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EXCHANGE REPORT , GOIZUETA BUSINESS SCHOOL

LUK CHUN YIN MARS QUANTITATIVE FINANCE, FALL 2018

MONTHLY ACTIVITY LOG

April 2018 – June 2018 Emory’s exchange coordinator, Anna started to email me all the information required regarding the visa application, residence fee, medical report as well as the course available to me. In fact, it did spend me some time to prepare all the documents, but these are easy to handle with. Therefore, I did not face many obstacles and looked forward to the exchange program.

August 2018 Since I bought the student discount ticket from Cathay Pacific which is partnered with HKUST, there was no direct flight from Hong Kong to . Therefore, I chose to land in Los Angela and bought the connect flight ticket from Delta. The arrangement was acceptable because the gap in between was only 4 hours. Right after I landed Atlanta, the next day is the official orientation period which lasts for 3 days. I met my friends there from different backgrounds and had a nice time chatting with them. Also, that was the right time for me to hang around the campus and got familiar with the bus routes connecting between my dorm as well as the campus.

September 2018 My fall semester officially got started and I took 5 courses in total including International Finance, Multivariable Calculus, Linearly Algebra, Entrepreneurial Private Equity and Fixed Income. As for the math courses, they were generally easier than those taken at HKUST, but they did have quizzes every week to keep track of our learning progress. Adding to my studies, I also involved in campus activities, including the International Lunch Hour and Exchange Students City Tour. As for the International Lunch Hour, it held every Friday and offered free lunch to students. Without a doubt, it is a good place to make new friends.

October 2018 My studies gradually got settled. I usually spent the weekends to travel around Atlanta. Since Emory University is not located in the Downtown area where tourists’ attractions are clustered around, I needed to share the Uber cost with my friends going along with me. During that period of time, I visited the World of Coca Cola, , CNN Tower and the Park. These places were all fun. Adding to the local tour, I went for a 4-day trip to Chicago with my roommate and friends. The whole trip could 2 be separated into 2 parts which included natural landscape visiting as well as city exploring. For the first half, we rent a bike and went to Kellogg School of Management. As for the city side, we went to Millennium Park, Navy Pier and the 360 Chicago Observation Deck.

Emory:

Georgia Aquarium

CNN Tower

Chicago:

Millennium Park

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Kellogg School of Management

View from 360 Chicago Observation Deck

November 2018 November is still the midterm period. Having 5 midterms, I majorly did revision in the first 2 weeks. Although it was tough, I enjoy staying in the library at Emory University because the coffee shop in the basement was pretty nice. Unlike the one at HKUST, there were 2 floors which were available for eating and drinking and the vibe was very chill. For the second half of November, I have been to 2 cities in Canada which were Montreal and Toronto. The journey was impromptu because I proposed and drafted the trip while having a phone call with 2 friends who were also in the exchange program from the University of Texas at Austin and Florida University. Thanks to the fact that we 3 have friends across these 2 cities, the trip was well planned. The highlight of the trip was that my friend’s parent drove us to the Niagara Fall.

December 2018 December is the finale of my exchange journey. After I finished all the exam, I seized the final opportunity to explore the whole states. My first station is Boston. Boston was a place for delicious cuisine, especially lobsters and renown school network. Follow of which is the New York, this place undoubtedly is the financial hub in the states and Wall Street was a must-go spot if you were a financial guy. Last but not least, it comes to my final station which is Los Angeles. This place means a lot to me because this was the starting point of my journey after all. LA is a place that a lot of Asian live and is highly suitable

4 for enjoying life. On the 31st of December, I arrived in Hong Kong and this is the end of my exchange program.

GENERAL INFORMATION

VISA PROCEDURES

To start with, we have to make sure that we are applying for J-1 exchange visitor visa and Emory University is our sponsoring organization. Then, we apply for DS-2019 which requires our financial support proof. Before proceeding, we have to pay a SEVIS I-901 fee to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) as part of your J-1 visa application. Apart from this, another fee we will be required to pay is the Nonimmigrant Visa Application Processing Fee, which is $160 and can be paid by visiting the Department of State’s Fee for Visa Services. The last step of all is to attend the interview with a US Embassy. Do not worry about the interview because we only need to answer some basic information using English. After that, we can collect the visa through the delivery center and the visa is embedded in the new passport.

ORIENTATION ACTIVITIES

There were a series of orientation activities a week before the semester officially got started. The orientation was held at the business school and was very informative. Being broken down into several sessions, it includes information regarding visa issues, working in Atlanta, courses registration, school career support, phone card issues as well as the closest supermarket next to the campus. I recommend picking up this opportunity to clear all the concerns that can be popped up in your mind.

INTERNATIONAL SERVICE AND ACTIVITY

Indeed, I did not join any international service across those 4 months. But I did join the International Lunch Hour hosted by the church organization at Emory University. They provided free lunch to Emory students and it was a good time to makes new friends from different nationality and background.

5 ACCOMODATION

I lived in Clairmont Tower throughout the 4 months. I will say that I was pretty lucky because at first, I was not allocated any dorm spot but forced to live in High Land Lake which is a popular place that many exchange students live. One major drawback was that it was outside the campus and the transportation was a bit inconvenient. As for Clairmont, it is a flat of 4 people. The flat is pretty big and there is a balcony in every flat. Next to the building, there is a student service center where a gym and a café are located. All in all, I like it and since 2 people have to share a room together, having a good roommate will be a big plus.

COURSE REGISTRATION

It is an easy process. 2 months before the exchange program, Anna the coordinator sent me a form that required me to fill in 10 courses preference. I recommend before filling that, we do have to check which courses can be transferred back to HKUST. So shortly after 1 month, I could see the course registration result in the platform yet, it was not the final one. There will be an add-drop period before the semester. Also, one point I want to stress is that we can always ask Anna for help when we face any course registration obstacles. She is very helpful. My courses taken are shown below:

• FIN429: Fixed Income • FIN427: International Finance • FIN485: Entrepreneurial Private Equity • MATH211: Adv Calculus (Multivariable) • MATH221: Linear Algebra

TEACHING AND ASSIGNMENT METHODS

Let me start by talking about math courses. The teaching speed of math courses there is a bit slower than HKUST but what makes it so special is that it has quizzes and homework every week. And for finance courses, the project there are more interesting. It is much more than forming a group and finish the same set of assignment together. For example, our team did a case study about Turkey Currencies Crisis and was required to make an 6 I-bank style pitching material. For the fixed income course, I needed to plot the forward rate curve to price a coupon bond which was highly practical.

SPORTS & RECREATION FACILITIES

There is no lack of sports facilities around the campus. Firstly, there is a big gymnasium in the center of the campus. It has 3 floors and has all the equipment that you can think of. For instance, basketball court, gym rooms, table tennis court and swimming pools etc. Besides, if you are living at Clairmont, the student service center is a good place to kill time. It is equipped with gym rooms (2 floors) and studying room which can cater to the need of discussing group project.

FINANCE AND BANKING

I did not open any bank account in the US. I use the credit card and the debit card from Hong Kong. However, I recommend that you can open an account in the US because there is no exchange rate loss from using it. Moreover, if you want to withdraw money using UnionPay, you can reach to ATM machines which are stated with “Union Pay”. Moreover, there are BOAML and SunTrust ATM machines in the Emory Campus.

HEALTH AND SAFETY

Buying Insurance is a must before landing at Emory University. Together with other information, Anna sent me a default insurance scheme. That one is very costly because it has a very board coverage of medical care. However, I decided to substitute it by the one I found online, which is issued by ISO. That one is basically trash, but it is very cheap. It can help me fulfill the insurance requirement. Moreover, luckily, I did not get sick during the 4 months and I did not consult the clinic at Emory University either. For safety wise, the campus is pretty safe and I always go back dorm alone after 9:00 pm lessons every Wednesday. Indeed, I do enjoy doing so because the environment is quiet and is a good time for me to refresh after the whole tired day.

7 FOOD

There are a lot of restaurants on the campus. There are majorly 2 big ones which are Cox Hall and Duckling Hall. Cox Hall is like a food court where different styles of food can be found. If you miss the Chinese food, the rice bowl in Cox Hall can help u a bit. As for Duckling hall, it is a lunch buffet but never expect much about that. The food is just so- so but if you are pretty hungry, Duckling can feed you up. However, I ate ready meals the most that brought from Walmart because it is cheap and it can be stored in the fridge for a long time. When you feel lazy cooking, ready meals are a good choice.

TRANSPORTATION

Driving is the best transportation among all. Since I do not have a driving license, I reply on the Emory Shuttle bus system. “Route C” connects Clairmont Building with the Business Building while “Loop” continuously circulates the campus. It brings you anywhere, but it takes you some time. As for reaching places that the system not yet covers, I have no choice but taking Lyft and Uber. It is expensive but we have to admit that it is the only way.

CLIMATE

Atlanta is generally warm. During August and September, the temperature is about 18 to 20 degree something. But from October to December, it becomes much cooler and the temperature can reach 7 to 10 degrees. One point to be noted is that the temperature difference between day time and night can be pretty big. So, I recommend to always put a coat inside your backpack.

COMMUNICATION

In Emory University, we usually communicate with professors using emails like HKUST. But unlike Hong Kong people, US people like using Massager from Facebook. So, if you want to make new friends, the most effective way is to leave your Facebook contact with them. As for the mobile plan, I used the 8GB data plan with an unlimited amount of phone calls from AT&T. And of course, T-mobile is also a good alternative so you should better check the discount between these 2 stores before making the decision.

8 CAUTIONARY MEASURES

I think one thing we have to always keep in mind is that we need to be cautious no matter where we go. Because all in all, we are not the local and we need to think about how we should go back to the dorm before any sightseeing activity. Also, we should always check that our credit card is usable because non-cash payment is the major means of transaction in the US. Moreover, we should always bring some cash on hand just in case our cards go faulty. Last but not least, always charge up your phone before leaving campus because Uber and Lyft only accept online payment.

ITEM TO BRING

• DS 2019 • Passport with visa embedded • Pillow, bedsheet, bracket (can be brought in US later) • Credit cards • Debit cards • Laptop with a charger • Clothes (jacket + heat-tech) • Decent amount of USD • Insurance Card • Medicine • Anything you think that is hardly buy in the US

USEFUL LINKS & CONTACTS

• https://www.isoa.org/ ^ Third party insurance company • https://canvas.emory.edu/ ^ Canvas of Emory • http://www.ustraveldocs.com/hk/hk-niv-visatypeinfo.asp ^ US Visa application • 911 ^ Life-threatening emergencies call

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