Experience paper - Appalachian State University Wirtschaftsingenieurwesen 5 th Semester at DHBW Mannheim Graduation September 2018 I stayed abroad for the Fall Semester 2017 (mid-august till mid-december)
1. Preparation Once you are selected for the exchange program by the DHBW you are automatically accepted by App state and they send you a letter with all the necessary information. Then it s again your turn to make at least the following preparations (maybe more): - Language skills: I didn t have to take an English test like TOEFL. My Abitur was enough. - Visum: For me it was first an online registration, then an appointment at the consulate in Frankfurt (may take a whole day) - Course selection: Since I am a Wirtschaftsingenieur I had to choose at least 2 engineering courses out of my 5 courses. Since App state has a big business school but not really engineering I chose: Human Resources, Six Sigma, and Quality Management, Procurement, Intro to Environmental Science and Engineering and environmental physics. I looked for interesting courses online, discussed them with my Studiengangsleiter and my supervisor in the company and sent my selection to the App state people. - Housing: Just register on the webpage and give some preferences about the character your roommate should have to get along with you. My roommate was a big part of the greatness of the semester. But I also heard a lot of complaints from other International Students. - Health Insurance - Vaccinations (!) I forgot the vaccination because I thought it was the same as health insurance and I didn't double check my list. Fortunately, they were very helpful and even let me do one vaccination on campus - Flight: I had a direct flight from Frankfurt to Charlotte with American Airlines. Be 100% sure about the date you have to arrive (before orientation) to book the flight. If possible, take some time to travel after the semester and do not to take the first flight back. - Goodbye (to friends, family, colleagues) 2. Studying in the United States - Arrival: App state has a Club just to entertain the ca. 80 International Students and to make the campus more International, called International Appalachian (INTAPP). Two INTAPP members pick you up from the airport, bring you to the hotel and show you places to eat. - Orientation The first week of the semester is a MANDATORY introduction. You receive all necessary information to have a successful start.
- Academics My English is not very good but I was able to follow the lectures and to write all the homework in a way that the teachers were happy. You definitely have to do some homework always during the semester but you have enough time to do that since you probably only have around 3-4 hours of lecture every day. It is definitely easier to get full credit in the United States than in Germany! Because I study Wirtschaftsingenieurwesen" I had a double major in business and engineering and had to choose courses of the business area as well as from the engineering area. You can find the list of my courses in the appendix. In general, I experienced the engineering courses as more interesting than the business classes. The level of the exams was much easier than at the DHBW and most of the exams were just multiple choice. 3. Living on Campus in the United States I spent most of my free time running, biking, swimming, hiking or doing something else with other students. If you like to party it is definitely a problem to be under the age of 21, because you are not even allowed to enter the bars with your friends, even if you plan to drink non-alcoholic. The university has a lot of good sports clubs and three recreation centers on campus with weightlifting, balls and even an indoor university swimming pool and a climbing wall. I also had the chance to rent a trombone for free from the college of music and join the Community band. The school of music offers all kinds of instruments and there are several ensembles on campus you can join. Boone and the Appalachian State University is a great starting point for several trips to destinations along the U.S. East Coast. Many international students went to New York, Washington D.C, Atlanta, Miami I did hiking and backpacking trips in the Smoky Mountains National Park and to the South (Atlanta, Miami etc.) which I can really recommend, especially in the winter. 4. Conclusion and own opinion The U.S. is very big and as a consequence, it may differ a lot between the regions. However, I can talk about my impression of life at App state: - Similarities to Germany The alphabet is obviously the same as in Germany and they don t have such strong dialect that you don t understand them. The culture is not as different as e.g. Asia. And you always recognize the European origin. The weather is similar too, but it is sunnier in the winter
- Differences to Germany There are so many differences to Germany that it is not possible to talk about all of them. I try to mention examples which were most important for me: a) food: no dark bread to buy, fewer vegetables in a basic meal and most groceries are much more expensive than in Germany b) The people are very open and friendly but once you need help you see who is really your friend. In general, the people are punctual like in Germany but they go with the flow and if they have something more important to do you have to wait. c) All activities are on campus, you don t have to commute like in Germany. There are much more free time activities than at the DHBW - most negative experience Cars every time and everywhere. - most positive experience Meeting so many new friends (especially my roommate Ivasun) Why especially Appstate? If you love the Mountains and all kind of Outdoor activities, this is the exchange university to go. The Appalachian Mountains are by far not as high as the Rocky Mountains but they are great for many different outdoor activities and offer a great view. Furthermore, Appstate is the most sustainability focused university in the US outside of California. If you want to enlarge your knowledge in sustainability or environmental studies, Appstate offers you excellent classes and expert talks about this subject. Last but not least Appstate is famous for its support of the international students. Throughout the semester there are many possibilities to get involved and the International Office of the Appalachian State University tries to support the International students as much as they can. All the services and infrastructure have a high price. Domestic students have to pay 15.000$ to study there. Maybe the University of Santa Barbara in California is a better college but the connection of Appstate with the DHBW gives you an unbelievable financial advantage since you only have to pay for housing, meal plan, some smaller things. Living costs are high and it is still expensive though. But if you have the chance, try to go a whole year and not just one semester! It is a great experience and most of the International Students (including me) wished that they could stay longer.
5. Appendix Class No. Class name Credits of host university ENV 1010 Intro Environ SCI & Engineering 3 MGT 3620 Human Resource Management 3 PHY 3140 Environmental Physics 3 SCM 3670 Six Sigma & Quality Mgmt 3 SCM 3720 Strat Procure & Global Sourcing 3