyearcourses.Also,
thehigherthenumber,themoreaccompanimentyouwillgetfromyourteacher(more
assignments,butmostlyalsoeasier).However,homeworkandattendancechecksaren’t
unusualatallthroughthewholeuniversity.Foreverycourseyouwillhaveclasstwotimesa
week.Alessonusuallytakesanhourand15minutes.TherearealmostnoclassesonFriday.
Mysemesterstartedonthe8thofSeptemberandIfinisheditonDecemberthe18th.The
lectureseriesendoneweekbeforetheendofthesemester.Thismeanstheexamination
periodwillonlybeoneweek.ButbasicallytheperiodafterThanksgiving(attheendof
November)canalreadybeseenasaverybusyandimportantperiod,sinceallofthemost
importantassignmentsetceterahavetobefinishedduringthoseweeks.Mostoftheexams
intheexaminationperiodwillonlycountfor20%tothefinalgrade,andtheexamwillonly
takeanhourandahalf.Sometimes,acoursedoesn’tevenhaveafinalexamatall.So,the
finalexamperiodatEMUisreallydifferentasopposedtoattheRUG.
Thestudyfacilitiesarequitegood.Therearemultipleorganizedstudyplacesavailabletoall
ofthestudentsandthere’sonelargelibrary,whichisopen24/7.Therearenumerous
computersavailableandprintingisfree(you’llget$25credit,andyou’llneverabletofinish
allofit).Also,everybuildinginTheVillage,theplacewheretheinternationalslive,hasat
leasttwostudyroomsavailable.There’sanOfficeofInternationalStudents(OISS)atthe
StudentCenter,whichorganizesnumerousactivitieseveryweek.Also,youcanalwaysgo
thereifyouneedhelpwithanythingorifyouwanttostudy,sincetheyalsohaveacoupleof
studyplaces.
ThecoursesthatIhavetakenareNewsWriting&Reporting(JRNL215),LeadershipTheories
andPractices(MGMT450),CommercialBanking(FIN453),andSportsandEventMarketing
(MKTG425).
NewsWriting&Reportingwasprobablytheeasiestcourse,alsosinceitisoneofthefirst
coursesoftheMajorJournalism.Itookthiscourse,sinceIwasalwaysalreadyinterestedin
Journalism,butneverhadthechancetofollowacourseinthatdirection.Formyprogram
abroad,Iwasallowedtopicktwocoursesofmyownchoice,whichdidn’thavetodo
anythingwithbusinesseconomics.So,thiswasthefirsttimeIgotthatopportunity.Besides
beingjusteasy,thiscoursealsohadthehighestworkload.Ihadtomakeassignmentsevery
singleweek,sometimesevenmultipleaweek,whichwereallpartofthefinalgrade.The
teacherwasprettystrictandjustdemandedwedidourhomeworkeverysingletime,by
meansofjustgivinggradesforeverything.Thiswasespeciallythecase,sincetherewere
relativelyyoungstudentsinthisclass.Wefinishedtheclasswithafinalproject,which
countedforaround20%tothefinalgrade.Therewasnofinalexam(therewerenoexamsat
all,justassignments).
LeadershipTheoriesandPracticeswasacoursewithmuchmorefreedom.Mainly,thisclass
consistedofstudentsthatwereintheirlastyearandweregraduatingintheyearof2016.
Thefinalgradeconsistedoftwopresentations(both20%each),apaper(20%),afinalexam
(20%)andaparticipationgrade(also20%).Wedidn’treallyhavehomeworkbesidesthat,so
someoftheweekswedidn’treallyhavemuchtodo.Thedegreeofdifficultywashigher
thantheJournalismcourse,butoverall,itwasverydoable(muchbelowthelevelofthe
RUG).
TheCommercialBankingcoursewasprobablythehardestcourseI’vetaken.Thebookand
thelevelofthecoursewerequitecomparabletofinancecoursesattheRUG.However,in
Americatheymainlyfocusonthetheoreticalsideoffinance,whereasattheRUGthey
ratherfocusonthecalculations.Also,sincealloftheexamsweremultiplechoice,
calculationswerereallydifferentfromattheRUG.Thecoursewasprobablyalsothehardest
ofthefour,sincetheclasseswerekindofchaotic.Theteacherwasn’treallygoodatall,and
sometimesjustskippedimportantpartsthatcamebackontheexams,sincehedidn’thave
enoughtime.Thereby,thepaceofthecoursewasalsokindofhigh.Thefinalgrade
consistedoftwosmallexams,threelargeexamsandalargeassignment.Still,overall,the
levelofthecoursewasbelowthelevelattheRUG,soIeasilymanagedtofinishit.
Finally,theSportsandEventsMarketingcoursewasaveryinterestingcourse.Especially
sincethesportseventsinAmericaarehuge,thiscoursegavemenewinsightsinthe
marketingworld.Theprofessoralsotookus,forexample,toaDetroitRedWingsIceHockey
game.Thecoursewasorganizedverywellandtheprofessorwasprofessional.Therefore,
thecoursewasreallydoable.Thefinalgradeconsistedofthreeexams(100pointseach),a
groupassignment(200points),agrouppresentation(50points),andaparticipationgrade
(50points).Overall,itwasreallyeasytogetahighgradeonallofthepartsabove.
Summaryimpression
I’vehadawonderfulexperienceduringmyperiodabroad,andIwouldrecommendanyone
todothesame.Michiganisareallynicestate,it’sveryalive,andtherearelotsofthingsyou
candooverthere!Eventhoughthestudyworkloadwasquitehigh(manyassignments,
manyhomework,allforagradeeveryweek),thestudylevelwasmuchbelowthelevelof
theUniversityofGroningen.Therefore,itwasquiteeasyformetotakeback30ECTStoThe
Netherlands,whichIreallyenjoyed.Besidesstudying,Ialsohadenoughtimetotravel
aroundtheEastCoast.I’veseenallofthelargecitiesattheeastsideofAmerica,whichI’m
reallygladabout.Ididn’tjustgotheretostudy,butalsofortheexperience.Therefore,I
didn’tfeellikethelackofchallengeofferedattheuniversitywasahugeproblemforme.
SpecificReport
NewsWriting&Reporting(JRNL215)
Lecturesandliterature
Therearetwolectureseveryweek,ofwhichbothwilltake75minutes.Usually,theclasses
consistoftheteacherexplainingthematerialbymeansofaPowerPointpresentation,
howevertherewillalsobemanyin-classdiscussionsandassignments.Thebookisn’tthat
importantatall,wedidn’tuseitthatoftenandtherewon’tbeanexam.Still,ifyoudecideto
buythebook,trytobuyausedone(shouldn’tbemoreexpensivethan$10).That’sthecase
foreverycoursebytheway,getyourbooksthroughAmazonorChegg.Itwillbemuch
cheaperthaninthebookstores.
Literature:NewsWritingandReporting,bytheMissouriGroup,11thedition.
Overviewoflectureprogram
Duringthiscourseyou’lllearnhowtowriteinajournalisticmanner.You’lllearnthisina
practicalway,bymeansofmakinglotsofassignments.Thefirstassignmentswillbevery
small,writingaleadforexample,thelastassignmentwillbeafullarticleyourself.Usually,
you’llgetmultipleassignmentsaweek,sotheworkloadcanbeseenasprettyhigh.
However,thedegreeofdifficultyoftheassignmentsisquitelow.
Contents
Stepbystep,you’lllearnhowtowriteasajournalist.Youwillalsolearndifferentwriting
stylesyoucanuseasajournalist,andwhentousethedifferentones.Differenttopicswill
be,forexample,howtowritealead,howtodealwithsources,howtodoaninterview,how
toreportlocalstoriessuchascrimestoriesorpressconferences,howtowritefortheweb,
andhowtodealwiththemediaethics&law.Thereareacouplemoreofthosetopics.On
average,atopicwillbedealtwithinaweek.So,therewillbearound13differenttopics.
Lecture-relatedactivities
AsIalreadysaid,youwillhavetodolotsofdifferentassignments,someofthemin-class,but
mostofthemathome.Thesewillallbewritingassignments,orwillhavetodowithwriting
(findingnews,learnhowtousesourcesetc.).Besidesthat,therewillalsobecomputer
exercises,discussionsandyou’llhavetogiveapresentation.You’llalsohaveassignments
suchasinterviewingrandompeople.Thiswillallhelpyouinordertofinallybeabletowrite
acompletejournalisticpaperyourself.
RelevancetoGroningenstudyprogram
Ithinkthere’snoclassatalllikethisattheRUG,atleastnotattheFacultyofEconomics&
Business.MaybeonlysomeofthereportwritingcoursesattheRUGarealittlebit
comparable,howeverthosecourseswillbegiveninamuchmoretheoreticalandacademic
way.Still,IfounditveryenjoyablehowtolearnhowtowriteinajournalistmannerandI
thinkI’llbeabletoapplythistoeconomicandbusinessarticlesIwillhavetowriteinthe
future.
Studyload
Thestudyloadwillbequitehigh,since,onaverage,you’llhavetomaketwoorthree
assignmentseveryweek,whichwilltakearound2-3hourseach.Inthebeginning,you’llhave
morebutshorterandeasierassignments,intheend,theassignmentswilltakelongerbut
you’llhavelessofthem.Youwon’treallyhavetostudyfortheassignments,andtherewon’t
beanexam.
AssessmentinGroningen
The3Americancreditsareconvertedto7,5ECTSattheRUG.
LeadershipTheoriesandPractices(MGMT450)
Lecturesandliterature
AlsoforthiscourseIhadtwoclasseseveryweek,whichalsobothtook75minuteseach.The
numberoflectureweeksis13(andthenanexaminationperiodofoneweek),justasfor
everyotherclass.Sometimes,therewasnoclass,becausetherewassimplynothingto
discuss(hecancelledthequizzeshedidlastyearsotherewasnothingscheduledonthose
days)andthenhegaveusfreetimetostudyathome.Heusedastudybookhewrote
himself,whichisuseful,butnotnecessary.Onlyforafewin-classassignmentsit’sreally
helpful.Thelatesteditionisreallyexpensive,soIwouldadviseyoutobuy/rentanolder
edition,becauseit’smuchcheaper,especiallywhenyougetitfromAmazonorChegg(you
canalsocheckthosewebsitesforthenewestedition,itmightbecheap).Theoldereditionis
basicallythesameasthenewestbook(thechaptersarestillthesame),onlythepage
numbersdifferalittle.Youdon’treallyhavetostudythebookorreadalotofpages.
Usually,hejustusesittoexercisedifferentsituationsortoexplainthem.
Literature:StewartL.Tubbs.KeystoLeadership:101TipsforSuccess.(10thed).
Overviewoflectureprogram
Theprofessorofthiscoursegaveusstudentsalotoffreedom.Mostofthestudentsinthis
classweregraduatingafterthesemesteranditwasalsoaverysmallgroup.Everyonewas
reallyinvolvedinthelessons,soyoucouldalmostsaytheprofessoranditsstudentswere
friends,that’salsothekindoflessonshewantedtogive(everyonewasreallymotivatedas
well).Everyonewasreallyparticipatinginhislessonsandthat’salsohowhetaughtusthe
tips&tricksofleadership,bymeansofpracticingreallifesituationsfromhisbookinclass.
Sometimes,theseassignmentsaccountedtotheparticipationgrade,whichcountedfor20%
tothefinalgrade.Besidesthisbookexercises,healsousedPowerPointpresentationsand
videostoteachushowtobecomealeader.Notalloftheclasseswerereallythatimportant
andsometimeswehadaperiodwereallydidn’tdomuchatall.Basically,thereareafew
reallyimportantthingsandperiodsandthosearethetwopresentationsyouhavetogivein
thefirst10weeks(bothfor20%each),thepaperyouhavetowriteinthelastmonth(20%),
theexaminthefinalexamweek(20%)andfinally,theparticipationgrade(20%)basedon
thewholesemester.Someofthethingswedidinclassweren’teventhatimportanttoone
oftheabovepartsatall,butwerejustinformative(forexampleadocumentaryabout
DonaldTrump).Also,becauseoftheprofessor’sdeterioratinghealthsituation,wehave
skippedacoupleofmoreclasses,butthiswasn’tactuallyaproblematall.
Contents
Thefirstpresentationisafteraroundtwoweeks,andaccountsfor20%tothefinalgrade.
Thispresentationisaninformativeoneaboutaleadershipbookofyourownchoice(youcan
pickonefromalargelisttheprofessorgivesyou).Thesecondoneisaroundtwomonths
laterandbymeansofthisoneyouhavetoconvincetheaudienceofsomethingofyourown
choice.Youcouldbasicallychooseanytopicyouwouldlikeandthispresentationalsocounts
for20%tothefinalgrade.Intheperiodsbeforethedifferentpresentationstheprofessor
willgiveaPowerPointpresentationabouthowtoprepareforbothofthem.After
Thanksgiving,youwillhavetowriteapaperaboutyourdifferentgoalsinthefieldof
leadership,whichyouhavetoapplytoyourreallife.Duringthewholesemestertherewill
beacoupleofself-tests,whichwillhelpyoutofindyourstrengthsandweaknesses.These
outcomescanhelpyoufindingyourdevelopmentsforthenext30,60,90,and365days.By
meansofreferringtoexamplesfromthetextbook,youwillhavetodescribethese
developments,andthewayinwhichyouaregoingtoachievethem.Finally,youwillhavea
finalexam,whichwillbeabouttwocasesoftheprofessor’schoice.Hewillsendyou20
differentcasesaroundamonthbeforetheexam,whereofheeventuallypickstwo.
Lecture-relatedactivities
Asalreadystated,youwillhavetogivetwopresentationsandyou’llhavetowriteapaper.
Furthermore,therewillbein-class(group)assignments,andself-tests.Mostofthe
assignmentsarereallifecasesfromthetextbook.
RelevancetoGroningenstudyprogram
There’snotreallyacourseattheFEBthat’scomparabletothiscourse.Iactuallyalsonever
hadaleadershipcourseattheRUG,whichwasalsothereasonItookthecourseduringthis
period.It’saveryinterestingcourseandyou’lllearnthingsyouneverthoughtofbefore.This
isespeciallythecase,sincethecourseisgiveninaverypracticalandinformalway.The
professorisveryexperiencedandthestudentsareverymotivated,sothat’swhythiswayof
teachingisactuallyworking.Still,you’llneverseeacourselikethisattheRUG.Thelevelof
teachingwillalwaysbebelowtheleveloftheUniversityofGroningen,andthecoursesat
theRUGwillbemuchmoretheoreticalandacademic.Usually,Ialsodon’treallylikethis
practicalwayofteaching.Thisprofessor(Tubbs),however,didaverygoodjob.
Studyload
Thestudyloadisn’tthathighatall.Exceptfortheperiodsofpreparingthepresentations,
writingthepaper,andstudyingfortheexam,youwon’treallyhavemuchtodo.Andin
betweenofthosedifferentassignments,therewillbeacoupleofweeks.Soyouwon’thave
tostudyaloteverysingleweek,likewiththeJournalismcourse.However,thedifferent
assignmentsarequiteimportant,sotheywillneedsomeseriouspreparation.Iwouldsay
preparingforthepresentationswouldtakearound5hours(maybealittlemore),forthe
paperandexam15-20hours.Thisisalsothecase,sincethisclassisbasicallymeantforthe
olderstudent,whoisalmostgraduating(someofmyclassmatesalreadyhadkids).
AssessmentinGroningen
The3Americancreditsareconvertedto7,5ECTSattheRUG.
CommercialBanking(FIN453)
Lecturesandliterature
Justlikewiththeothercourses,thiscoursehaslecturestwiceaweekof75minuteseach.
ThiscourseisquitecomparabletothecoursesgivenattheRUG.Thelecturesaremore
formalandtheclassesarelarger.Everyweek,wediscussedatopicfromafinancebook
comparabletothestudybooksweuseattheRUG.Thelecturesaremainlybasedonmaking
exercisesanddoingcalculations,justlikethetutorialsattheFacultyofEconomicsand
Businessareorganized.Youreallyhavetocometotheclasses,sincethat’stheonlywayhow
toreceivethedifferentassignmentsandtheanswersonthem(theywon’tbeavailable
online).However,whileinclasswemainlyfocusonmakingassignments,theexamswillbe
muchmoretheoreticalbasedasweareusedtoattheRUG.Therefore,it’salsoreally
importantyou’llstudythegivenchaptersfromthebook.It’salsoimportantyou’llbuythe
righteditionofthebook,sincethepagenumbersneedtomatchexactlyinordertobeable
tomaketherightassignments.Youwillbeabletobuyitforaround$50fromAmazonor
Chegg.You’llreallyneedthestudybook!
Literature:P.S.RoseandS.C.Hudgins,BankManagement&FinancialServices,9thed.
(McGraw-Hill/Irwin).
Overviewoflectureprogram
AsIalreadysaid,everyweekwediscussedadifferentchapterofthestudybookandevery
weekwepracticedafewassignments,whichsometimesareandsometimesaren’tfromthe
book.Youareexpectedtopreparetheseassignmentsathome,howevertheprofessor
usuallywon’tcheckonthatassomeoftheotherAmericanprofessorsmightdo.Also,
attendanceisn’tcompulsory,whichiskindofrareforanAmericanclass.However,you’ll
reallyneedtocometothelectures,sincetheyarenecessaryfortheassignments,justlikeat
theRUG.You’llfocusontopicssuchasbankingregulationsandpolicies,banking
performance,riskmanagement,investmentdecisionmakingandlendingproceduresand
policies.Therewillbetwosmallexams(50pointseach),threelargeexams,ofwhichonein
thefinalexamweek(100pointseach),andonekindoflargeassignment(130points).Allof
theexamswillbemultiplechoice,evenforthecalculationsyou’llbeofferedsomepossible
answers.Youareallowedtouseagraphicalcalculator.
Contents
Thefirstexamwillbeasmallone,andwilltakeplaceaftertwoweeks.Thisonewillmainly
betheoreticalandwillmainlyfocusonthedifferentacts,lawsandregulationstherehave
beeninthefieldoffinanceinthepast.Thechaptersyou’llhavetostudyare1,2,3and4.
Thenextexamwillbealargeone,andwillalsobeaboutthepreviousliterature,butmainly
aboutbankingperformanceandriskmanagement(CH.5-7),sotherewillalsobe
calculations.Thentherewillbeasmallexamagain(CH.7&8)andacorrespondinglargeone
(Ch.7,8&10),bothmainlyaboutriskmanagement,liquidityandreservemanagement,
managingdepositsandnon-depositsandinvestmentsinfinancialservicesmanagement.
Finally,therewillbeafinalexamaboutchapters12,13,16,17and18.Thisexammainly
coverslendingpoliciesandproceduresandthedifferentloantypes.
TheassignmentwillbeduetotheweekafterThanksgivingandwillbebasedoneight
differentinternetexercisesfromthestudybook.Also,you’llhavetowriteeightdifferent
summariesofbankingandfinancerelatedarticles.Thesearticleshavetobeselectedduring
thesemester(onaverageoneeverytwoweeks),somaybeit’seasytoalreadystartselecting
thesearticlesatthebeginningofthesemester.
Lecturerelated-activities
Therewillbein-classassignments,justasweareusedtoattheRUG.Also,you’llhaveto
makeafinancereportasstatedabove.Sometimes,theprofessorwillexplainsome
theoreticalsubjectsbymeansofaPowerPointpresentation.
RelevancetoGroningenstudyprogram
ThiscourseisthemostcomparablecoursetotheGroningenstudyprogramI’vefollowed.
Thestudybook,thedesignationoftheclasses,theassignments,theycouldbethesamefor
afinancecourseattheRUG.Eventhedegreeofdifficultyofthecoursewasquite
comparable.However,stillthingssuchasthecompletemultiplechoiceexams(evenfor
calculations!!),thetheoreticalapproach(insteadofmainlyassignments)andthelevelofthe
professorarereallydifferentfromattheRUG.Maybealsothelimitedunderstandingsofthe
literaturebytheprofessormadethecourseharder.Sometimes,wejustskippedpartsofthe
literaturethatwerepartoftheexam,becausehejustdidn’tunderstanditthatwell,or
becausehedidn’thaveenoughtimetoexplainitanymore.Also,thefactthattheclasses
weresometimeskindofchaoticwithallofthedifferentpapersandassignmentshegaveto
us(sometimeswithoutanswersorexplanations),madeitdifficulttopreparefortheexams.
Studyload
Preparingfortheexamswilltakesometime,Iusuallyspentaroundtwo/threedaysto
prepareforoneexam.You’llhavetostudymultiplechaptersandallofintheinformationin
thechapterscanbeimportant(there’snosummaryavailable).Hewillbasicallyaskanything
fromthegivenchapters.Theexercisesyou’llhavetopreparearen’tthathardatall,but
sometimesit’sjusthardtopreparethembecauseofthefacttheanswerscan’tbefound
anywhereonlineorinthebook.Still,youwon’thavetopreparethemperfectly,sincethey
willbeinmultiplechoiceformatontheexam.Theassignmentyou’llhavetomakeafter
Thanksgivingisn’tthathardeither,butwillalsotakeacoupleofdays(around15-20hours).
Especially,sinceIdidn’tstartcollectingthearticlesduringthesemesteralready,ittookmea
whiletofindtheappropriatearticles.Ifyouwanttosaveyourselfsometimeandeffort,I
wouldadviseyoutoalreadystartcollectingthemsooner.Besidestheexamsandthe
assignment,youweren’texpectedtodoalot.So,intotal,Iwouldsaythestudyloadisn’t
thathighatall,atleastincomparisontoforexampletheJRNL215class.Youdidn’thaveto
handinhomeworkorotherassignmentseverysingleweek.Still,youwillhavenolessthan
fiveexams,whichisquitealot.
AssessmentinGroningen
The3Americancreditsareconvertedto7,5ECTSattheRUG.
SportsandEventMarketing(MKTG425)
Lecturesandliterature
Finally,alsoforthiscourse,Ihadtwolectureseveryweekofboth75minuteseachagain.
Thecourseisorganizedverywell,andisthereforecomparabletoacoursegivenattheRUG.
Theonlydifferenceisthedifficultylevel,whichisagainmuchbelowthelevelasweareused
to.Therefore,Ialsofoundthiscourseveryeasytopass,butthatdoesn’tmakeitless
interesting.Mostly,theprofessorusesaPowerPointpresentationtodiscussthedifferent
chaptersofthestudybook,whichhewrotehimself.Thatmeanshe’salsoveryexperienced
inthematterofsportsandeventmarketing.Hehasbeenallaroundtheworldandtherefore
haslotsofconnections.That’salsowhyhewasabletobringustoaDetroitRedWingsIce
Hockeygameduringaclassday,asVIP’s.Ifoundthisclassveryinteresting,especiallysince
thesportsandeventsarehugeinAmerica.Thestudybookisverycomparabletoa
marketingstudybookweuseattheRUG.Youcanbuyausedversionforaround$50from
Amazon,whichIdid.However,it’salsopossibletobuyausedonefromtheprofessor
(Fullerton)foraround$20,sincehe’stheauthor,whichIdidn’tknowatfirst.
Literature:SamFullerton,SportsMarketing,2ndedition.
Overviewoflectureprogram
Everyclasstheteacherwilljustbediscussinganewchapterofstudybookbymeansofa
PowerPointpresentation.Mainly,it’sjusttheprofessortalkingandthestudentslisteningfor
thefull75minutes.Sometimes,therewillbeasmallin-classassignmentwhichhastodo
withthesubjectdiscussedandwhichwillcounttoyourparticipationgrade.The
participationgradecountsforaround10%toyourfinalgrade.Attendanceisn’tcompulsory
andthere’susuallynopreparationneededforthelectures.Overall,thiscoursewon’ttake
thatmuchtime.
Contents
TherewillbethreeexamsalreadybeforetheThanksgivingbreak.Thismeanstherewillbe
nofinalexaminthefinalexamweek.Alloftheexamscountfor100pointstothefinalgrade
andwillbebasedondifferentchaptersofthestudybook.Iwouldreallyadviseyoutostudy
thePowerPointpresentationsrelatedtothedifferentchapters,sincetheycoverthemost
importantmaterial.ThePowerPointpresentationswillbeavailableonlinethroughCanvas.
Alloftheexamswillbemultiplechoice.Besidesthethreeexams,therewillbeagroup
assignmentafterThanksgiving,whichcountsfor200pointstothefinalgrade.Forthis
assignmentyou’llhavetomakeamarketingplanforalargeupcomingeventyourselves.
Finally,you’llhavetopresenttheplantotheclassfor50points.Again,therewillalsobea
participationgrade(50points).Subjectsthatwillbediscussedareverysimilartomarketing
subjectswe’velearnedattheRUG(4P’setc.),buteverythingwillnowbesports-oriented.
AndmostofthesportseventsdiscussedwillbeAmericansports,whichsometimesmakesit
hardtofollow.
Lecture-relatedactivities
Therewillbesmallin-classassignmentsthatcounttoyourparticipationgrade.Furthermore,
therewillbealargegroupassignment,wherefromtheoutcomeseventuallyhavetobe
presentedtotheclass.
RelevancetoGroningenstudyprogram
ThecourseiscomparabletoamarketingcoursegivenattheRUG.Itisorganizedverywell,
thelecturesandPowerPointpresentationsaregoodandgiveninaformalwaylikeweare
usedto,theprofessorisveryexperiencedandthetextbooklookstotallysimilartothe
textbooksweuse.Also,someofthesubjectswediscussedarethesameaswediscussedin
themarketingclassinmyfirstyear.Nowonlyeverythingwassports-oriented.Theonlylarge
differenceisthatthedifficultylevelismuchlower,especiallysincetheexamsaremultiple
choice,andtherebytheexamsarelessprofoundthaninGroningen.
Studyload
Thestudyloadforthiscourseisn’tthathighatall.Therewillbenohomeworkandyouwon’t
havetoprepareanythingforclass.So,theonlytimewhenyoureallyhavetostudyisright
beforetheexamsandaftertheThanksgivingbreakwhenyou’reworkingonthegroup
assignment.Usually,Ispentaroundoneortwodaysstudyingforanexam,ofwhichyou’ll
havethree.Again,theseexamsaren’thardatallandit’smostlymemorizingthePowerPoint
presentationsandtheblackboxesinthestudybookwhatyou’llhavetodo.Alsothegroup
assignmentwon’ttakethatmuchtime,sinceyoucaneasilydividetheworkthathastobe
donebyfourorfivepeople.IthinkI’veworkedaroundtwoorthreenightsonthat
assignment.
AssessmentinGroningen
The3Americancreditsareconvertedto7,5ECTSattheRUG.