My experience in St. Gallen was really good both from an academic
and professional perspective and from a social point of view. I had the chance
to take part in very interesting career events (eg. Banking Days) which are
usually just organized for regular students and which can be particularly
helpful especially if interested in banking and consulting.
Courses
I decided to do 29 ECTS while there and it was completely
manageable. I chose 4 Exclusive CEMS courses (just for CEMS students- Applied
Corporate and International Finance, Basics in Energy Finance, Managing
Strategic Customers, International Corporate Governance), 1 Elective course
(Industrial Ecology) and the mandatory GSM. Everything was quite manageable
since exams/final presentations were spread through the semester. Final results
were fair, except for Managing Strategic Customers which was really demanding
and at the end lots of students were surprised with final result (apart from
that, it was the most interesting course I had in St. Gallen).
Housing
Personally, I
found my room through the Facebook group “Sharing Is Caring University of St.
Gallen (HSG)” which is extremely useful. Otherwise there’s the housing service
of the university.
University
Facilities
are very good and everything regarding organization as well. Library is well
equipped and big (compared to Nova’s one). You also have a very nice gym that
you can use for free as a student and various kind of courses to keep fit!
Sightseeing
St. Gallen is
not a big town but you can have a lot of fun there. The CEMS Club is really
active in organizing events (both formal and super informal) and also for
exchange students there is the BuddySystem plans a lot of parties, trips,
dinners and you’ll meet amazing people there for sure (not only fellow CEMSies).
The region
surrounding St. Gallen is really beautiful especially if you like hiking or
skiing (you have a lot of famous skiing spots nearby). Moreover, it is very
easy to reach Zurich, Austria and Germany. Then, Switzerland is very small so
you can easily do day trips to the other main cities.
Visa
I was not required any Visa. I just had to register (as any
foreigner) at the City Hall. Everything is provided in the Welcome Days by
university.
Vaccines
No vaccines necessary
Surprises
It was an amazing time there!
--
By Tiziana Fagotto
, Class of 2014/2015
Term abroad - Fall 2014
Nationality: Italian
Country of residence:
Italy
Home School: Nova SBE
Host School: St. Gallen
University (HSG)
