Howdy! and Welcome to Mays Business School at Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas. I am delighted that you are considering attending our College as a reciprocal exchange student and I hope that you find the items listed below on this web site to be useful. Please peruse through these items carefully as they provide a wealth of information that will help answer most of the questions that you might have about Mays Business School, Texas A&M University, and living in College Station, Texas; also see (area map). You may also be interested to read An Austrian's Experience in Aggieland, an interview published by the Battalion, Texas A&M's newspaper.

The contents of the web site include:

• Student Handbook (for exchange students planning to study at Texas A&M)
  
• How to apply for the Exchange Program
• Fall/Spring 2006 Class Schedule
• Fall/Spring 2006 International Student Orientation Schedule
• List of International Student Organizations on Texas A&M Campus
  
• How to locate housing in College Station, Texas

1. Exchange Student Handbook:This handbook provides information about studying and living in College Station. It has a number of small but very useful information that relate to everyday student life, Texas A&M University's Department of Resident Life Web Site, Off Campus Student Web Site, and living in Bryan/College Station.

2. How to Apply for the Exchange Program: Please download and print out all the appropriate forms. You need to follow instructions carefully and complete the application in ink. You should include your name, institution's name and country on the first page of the "Application for Incoming Reciprocal Exchange Students" form and attach all the completed/required original forms needed to process the application. Incomplete applications will lead to severe processing delays and issuance of DS-2019 that is needed to obtain a J-1 exchange student visa. The application and all associated forms/documents should be mailed together in one packet and sent to Ms. Karen Burke (address given below).

Please use the same spelling and order of your name on all correspondence and documents. A current address is necessary to maintain an accurate admission file. Please inform the Ms. Burke of any change of address or name. Your application will not be reviewed until the application packet is complete. So, please do not forward incomplete application packet.The forms and documentation constitute the application packet for admission to graduate-level reciprocal exchange business study at Texas A&M University. Please enclose all application materials including official test scores and transcripts and mail them to the address below:

Ms. Karen Burke, Student Advisor
Center for International Business Studies
Room 230D
Wehner Building
Mays Business School
Texas A&M University
College Station, TX 77843-4116 USA
Tel: (979) 845 7256
Fax: (979) 845 1710
k-burke@tamu.edu

3. The Fall/Spring 2006 Class Schedule (categorized by departments) provides the actual times for classes and courses. Business courses are listed under the following departmental heading: Accounting; Finance; Information & Operations Management; International Business; Management; and Marketing. This link will provide details on when (days of the week) and how long (actual time period of classes) the classes meet. The site also provides the professor's last name as well as the class room where the students will meet.

Since this is important information, Ms. Karen Burke will try to enroll you in four courses depending upon your choice indicated in the "Reciprocal Exchange Course Selection Form" as well as availability of space in that particular course. This is one major reason why we request that you indicate a choice of six courses so that if one course is full, Ms. Burke will try to enroll you in the next course of your choice. List the course acronym (e.g., ACCT for Accounting) as well as the course number and name of the course selection form.

In addition, your home institution's exchange program coordinator should have the 2006-2007 Graduate Catalog, which provides information about the academic calendar, course description by Department (pp. 238), and information about faculty (starting on page 484).

Business courses are listed under seven headings:

1. Accounting (ACCT); pp.238-240
2. Business (BUAD); pp. 282
3. Finance (FINC); pp.338-340
4. Information and Operations Management (INFO); pp.370-372
5. International Business (IBUS); pp.374
6. Management (MGMT); pp. 381-384
7. Marketing (MKTG); pp. 385-386

The Roman numerals to the right of the credit value of each course (in the course description) indicate the semester in which that course is usually offered. For example "I" represents the fall semester, "II" represents the spring semester, and "S" denotes summer offerings.

You should check the TAMU Web Site a couple of months before the semester begins during April for the Fall semester, and October for the Spring semester to make sure the courses that you are interested in are being offered. Before you forward the list of six courses to Ms. Burke, please make sure that you receive approval from your school's academic advisor.

Also, the Texas A&M University Graduate Catalog is now available on-line.

4. Spring/Fall 2006 International Student Orientation Schedule: The orientation program is useful and important as it will enable you to adjust to the College Station environment more easily. As the orientation schedule indicates, there are a variety of programs and activities planned to assist you, including College Station Airport pickup, temporary housing, social activities, testing programs, and several university-wide seminars and orientations. Also see Welcome to the International Student Center. This form is also available in pdf format.

5. International Student Organizations such as Aggie Global Interaction, International Business Association, and the International Student Association play an important role on campus. Since these organizations represent different countries or regions of the world (we have a total of approxmiately 3800 students from approximately 110 countries on campus), they facilitate foreign student adjustment to the American way of life and culture. The presidents of the various student organizations can be contacted (via email) to seek information and assistance on issues such as off campus housing, purchasing used cars, furniture, etc. Usually, when informed in advance, a student representative will meet with you at the College Station airport and facilitate adjustment to College Station. You are strongly advised to contact a student organization of choice to seek advice and assistance.

6. How to locate off-campus housing in College Station. Finding off-campus housing in College Station is not difficult if you start your search early. This link provides you with some guidelines for success. Also visit the following links:

1. Current Housing Fact Sheet
2. Off-Campus Student Services
3. Aggie Search
   

   For Your Information and Convenience:

   1. TAMU campus map key and TAMU campus map Acrobat Format.
   2. Links and printout of TAMU campus maps (Direct Link)

I hope you find this Student Exchange web site helpful in learning more about our business school, our university and College Station. If you have any questions, please contact your student exchange program coordinator. We look forward to welcoming you to our college and I am confident that you will find your experience at Texas A&M University most rewarding. Once again, welcome!

Updated 9/19/2006