Past Review

By (Accounting, The University of Texas at Austin) for

University of Texas - Austin: Paris - CIBER International Accounting Program

What did you gain/learn from your experience abroad? Was it worthwhile?
I had so much fun traveling on the weekends with the other students that I met. All the kids in the MPA program were really nice and we all got along. One of the classes was interesting and the other was painful, but didn't last too long. Overall I am extremely glad that I took this opportunity because I got to meet some fun people and see so many beautiful places.

Personal Information

If you took classes at multiple universities, list those universities here: ESCP - Europe
How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? 1 month - 6 months

Review Your Program

* Overall educational experience

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

* Host Country Program Administration

On-site administration of your program

Josianne, the director of the program at ESCP, was extremely helpful when we had issues.

* Housing:

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

Vivaldi residence on Rue de Rueilly. <br /><br /> 30 minute metro ride to class was a little bit annoying. The dorms were very stark and lacking in amenities, but were tolerable for five weeks.

* Food:

We were told at UT that the cafeteria on campus had good, cheap food. Well, its cheap for sure...

* Social & Cultural Integration:

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

The activities arranged by the program were nice, but I was unable to attend most.

* Health Care:

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

* Safety:

When students got sick, the school helped find doctors that spoke English.

If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? Yes

Finances

* Money: How easily were you able to live on a student's budget?

(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost)

Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? The money spent towards the activities that the liaisons organized could be eliminated. I was unable to attend most, so I didn't get my money's worth out of them.

Language

How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? None
If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition?

Other Program Information

* Where did you live?

Select all that apply

  • Dorm
* Who did you live with?

Select all that apply

  • Americans
* Who did you take classes with?

Select all that apply

  • Americans

A Look Back

* What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? Europe has a lot to offer.

Individual Course Reviews

Course Name/Rating:

International Accounting Policies and Procedures

Course Department: ACC 380k.19
Instructor: Stuart Singer and James Deitrick
Instruction Language: English
Comments: Deitrick's portion of the class was extremely interesting and well taught. His exam was the appropriate level of difficulty and he did an excellent job encouraging class participation. I really enjoyed this part of the class. Singer's portion of the class was less interesting and there was too much emphasis on participation. I felt that the level of required participation encouraged students to make comments that did not add to the class learning. We spent too much time listing things so that students could get credit for participation. This takes away from the more interesting learning that could be going on if there was less emphasis on class participation. Also, his final, although we were warned about what would be on it, was rather unreasonable. He asked us to create solutions (in two hours) for issues that he has spent years researching and for which there are no good answers. FRUSTRATING.
Credit Transfer Issues:
Course Name/Rating:

International and European Accounting Standards

Course Department: ACC380k.20
Instructor: various ESCP professors
Instruction Language: English
Comments: This course was boring. One of the professors was extremely dull and not an effective communicator. Two of the other professors were decent. Hossfeld, the last professor, was good at making class more entertaining. All the students enjoyed his lectures more than the other professors'. The material covered in the course, aside from the two IFRS lessons, seems meaningless to us as students since all the foreign accounting standards are now converging to IFRS.
Credit Transfer Issues: