Nathan Cozar – Institute of Business Studies, Bordeaux

I had the unbelievable chance to spend the 2015-16 year studying in Sheffield Business School thanks to an exchange with my home university, in Bordeaux, France. During the first days we had an orientation week, different types of presentations, events and fairs, put in place to help the newcomers find their place here in the heart of the university. I’ve been truly astonished when I discovered how much help the international students could get from the University.  I will always remember a Powerpoint slide with the main slang words used in South Yorkshire, during a presentation from Andrew Bromley.

The six modules that I’ve chosen are the following: Business ethics, Marketing communications, Competitive marketing strategies, E-business management, Leadership and organisations, and finally Entrepreneurship and Innovation in practice. All of them were very instructive, and helped me think critically and find resources for essays and from the library. It was composed of lectures, seminar, assignments, tests and exams but the most important in those modules for me, were the relation I’ve built with all the teachers. Also, I engaged with the enterprise team which arranged meetings with business advisors, so I got to meet a few of them who inspired me thoughtfully, and helped me in building my professional projects for the future.

Whereas I did learn a lot, this whole experience was not only about school, assignments and professional projects. The other part of this experience was my personal experience during which I saw the world through the eyes of the numerous friends that I met there, because in one year I made friends coming from so many countries, continents, and cultures. From European countries like Germany, Oman, America, Spain, India, Netherlands, China, Italy, Thailand, Malaysia, and so on. I felt that having as many different geographical origins as we have people in a room was such a valuable thing.

Like every good thing, my Erasmus experience in Sheffield Hallam University came to an end way too quickly, and I haven’t seen it go by. Not only I’ve had the best fun, but overall, it was the most valuable experience of my life so far in terms of independence and academic skills. Thank you!