Cal Poly celebrates and congratulates the Hochschule München, a strategic partner in international education, on its 5oth anniversary!
Since the initiation of this partnership over two decades ago, over 900 students from both campuses have participated on this exchange. Beginning as a collaboration stemming from faculty connections within the College of Engineering in 1999, the exchange has grown to encompass all six colleges. Over 30 students exchange each year and dozens of Cal Poly and HM faculty have exchanged as well over the years allowing many opportunities for collaborative teaching, research and programming. A strategic partnership grant from the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) allowed the two institutions to further the depth of our collaboration. We thank HM for our outstanding partnership and look forward to the next 50 years in collaborative and strategic partnership!
Studying at Hochschule München has had a major impact on hundreds of Cal Poly students over the years. Hear from students currently studying abroad at Hochschule München.
“My name is Laura and I’m a 3rd year mechanical engineering major. I’m exchanging with Hochschule München for two semesters. I’ve been here for 2.5 months, and so far, I have had the opportunity to develop friendships with people from all over the world and all different walks of life. I’ve learned a lot about myself so far because the exchange program is a fairly independent journey. Hochschule München has a variety of courses in English that meet both my interests and transfer directly to my major courses. For example, two of my classes this semester includes a renewable energy class for a tech elective and Aerospace Controls Systems for a major course substitution.”
Laura Joan Russell, 3rd year Mechanical Engineering major
“My name is Nicky and I am a third-year business student on exchange for the winter semester at Hochschule München. Thus far, I have had a great time on my study abroad experience. Munich itself is a beautiful city with tons of sights to see, and it is quite easy to travel around in Europe and visit other places. Academically, taking internationally-focused business courses allow me to broaden my perspective in my studies in a way that would be difficult to achieve at Cal Poly. Being immersed in an international environment, both in terms of my fellow peers as well as the content being studied, provides for a unique educational experience that has exposed me to other ways of thinking.”
Nicky Angelo Chavez, 3rd year Business Administration major
“I recently completed my fourth year at Cal Poly as a mechanical engineering major and am taking my last few classes at Hochschule München before graduating. My exchange with HM so far has been incredible! Although moving to another country alone was and is challenging at times, I have grown and learned so much from these past few months. I have made friends from all over the world and have loved getting to know a new culture and language. My classes are enjoyable and challenging but give me the flexibility to travel to nearby cities on the weekends. My professors have been extremely accommodating and welcoming, as have fellow students. There are plenty of courses in English to choose from, I was able to find classes on subjects I am very interested in. Studying in Munich has been a major highlight of my time in college and is an experience I will looked back on fondly.”
Phoebe Grace Zeiss, 4th year Mechanical Engineering major
Hochschule München students have been enjoying their time studying at Cal Poly and enjoying the community. Hear about some of their experiences:
“One of my favorite experiences here in SLO was doing the Tri Trip Challenge. Missing the Alps and a real hike, my Swiss friend Pascal and me started with Bishop Peek, continued with The “P” and did Cerro San Luis (Madonna Mountain) at the end. After five hours of hiking and biking between the hills, we’ve definitely earned ourselves the Tri Trip Sandwich at Firestone.”
Andreas Riepl – International Student
“Some of us German exchange students teamed up with some of our flatmates and our fellow Wowies and went to Joshua Tree together for a weekend. We did a few different hikes, climbed some boulders and even went stargazing. We saw some fantastic landscapes, rocks and rock formations, and I think I speak for everyone by saying the weekend was a blast! Another thing I particularly enjoyed was attending the Halloween event, where we carved pumpkins and had a fantastic dinner together (real bread!).”
Thaia Hansl – International Student