EXCHANGE REPORT Brigham Young University Marrio& Business School 2017 Fall Lo Wing Ki Year 4, Marke>ng and Management Monthly AcAvity Log September When I arrived BYU, there were student orienta>ons around the campus, including campus tours. As a exchange student, the general orienta>on for new students is op>onal, I only had to a&end the exchange student orienta>on. It was a very useful event, I could get to know other exchange students, the campus, important offices and contacts I need to know, and the schedule of ac>vi>es they arranged for exchange students. Other than that, during the week, there were booths of clubs and socie>es in the campus, you can join clubs that you are interested in to know more people in the school. Most importantly, I had to get the student ID card, it is a card that keeps the dining dollar and cougar cash (money you can use for prin>ng, laundry, purchase in byu stores). In September, I spent some >me to get used to the environment, to explore restaurants around. I also watched one of the most important football games of the year. The college football games here are really loud and exci>ng, I definitely recommend watching at least one. If you are keen on sports, you can consider buying a ROC pass, which let you get in any of the games, you can also sell it legally before you leave. AWer mee>ng the exchange students, we took >me together to visit Salt Lake City, and took road trips together. The highlight was the Bryce Canyon Na>onal Park, this na>onal park was my favourite. If you have >me, I recommend visi>ng all 5 of Utah’s well-known big five na>onal parks., natural scenery is definitely the best thing in Utah. October I took a class which was my most unforge&able one, Interna>onal Marke>ng, the professor was really nice, I got chance to visit his house, and tried four wheelers and racers on the mountain. The professor was really nice to exchange students, we had many field trips out of the classroom, which was a really great way to interact with classmates and experience the culture. One of the must-dos in BYU is to hike the Y-mountain, all BYU students hiked the Y. In October, BYU had a home coming week, which you can a&end many events organised by BYU. One of the events was Light the Y, we hiked the Y mountain, and all students lighted up the Y at one >me, the scenery was fascina>ng. In October, I also watched BYU soccer game, which was exci>ng as well. I visited the Arches Na>onal Park, another place I would recommend. As I am living on campus housing, they have ac>vity every Monday, called FHE. They tried to gather every Monday to meet and hang out, it was a good way to know other residents and not to bored by school. October was also the month of Halloween, I got to go to the corn maze and haunted house. BYU also has celebra>on of halloween, we had large “truck or treat”, truck version of trick or treat near the stadium of BYU. At night, I also trick-or-treat in Provo downtown with my roommates and friends. November In November, although there were much work from school (classes here require many readings and assignments), I spent >me in watching basketball games and visit around Provo. There were many scenery spots around such as waterfalls and mountains that worth exploring, I enjoyed hiking here with my friends. Another highlight of the month was thanksgiving holiday, it was a big holiday here, we got a week off school. I took a trip to San Francisco with other exchange students, and experienced the Black Friday crazy shopping there. I also went to my professor’s house to have a tradi>onal thanksgiving meal. December and January December was finals and presenta>ons month, everyone was busy about school. However, it was also Christmas month, Christmas month was huge here in Utah because of the Mormon religion, visi>ng Temple Square Christmas lights in Salt lake city was a must do here each year. Besides study, I spent >me in visi>ng the museums in the school, BYU has a great art museum worth visi>ng. Students living on-campus housing could also a&end the Christmas Dance in the Hall. I also spent a weekend at my friend’s house in Layton Utah, their family was nice, we celebrated for Christmas together with good food. AWer finals, I started to travel around in the U.S, visited more na>onal parks, na>onal parks are s>ll my favourite. General Exchange Informaon Visa Procedures The visa applica>on is easy, make sure to follow BYU’s guides and do it earlier. Send all the forms and documents to BYU according to their instruc>ons, then they will mail the visa form to you. Once I received the mail from BYU, I can make appointment online and make payment, then go to the consulate for interview. It took me half month to a month to get the visa, but i suggest applying it as early as possible. OrientaAon AcAviAes I joined the exchange student orienta>on before the semester start, you can meet other exchange students and have a campus tour. And they will tell you more reminders on visa and tell you everything you need. InternaAonal Services & AcAviAes BYU interna>onal student office organised many events for us, there was at least one ac>vity per month, such as football games, halloween haunted house, Christmas celebra>on etc. AccommodaAons You can choose among on-campus housing and off-campus housing. Be aware that when looking for off-campus housing, you have to look for one semester only housing, or else you have to sell it out yourself at the end of semester. I lived in the Helaman Hall (on-campus), I do recommend Hinckley, it is very close to the business building and student centre. You can sign a pe>>on to release the contract for the next semester, instead of selling it by yourself. Also, one of the pros living on-campus is that you can meet many other residents, and there are different ac>vi>es organised in the Hall. On-campus housings are very clean, because we have cleaning check once per month. Helaman Halls do not have full kitchen on each floor, so it is inconvenient to cook. If you prefer living in a flat with kitchen, you may want to choose Heritage Halls. As I am living in Helaman Halls, I was also required to subscribe to a full non-refundable meal plan, the price was quite high. Courses Registraon AWer BYU told me I can start enrolling classes, I started to research and send the officer-in-charge all the class codes and sessions I would like to enroll in, then the officer will help. Because many classes are majors-only which I could not register by myself. Teaching & Assessment Methods I only took four courses, so that the workload is not very huge. But when compare to HKUST, BYU has a higher workload, they have more exams, readings, assignments, presenta>ons. However, the classmates and professors are really nice, and willing to help, I got many chances to speak and interact in classes instead of just sing in the classroom. As long as you finish each assignment, the grading is not bad. Sports & RecreaAon Facilies There are many sports you can prac>se in BYU, if you are keen on sports, the baseball games, football games, basketball games, volleyball games, soccer games would not disappoint you. There are many sports facili>es including regular sized basketball courts, soccer field, sports field house, indoor swimming pool and gyms, all within walking distance. Cost and expenses Airfare HKD 6000 Accommodation USD 1500 Textbooks and course materials USD 250 BYU HealthPlan USD 300 Meal Plan USD 1500 Visa application ~HKD 2700 Mobile phone plan USD 250 The expenses above include only the compulsory charges, do not include travel expenses, food, transporta>on, miscellaneous. The expenses on meal plan could be avoided if you live in other on- campus housing with full kitchen or off-campus housing. Also the textbooks in the States are expensive, I bought ebooks online. Some students would rent used textbooks on Amazon too. Social Clubs & Networking OpportuniAes There are many ways to meet people in BYU, such as a&ending ward ac>vi>es, hall ac>vi>es, or clubs ac>vi>es which you can join clubs at first week of school. Health & Safety Provo Utah is a safe place generally speaking, maybe it is because people here have religious backgrounds, they are nice to people and willing to help all the >me. Also, exchange students are required to buy the BYU Health plan as health insurance here, you can go to the BYU health centre whenever you are sick. Food There are many food choices within the campus, mostly fast food. You can also find all kinds of restaurants off campus, especially in Orem (the city next to Provo, takes 20-30 minutes by bus), Provo downtown, or around BYU. TransportaAon Many people would recommend driving around, because taking bus is more >me consuming and more costly comparing to drive. However, I think it is s>ll a good op>on if you want to move around yourself.