REPORT:

MIAMI

UNIVERSITY

Fall 2015

Maggie, Ming Hei Yeung

BBA in Accounting and Operation Management

Year 4

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Content

Introduction

P.3

Activity Log

P.4-8

Exchange

Information

P.9-12

Checklist

P.13

Upham Arch

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Introduction

One year ago, I made the best choice in my life - going on an

exchange in Miami University. I once thought that Miami

University is the university in Miami, but I was so wrong. Indeed,

Miami University is in a super duper little town in Oxford, Ohio. It

has an entirely different environment from Hong Kong, it’s a

pretty, relaxing and gorgeous place. If you are looking for an

adventurous, exciting, unforgettable exchange life, Miami

University would definitely be a perfect choice to you. I was so

worried before the exchange as I am the only one from HKUST to

go to this school, but my exchange life turn out to be awesome,

and I can seriously say that, my life in Miami is the best

experience I have ever had in my life.

*Miami has the prettiest fall.

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Activity Log

August 2015

I arrived USA one month in advance so as to adapt the life in America. The

school required us to attend the orientation week for international students,

that’s why we have to arrive there on August 12. A note to you all, before

August 21st

, the official move- in time of the dorm, you have to pay $29 per

night to stay in your dorm. (There’s a secret way that you can reduce this

cost, contact me if you want to know) The orientation week is the best time

for you to meet new friends, they will gather all international students in

freshman year, exchange students and transfer students. Since I am the only

one from Hong Kong going on exchange there, I am a bit worried at the

beginning. This week helped me a lot as there are some Ipols (leaders for this

international week, they are all students in upper years), they will bring you

around the campus and tell you more about the school. Make sure you make

Usome goof friends in this week, it will make your exchange life awesome.

Also, there will be some orientation events for the local students there, it’s not

listed in the orientation schedule for international students, but you are more

than welcome to join it, make sure you didn’t miss it because they will have

free food and they will distribute a lot of souvenirs there, you may download

an app, Miami event, it will tell you what event will they have. I have even

more tips to tell you, contact me if you wish to know more.

There’s a myth that if you stand on this seal, you’re

gonna fail the next exam.

Upham Arch : A little story about this thingy: If a

couple kiss under this lamp with the bell ring, they

are gonna marry to each other.

Pulley Tower – Another pretty place.

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September 2015

The school starts on August 28th

, I took 4 classes, 13 credits. I had a day off

on Friday. At first, I find it hard to adapt to the learning environment in

America. They had a more interactive learning environment, and in most of the

time, they welcome and encourage students to ask more questions. To me,

the school in America has more workload than Hong Kong. In HKUST, we

usually have only 2 exams, one projects and that’s all, but in Miami University,

one of the classes had quiz every week. And in the second week of school, I

had a quiz that require me to read more than 250 pages. And I usually have

more than 2 assignments every week. Comparing it to Hong Kong, it has

heavier workload, but it motivate us to keep studying every week and make

sure we keep track with what the teachers teach. Buying books could be

another concern to students, as the books in America are so much more

expensive than those in Hong Kong, even a used book can cost US$100.

There’s a tip to students that you can wait for 1 or 2 weeks to see if the class

will really use the book or lot. Save up some money for travelling instead. (I

have another secret way for you all if you guys really need to buy a book,

again, contact me and I will tell you )

In September, there’s a Labor Day, and we have 3 days off including weekend,

me and my friends went to Chicago. Chicago is around 5 hours away from

Oxford, we took the taxi to Cincinnati and take the megabus, it cost around

USD$80 for the round-way ticket, and the hotels fee for two nights is around

US$75. Chicago is place so different from Miami, it has tall buildings

everywhere, and if you go there, you must try the Chicago pizza.

I went to Chicago with a group of

friends from Japan, Korea and

Mainland China, Going on an

exchange is an once-in-a-life-time

experience, try to step out of your

comfort zone and make more

international friends.

This picture is taken in Willis Tower. The one in the

picture is my best friend in Miami.

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October 2015

October is a month that full of quizzes and midterms. A note to you all that the

grading system in Miami is different from the one in Hong Kong. In Miami, they

took absolute grade that as long as you pass a certain mark, you will get that

grade. Other than academic, it’s highly suggested that you participate more

activities. On 31st

October, Miami will have lots of Halloween parties, make

sure you didn’t miss it, as it’s so different from Hong Kong that everyone will

dress fun and you will definitely have lots of fun.

On one weekend, my friends and I went to Columbus. Columbus, Ohio is a

place that is 2 hours away from Oxford. A tip to you all that it would be best if

you could make some friends who have a cars, as Oxford is quite an

inconvenient place that if you don’t have a car, you can’t go anywhere.

On 20th

October, I went to watch Taylor Swift concert. It was

in Lexington, Kentucky. Two hours away from Miami.

Lexington is rather small town, so it’s not

a must for you all to go there.

If you go to Columbus, make

sure you go to German Village,

it’s sooooo pretty, and is one of

my favorite place.

Taylor Swift Concert Crew

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November 2015

November is almost the end of my exchange life, and I make every moments

count. It's a month that a lot of projects due, and it’s pretty busy.

Despite the busy schedule, I still try to join as much events as possible, I

joined the JLT class (Japanese Language Table), it on every Thursday

teaching students Japanese, it’s organized by the Japanese students in Miami,

they have fun games and it’s a good time for you to experience Japanese

culture. In the middle of November, there is a

Chuseok (Korean Thanksgiving) celebration

organized by KASA (Korean American Students

Association), there’s some booths introducing

Korean Culture. And I also joined Miami Cru (a

Christian Organization) and AAA (Asian American

Association). All these events organized by these

societies makes my life in Miami even more

meaningful.

And on 26th

-29th

November, it’s the Thanksgiving Holiday in America, and I

spent my Thanksgiving holiday in New York. New York is a city with more

culture diversity. They have better transportation system, and unlike

Columbus and California, you don’t even need a car there.

NY - Wall Street – The Bull

NY - Trinity Church

My friends in Cru

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December 2015

It’s almost the end of my awesome exchange life in Miami. In this month, there

are a few pf presentations. And after a week of final examinations, the

semester is finally end on December 12th

. And it marks the start of my

awesome trips in California and Nevada. We are lucky enough that the

weather in this December is not that cold, my friends told me that Miami

usually snow a lot since November. Luckily, I didn’t see serious snow in Miami

and the weather is acceptable yet it’s still chill.

For Student Visa holders, we can stay in America for one month after the

semester end, that’s why my friends and I planned to go to Los Angeles, San

Francisco, Las Vegas and Grand Canyon. For the trip, we spent US$400 on the

tickets, US$150 for the bus tickets and around US$600 for hotel fees for the

20 days trip. It’s quite a lot to me, but I got valuable experience.

I could send you the whole schedule of my trip if you plan to go there too,

some highlight of my trip: WE SAW LEONARDO DICAPRIO IN PERSON!!!!!!

In Hollywood, when a new Hollywood movie is

released, the main characters will go there to have

press conference. Leonardo was there for the movie

The Revenant. If you go to LA, don’t miss the chance

to meet those Hollywood stars.

It was in Grand Canyon, it’s one of the

National Parks there, it was -13°C. It has a

breathtaking view.

Santa Monica Beach

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General Exchange Information

1) Visa Procedures

I have US Permanent Resident Card and I could skip all those Visa application

process. I am not so sure about the procedures, but I’ve heard that Miami will

send some documents to HKUST and then with those documents you can

apply the Visa. When you have any questions, don’t feel shy to ask staff from

HKUST/Miami, they are all so nice.

2) Orientation Activities

Around 1 month before the semester starts, Miami will give you a schedule for

your orientation weeks, every one of us will have a different schedule, the

activities include Visa check, TB(Tuberculin skin) test, Students Gathering

picnic, campus tour as well as some seminars talking about the culture of

Miami. There will be some free souvenirs and free food, so don’t miss any of

them. And it’s a good time for you to make friends. The school will charge you

accommodation fee during the orientation week, they will also charge you on

the TB test, all those costs will be under the Bursar account. School will also

arrange some bus for you to do grocery shopping and go to Kenwood mall (the

closest mall from Miami, 1 hour away) for free.

3) International Services & Activities

For the orientation week, school will arrange some Ipols (internation program

orientation leader) to let you familiar with the schools. During the semester,

there will be NationaliTea Session every Monday, which is a one hour session

sharing different countries culture. They will sometimes provide free food as

well. Also, the ISSS (International Student and Scholar Services) will organize

some events like Watching NBA match in Indiana, Thanksgiving dinner etc.

The staff in ISSS is really nice, so whenever you have questions about visa,

school or everything, just feel free to message them.

4) Accommodations

For exchange students, they said that we have to live in campus (despite the

fact that 1 of the exchange students from Fudan University actually live off-

campus, and the cost is half of that than living in campus. ) I live in Wells Hall,

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which I didn’t apply for that, and it’s a pretty old dorm, built in 1923. It cost

$27xx for the dormitory fee, and if you live in campus, it’s mandatory that you

have to buy the meal plan (which I will talk more about it in the food part). It

takes me 20 minutes to go to Farmer School of Business, where is the main

building for business class. It’s a torture to walk to class in the morning as

sometimes the weather could be as cold as -10° C. One good thing about my

dorm is that Wells is right next to the postal center, it’s convenient for me as I

will sometimes do online shopping. And Wells is only 5 minutes away from the

uptown, it’s convenient if you like getting food from uptown and partying.

There’s also a piano in most of the dorm.

5) Courses Registration

Before going to Miami, you have to fill in a form to apply for classes, and you

will be registered before going to Miami. During the orientation week, there’s a

session for you to change, add or drop your classes. You can still change the

classes after the sessions simply by sending message to the person in charge,

Jenni. We are allowed to take 12-16 credits.

Here are the courses I took

Acc361: Modeling Bus Proc in AIS - Dr. M. Dale Stoel (3 cre)

Practical class, teaching the use of SAP, MS Access and other Accounting

Information System, quiz every week, 3 group projects, 1 presentation , 2

individual assignments and 2 exams, credits transferable, equivalent to ISOM

3000+ (IS)

Acc422: Financial Accounting Research - Professor Marc Rubin (3cre)

An easy A class, 2 exams, 2 memo writing, 10 popup quizzes, should pay

attention to the differences in Accounting treatment in America, credits

transferable, equivalent to ACCT 3020.

Acc453: Financial Statement Auditing – Professor Jonathan Pyzoha

2 exams, 3 projects, 2 individual assignments, 1 individual presentation. The

professor is patient. Credits transferable, equivalent to ACCT 4510.

Psy111: Introduction to Psychology – Professor Ryan Walker

A super highly suggested class to you all. 4 exams, 3 individual assignment.

The professor teach psychology in a fun way and apply the psychology learned

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in real life, a practical class. Easy A. Credits transferable, equivalent to

SOSC1960.

6) Teaching & Assessment Methods

The class environment is more interactive when comparing to the one in Hong

Kong. The will put more emphasis on class-to-class assessment rather than

just examinations. Assessment method is similar to those in Hong Kong.

Examinations, assignment, group project and class attendance will all affect

your grade.

7) Sports & Recreation Facilities

Miami has a big fitness center, aka Rec center. In the fitness

center, there’re an Olympic size swimming pool, a 2-floors gym

room, activities room, basketball court, running track. They have

all the things you need for sports. Miami is famous for its Ice

Hockey Team, that’s why they have a large size skiing court.

8) Cost/Expenses (in USD)

Accommodation: $2800

Meal plan (compulsory if you live in-campus): $2480

Flight Ticket: $1500

Medical insurance(Compulsory as required by

school)

$750

Living expenses $1000

Shopping: $1000

Entertainment: $500

Travelling: $2500

Total: $12,530

The items in blue are those that are compulsory during exchange. I actually

spent more than normal exchange students, as I traveled more than a month

during the semester.

9) Social Clubs & Networking Opportunities

I joined Asian American Association (AAA), Korean American Students

Associations (KASA), Cru (Miami Christian organization), Japanese Language

Table (JLT). Highly suggest all these to you all, people there are cool and nice.

A memo posted on the mirror of the

gym room.

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10) Health & Safety

I would say that Miami us a pretty safe place as the most of the people in the

town are Miami students, but still if you want to go out at night, make sure you

have someone to be with you. I actually bought a pepper spray before going

there but I don’t find it necessary.

There is a Health center in campus near the

11) Food

There are a few canteen and cafeteria in Miami. And the food in Miami is

better than HKUST to me. Try the steak in Bell Tower if you ever got a chance,

get the medium rare one. And there’s also 3 buffet places, with meal plan, you

can enjoy it as low as a price of $6.

12) Transportation

There are buses arranged by Miami to go around Oxford, students can take it

for free. But if you want to go other places, it would be upper hard as there is

no public transportation other than those buses. So make some friends who

have a car :P

13) Climate

The summer in Oxford is similar to the one in Hong Kong, but

less humid. And it started to get cold in September, the

weather could be as low as 6°C though they claim that it’s

still summer. The winter there is SUPER COLD, and it will

sometimes snow, the winter is so dry, makes sure you got

moisturizers. I got skin rash because of the dry weather, and

it cost me US$182

14) Communication

I used the mobile service provided by T-mobile during exchange, but in Miami,

there are many places that the network doesn’t cover, but it’s still okay, as in

Miami, there’s Wifi all over the campus. I have heard that Verizon will have

better coverage

Winter in Miami. – Upham Hall

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Checklist

Passport, Visa documents

Cash, Credit cards

CAMERA!

Contact lens / Glasses, if necessary, you need prescription if you buy it in

America

Adapter, chargers

Clothes, make sure you bring jacket, it’s freezing in winter

Medicine

PC, or you can borrow it from the King Library

An excited mind to ready for your awesome exchange trip

If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me, I have a lot more tips for

you guys. You can get my contact simply by emailing SBM Exchange at

obmugexch@ust.hk. I am sure you will have wonderful time in Miami

University.