Abroad101: Study Abroad Reviews

Great Erasmus Past Review

By (Government, The College of William and Mary) - abroad from 02/02/2012 to 06/15/2012 with

Vienna University of Economics and Business: Vienna - Direct Enrollment & Exchange

What did you gain/learn from your experience abroad? Was it worthwhile?
It was worthwhile. I got important credits, and I learned a lot. I took some more "for me" economics classes. Working in teams with international students was really fun.

Personal Information

How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? 1 month - 6 months

Review Your Program

* Overall educational experience

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

It is rigorous that you will definitely learn and have weeks where you have to work about as hard as home. That being said professors understand that you are on ERASMUS and do not hold you to the same standards as full time students.

* Host Country Program Administration

On-site administration of your program

I really did not deal with them much. The OK program helps you figure out registration etc.

* Housing:

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

Soviet, but living with such a diverse crew of ERASMUS students was great.

* Food:

Depends how good your cooking is and your budget. Viennese food is really unhealthy but delicious if you will eat it.

* Social & Cultural Integration:

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

I felt like I had limited interaction with the Viennese. That being said my group of friends were from all over the world. If you want to have an ERASMUS experience in which few Americans can participate this is an amazing program. I didn't speak German before I came which I am sure is part of the reason I didn't totally integrate.

* Health Care:

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

* Safety:

Vienna is the safest place I have ever been to in my life.

If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? Yes

Finances

* Money: How easily were you able to live on a student's budget?

(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost)

I think this website's idea of a student budget is very low. Vienna is a European capital city so yeah its more expensive than like rural Africa. It will probably cost you like $150-$200/ week legitimately depending on how often you go out. It is less expensive than London or Paris.

* Was housing included in your program cost? No
* Was food included in your program cost? No
Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? $200
Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? Cook from the beginning and keep an eye on it. The brutal thing is when you go out and spend like $100 in a single night. If you can avoid that you are in good shape. Also start like a cooking rotation with dorm mates so you only have to spend enough money for 1 dinner/week for 7 people (often <$40).

Language

* Did your program have a foreign language component? Yes
How much did the program encourage you to use the language?

0 = No encouragement, 5 = frequent encouragement to use the language

How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? None
How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program? Beginner
What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? None
How many hours per day did you use the language?
Do you have any tips/advice on the best ways to practice the language for future study abroad participants? Seek out your buddy, and make a point of using it when you are talking with others who speak it/ shop owners. That being said WU -Wien is not a language program, so don't come in as a beginner and expect to become good at it. Everyone speaks English so if you don't speak some German, Austrians and others would just rather speak in English, so you can have real conversations.

Direct Enrollment/Exchange

* Did you study abroad through an exchange program or did you directly enroll in the foreign university? Exchange

Other Program Information

* Where did you live?

Select all that apply

  • Dorm
* Who did you live with?

Select all that apply

  • Local Students
  • Americans
  • International Students
* Who did you take classes with?

Select all that apply

  • Local Students
  • Americans
  • International Students
About how many local friends did you make that you will likely keep in touch with?

A Look Back

* What did you like most about the program?
  • Meeting people from all over the world.
  • Getting to take classes about European Economics during the Euro crisis.
  • Travelling with fun, new friends.
* What could be improved?
  • Opportunities to learn German.
  • Explanation of the housing process.
* What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? More about the workload and how the classes were structured.

Individual Course Reviews

Course Name/Rating:

Global Strategic Management
Course Department: Business
Instructor: Brigitte Bojokowski
Instruction Language: English
Comments: Easy, but Brigitte taught us all that you would expect from the course at W&M. The weekly presentations required at least some preparation for each class.
Credit Transfer Issues:
Course Name/Rating:

Corporate Finance
Course Department: Business
Instructor: Christian Kriedl
Instruction Language: English
Comments: Great review of BUAD 234, intro to finance. You learn a couple new things but essentially it was a good review, which I needed desperately.
Credit Transfer Issues:
Course Name/Rating:

International Finance
Course Department: Business
Instructor: Pablo Colazzo-Yelpo
Instruction Language: English
Comments: He was funny and engaging. The material was quite challenging as it was a master level course but he explained it well. I was glad I did the master level because it counted for a 400 Level Finance course at home.
Credit Transfer Issues:
Course Name/Rating:

European Economic Policy and the Labor Market
Course Department: Economics
Instructor: Georg Busch
Instruction Language: English
Comments: He is so knowledgeable being a high level Eurocrat. I learned a ton, and I think I caught up on a lot by writing my paper and doing the presentation and listening to the presentations of others. This class I think was the most fun I have had in acedemia in a while.
Credit Transfer Issues: It probably won't count for credit because the Economics department is notoriously difficult to get credit from.
Course Name/Rating:

Environment-Energy-Society
Course Department: Economics
Instructor: Petra Wachter
Instruction Language: English
Comments: It was weird. It was a hippie environmental class at a Business School. The conference with the 4 other Viennese Universities was pretty good.
Credit Transfer Issues: Almost certainly will not count for any credits back home.