Study Abroad

Norwegian Excursion – BI Norwegian School of Management
By: Justin Lepitzk

Participating in an international exchange was by far the most memorable experience I have had at SFU. At first, I was a little nervous about living in another country on my own. But after going through both SFU and BI’s exchange orientations, I realized just how much fun the semester was going to be.

I was able to travel around Europe while taking four business classes in Oslo. I visited Amsterdam, Denmark, Ireland, Sweden, and Italy while maintaining a strict budget thanks to cheap airlines like Ryanair and EasyJet. I was also able to travel within Norway and made my way to the west coast to visit the cities of Bergen and Stavanger. While in Stavanger, we took a 4 km hike up to the famous Preikestolen – a massive 604 meter cliff overlooking the Lysefjorden.

During my stay in Norway, I met a myriad of new people and experienced the Norwegian style of living. If you ever get a chance to visit Oslo, I recommend trying a bacon-rapped hotdog and checking out one of the many awesome techno clubs.

While on exchange, I expected to meet people, but I never expected to come away with new lifelong friends. I plan to return to Europe after graduation, and will be fortunate enough to have a place to stay in almost every country.

Studying abroad in Norway brought me out of the “bubble” I was living in here in Vancouver and opened my eyes to different cultures and ways of living. It was truly an experience of a lifetime; all students should take advantage of international exchanges while studying at SFU.