FAQ: Austauschprogramm mit dem Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology (Terre Haute, Indiana, USA)

Die FAQ dienen zur einfachen und schnellen Klärung von Fragen im Zusammenhang mit dem Austauschprogramm mit dem RHIT. Für die Vollständigkeit, Korrektheit und Aktualität der FAQ kann nicht garantiert werden. Bitte sehen Sie sich deshalb auch immer die aktuellen Studiendokument und -ordnungen sowie die Informationen des Akademischen Auslandsamtes an. Bei Fragen, wenden Sie sich bitte an die genannten Ansprechpartner.

Hinweis: Die FAQs werden unregelmäßig überarbeitet (aktueller Stand: August 2017).

Application

Students enrolled in the Bachelor or Masters’s study course of Wirtschaftsingenieurwesen für Maschinenbau or Logistik at the faculty of mechanical engineering (FMB).

Students who have about two semesters (1 year) left before graduating with a Bachelor’s degree. Thus, the application can be handed in without having a Bacherlor’s degree. The deadline for an application was around the 15th of December in the past. The program itself starts in the end of August of the following year.

Generally, complete documents are submitted to the international office, specifically to Ms. Zabel. The documents include three letters of recommendations from OVGU professors, a letter of motivation as well as a TOEFL score report with a minimum of 90 points out of 120. Having further questions, the international office can usually help.

Currently, it is only possible to apply for the full Master’s program.

RHIT Program

Students will acquire a Master of Science in Engineering Management (MSEM) degree after completing the program. The department of Engineering Management explains its content as “management foundations of a MBA with an added technical focus”.

Even though a Master of Engineering Management (MEM) degree is possible at RHIT as well, it does not apply to OVGU students since RHIT does not offer scholarships and financial support (tuition waivers) for the MEM at all.

It is possible to finish the MSEM within 3 trimesters. Yet, it is very stressful and requires an extremely good time management and self-discipline. Many students take 4 trimesters; they finish the course work in the first three, and focus on the Master thesis (called integrated project “EMGT590”) in the fourth trimester

Students are supposed to choose five technical and five managerial electives in the course of three trimesters. Additionally, students need to participate in a graduate seminar each trimester (total of three). Lastly, a project-based Master thesis must be elaborated for achieving the degree of M.Sc. in Engineering Management.

Graduate Courses for MSEM students
General program overview and CP requirements

For your subsequent second Master’s degree at OVGU you will be able to transfer some of the CP earned at RHIT.
You may want to double check with the course offerings by RHIT and the examination office of OVGU beforehand. It is also always helpful to talk to the responsible OVGU lecturers/professors of the courses and ask them to sign a learning agreement before leaving for Terra Haute.

Tuition fees in the amount of $15k are paid by the RHIT each trimester and not by the students, if enrolled students in MSEM program are able to keep a GPA of 3.5 or higher. This means that most of the grades are an A (usually >89%) and only few B+/B (>80%).
However, a technology fee of about $450/trimester and American health insurance of about $450/trimester needs to be paid by student. The living expenses depend on the chosen accommodation, car, and lifestyle, which may vary between $600-$1000/month.

Students are advised to show a financial report of a German owned bank account that covers about 8k Euro so that the financial independence of the student is ensured.

Realistically, a personal budget between 10k and 15k Euro should be considered during the completion of the entire program including buying a car, travelling, rent for apartment and the like. A part of this budget can be earned by working for the RHIT, see next question

In general, working as a student with an J1 or F1-­visa is not allowed. Both OvGU and RHIT, in specific the office of student affairs, will provide all instructions and information for applying for the appropriate visa at one of the American embassies here.

However, there is a possibility of working as a graduate assistant at the RHIT in the second and third trimester. By working approx. 15h per week for the department, you can earn around $1000/month. It requires maintaining a minimum GPA of 3.5, though.

Once the student arrives, the Faculty of Graduate Studies provides information and to-­do checklists. Furthermore, the department of Engineering Management holds a one day event of introducing the staff, content, and general framework right before the program starts. This is also a great chance of getting to know your fellow students.

Outside of the RHIT Program

Generally, graduate students (Master) are not allowed to live in the dorms on campus. However, there are several opportunities to live near campus. If you are the only student from your University participating in the MSEM program, previous students recommended to take a furnished and financially affordable apartment at Sharpflats

If you come to RHIT as a group of 2 or more students, you might want to check out the Village Quarter. They offer appropriate facilities, which are not furnished though.

In the U.S., there is nearly no public transportation, especially in more rural areas like Terre Haute, Indiana. Thus, the purchase of a car is essential to be mobile and run errands of any kind.
A budget of $2000 should be taken into consideration for a car. A simple way of acquiring a vehicle is the platform craigslist, where private and commercial individuals sell their vehicles.
After buying a car, you need to register the vehicle at the BMV in Terre Haute. For the process, proof of insurance and other documents are necessary.

Letzte Änderung: 17.05.2023 - Ansprechpartner: Webmaster