Fulbright Arrival Orientation August 27-28, 2015 Handbook Table of contents Congratulations & Welcome ........................................................................................... 3 Agenda ............................................................................................................................... 4 Staff .................................................................................................................................... 5 Key Figures of The Danish-American Fulbright Commission ................................... 6 Security Matters ............................................................................................................... 7 Sexual Harassment and discrimination ...................................................................... 10 The Danish Higher Education System ........................................................................ 11 Religion ............................................................................................................................ 17 Fulbright – More Than A Grant! ................................................................................... 18 Municipality Information – Moving to Denmark ....................................................... 21 Public Holidays in Denmark .......................................................................................... 30 Currency .......................................................................................................................... 35 Living Expenses & General Information ..................................................................... 37 Medicine & Health .......................................................................................................... 45 Clothing Sizes ................................................................................................................. 48 Temperature Scale ......................................................................................................... 49 Weather ............................................................................................................................ 50 Some Useful Homepages .............................................................................................. 51 U.S. Tax Information ..................................................................................................... 55 American Fulbright Grantees in Denmark - 2015-2016 ......................................... 56 2 Congratulations & Welcome to Denmark and to your Fulbright experience. On behalf of the Danish-American Fulbright Commission, we are looking forward to helping you have a great Fulbright experience. Hopefully, what you are now setting out to do will change the rest of your life. Nothing less than that! Please remember that this will be your experience, and you are the only person who can really ensure the success of your stay here. Your positive attitude and capability for coping with things unfamiliar – sometimes uncomfortably so - will be the decisive factors for the outcome of your stay in Denmark. By making you responsible and in charge, we follow the spirit of the Fulbright exchange program. But naturally it does not mean that the Danish-American Fulbright Commission will not be there to help you while you are in Denmark. We trust that you will contact us if you need our help and we’ll be there for you – but we will not be forcing us on your experience. During the Arrival Orientation the Danish-American Fulbright Commission will try to share with you some of our knowledge of the Danish society at large. Hopefully this will be a good introduction to your Danish life. You will also get to know the other Fulbrighters and the staff of the secretariat, and we will get to know you. Clearly, we cannot possibly cover everything in one day. But with your help we will try – so please help us by asking a lot of questions. The collection of information you have here we have called a “Handbook” - a fancy title for “a changing work in progress”. This is a collection of handouts compiled over the years based on the experiences of previous Fulbrighters to Denmark. But let us not drown in all the practicalities! The goal of the Fulbright Program is much broader than your individual project: We encourage you to involve yourself in Denmark and the Danish culture, and in doing so to share your American background whenever possible. By adding this dimension you will get a genuine Fulbright experience. On behalf of the Danish-American Fulbright Commission, Marie Mønsted Executive Director 3 2015 ARRIVAL ORIENTATION: A SHORT INTRODUCTION TO DENMARK Agenda Thursday, August 27, 2015 12:30 p.m. Lunch We will meet at the Fulbright office in Nørregade for sandwiches 1:00 p.m. Welcome and introductions Marie Mønsted, Executive Director 2:00 p.m. Practical and Academic Information Christine Hagberg, Senior Program Coordinator & Advisor Anne Villumsen, Advisor & Program Coordinator 4:00-6:00 p.m. Reception at the Fulbright Commission Friday, August 28, 2015 9:20 a.m. Canal Tour in Copenhagen Harbor Meeting point: the anchor by the entrance of “Nyhavn” (next to “Kongens Nytorv”) 11:00 a.m. Financial Issues & Opening Bank Accounts 12:00 p.m. Lunch A selection of lunch dishes from RizRaz 1:00 p.m. Academic Life in Denmark vs. the U.S. Speaker: TBA 2:00-3:30 p.m. Danish History and Politics Carsten Pape, External Lecturer DIS, Danish Institute for Study Abroad 4 Staff Marie Mønsted Executive Director Cand. mag. in Scandinavian Literature & Art History from the University of Aarhus. Overall responsibility of the Denmark-America Foundation & Fulbright Commission (including management, finances and fund raising, programming et al.). Been with DAF since 1994, Fulbright since 1995. [email protected] Christine Hagberg Senior Program Coordinator & Advisor Cand.mag. in English and Danish, University of Copenhagen. In charge of counselling and administration of the student and scholar programs of DAF and Fulbright. Been with DAF & Fulbright since 2012. [email protected] Anne Villumsen Advisor & Program Coordinator Cand.ling.merc. in English and American Studies, Copenhagen Business School. Co- administrator and advisor together with the Senior Program Coordinator, focusing particularly on outreach. Been with DAF & Fulbright since 2014. [email protected] Birgitte Klinge Financial Officer Bachelor in Economics. Responsible for finances and budgets in close cooperation with the Executive Director. Been with DAF & Fulbright since 2012. [email protected] Christel Tage Personal Assistant Cand.soc.HRM, Copenhagen Business School. PA to ED and in charge of administrative procedures for both DAF & Fulbright. Been with DAF & Fulbright since 2014. [email protected] Marie Koefoed Sudergaard Student Assistant Bachelor in International Business Communication and American Studies, Copenhagen Business School. Been with DAF & Fulbright since 2015. Danmark-Amerika Fondet & Fulbright Kommissionen Nørregade 7A, 1.tv., 1165 København K. Phone: 3318 1000 5 Key Figures of The Danish-American Fulbright Commission Fulbright Commission’s Fiscal Year 2015, U.S. and Danish Allocations U.S.: U.S. Government allocation FY 2015 USD 284,651 U.S. Income Total: USD 284,651 Danish: Danish Government allocation FY 2015 Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation USD 360.902 Danish Government Special allocation for rent USD 45.113 Danish Ministry of Culture USD 25.564 Danish University Funding USD 6.015 Danish Institutions Co-Funding USD 56.391 Danish Private Funding USD 9.023 Danish Income Total: USD 503.008 (Exchange rate , June 2015: 6,65) Number of AY 2015 Fulbright Grantees: U.S. Graduate Students: 8 U.S. Scholars: 4 Total: 12 Danish Graduate Students: 34 Danish Scholars: 5 Total: 43 Fulbright Specialist: 3 Total: 3 Arctic Initiative : 2 Total: 2 SUSI for student Leaders: 1 Total: 1 US Grant Program Total: USD 277.444 DK Grant Program Total: USD 457.143 6 Security Matters The following is to give you security information plus advice for planning for an emergency situation. As we are confident you already know, the first rules in an emergency are to stay calm and use your common sense. In addition, here are some precautionary steps to take: 1. Since the majority of you are at a university institution each day, be sure you are familiar with its emergency plans, evacuation routes, etc. 2. Make it a habit to regularly check the U.S. Embassy’s website (http://denmark.usembassy.gov/) for new “worldwide caution” announcements for U.S. citizens and for other announcements on security related directly to Denmark. 3. Also, check for travel information at the Department of State website: http://travel.state.gov/ under “International Travel”. 4. Ensure that your and any accompanying dependents’ passports and visas are valid. 5. Keep vital documents such as passports, birth and marriage certificates, medical, school, and bank records in an easily accessible location. Keep copies of these in a different secure place. 6. For those of you with accompanying dependents, make a plan for alternate meeting points other than your home and how to contact each other in case of an emergency. 7. Learn where local police stations, fire stations, Falck facilities are located near your home and institutes as these are safe havens. 8. Learn alternate routes and modes of transport for reaching these. 9. Please note that because the U.S. Embassy could be the focus of unrest, it would not be a safe haven in all situations. Likewise, our