HEC Liège’s International Relations Office had to reinvent itself those last few months. After ensuring all our students (In & Out) were safely back home last March, we had to consider whether or not allowing student’s mobility during the 2020/2021 first semester. Several HEC students were eager to maintain their Erasmus experience. Our decision was thus to allow exchange mobility, entrusting our students to act responsibly and respect all safety measures implemented in their host University.
We were also really pleased to discover that incoming students expressed their trust towards ULiège and kept on organizing their mobility to Liège even when, in the heart of the summertime, Belgium was a red – no go – zone for many foreign countries.
As a result, 90 HEC Liège students have left for a study abroad experience this semester, and we are welcoming approx. 100 international students. Those balanced figures allow us to sustain the School’s important daily internationalization without increasing the number of courses participants, hence respecting social distanciation.
Quarantines, various impediments to finalize visa processes, delayed exam sessions in some of our partner universities were also new challenges we had to face. This year, our welcoming sessions for international students took place entirely online (even repeated a few times to ensure all students’ attendance) and recorded. This was actually the best (if not only) way prepare students before the start of the academic year and make sure they all knew what to do & where to go.
As 2020/2021 has barely started yet, some of our students share their experience of these unusual times with you…
My unexpected start at Hanyang University in Korea
Upon arrival in Korea, I had to do a quarantine in the dorms at the university. The university allowed students to enter based on the results of the first covid test.
However, a student tested negative on arrival but positive after the quarantine lived on my floor. The university get her results a day after she settled down. I have never been in direct contact with her but as we shared some parts of the housing, the Korean authorities have imposed a second period of quarantine to all the students of the dorm. I am currently in a hotel designated by the university until the end of my quarantine. As the courses are online, I am perfectly able to take them from the hotel.
It is true that I did not expect at all to have to do two quarantines, which weighs on my morale. Nevertheless, I still enjoy being in Seoul and I try to be positive and tell myself that it is okay to concentrate on the lessons. Hanyang University takes care of us very well for this second quarantine. It was also the case for the first one. I think the rest of the trip should normally be fine.
Sophie LAM – 1st year Master student in Management currently on an abroad semester experience in Hanyang University.
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HEC Liège Erasmus Student Network – Welcome events in smaller groups for a strong community spirit
With a lot of rules to follow, organizing Welcome Week this year was a real challenge. Our events, which were so successful the last past years (welcoming barbecue, international dinner, welcome reception or even the first « social parties ») had to be replaced to ensure smaller and safer gatherings.
This September, among other things, we organized a treasure hunt in the city, a discovery walk, a city tour with our Horeca sponsors, a visit to the “Peak” brewery, always in small groups,to ensure everyone’s safety. The positive point is that those smaller scale activities facilitated the meetings and discussions between members.
We hope that this will bring a real community spirit and allow international students to enjoy our famous welcome and support, despite the unfavorable circumstances.
Our motivated and creative team will try again to make this first term memorable for students who have made the excellent choice to come to Liège J.
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First impressions from our University of Limerick’s Double Degree students
After graduating, we still had a double degree option back at our home university and could not miss the opportunity to come here. We do not mind spending a longer time in education, especially now with the impact of COVID on the job Market. We love the fact that HEC Liège is quite well rounded, they also teach us soft skills like communication and presentation. To be honest, the possibility to attend a stack of math classes like applied econometrics as well as economic statistics seems pretty amazing to us.
We’re super excited to be here and pretty eager to learn about the culture, the language and the lifestyle here in Belgium. Most importantly, we’re looking forward to changing the world with our two degrees in economics, hopefully.
Joe Guildea, Tanmay Kumar & Caoilte Teague – Double Degree students from University of Limerick
The team of International Relations: Anne Gillet, Muriel BEQUET, David KROEMMER, Brigitte MARECHAL