After the exchange

All ARTS students who have participated in student exchange have to return the following exchange documents as soon as possible after the exchange.

Exchange report

Fill in and submit the online ARTS Student Exchange Report in the ARTS Study Abroad portal as soon as possible after your exchange. The report has to be written in English. Reply carefully to the questionnaire, because it gives valuable information on the destination and studies at the host institution for future applicants and exchange students. All reports will be published in the ARTS Destination Database.

After Exchange Form

• Attach the official transcript of records which you received from your host institution to the After Exchange Form in the ARTS Study Abroad portal.
• Attach them in PDF format (size max. 2 MB/document).
• You cannot submit the form until you have received all the documents.
• Incomplete After Exchange Form will be returned to student.
• Do not send the documents by e-mail/mail.

Erasmus+ participants must also return the following documents:

1. Signed Online Erasmus+ Learning Agreement (OLA) in the ARTS Study Abroad portal.
   • If your original study plan changed, you must also update your OLA, and the updated OLA must be approved by your ARTS Academic Advisor and your host institution's representative.
   • The documents need to be signed by all 3 parties.
   • Incomplete OLA will be returned to the student.
   • Erasmus+ students cannot use other forms to replace the OLA
2. YourLetter of Confirmation (or other certificate) of your actual exchange dates. Letter of Confirmation is required only if the exact dates are not included in your transcript. Attach the Letter of Confirmation to the After Exchange Form. Do NOT attach acceptance letter / letter of attendance received in the beginning of the exchange for this purpose.
3. EU Survey. This online feedback form is sent automatically by Commission to all Erasmus+ students after the exchange.

Transfering credits completed on exchange

In order to get the credits which you completed abroad during your exchange transferred into your current degree at ARTS, you have to apply for credit transfer through your personal study plan in Sisu, as soon as possible after you receive your official transcript of records from your host institution. For more information, see Aalto University General Guideline on Credit Transfer.  All studies completed during your exchange which have been approved by your Academic Advisor at ARTS, should be included in your current ARTS degree. After your credits have been transferred to Sisu, please notify the ARTS Planning Officer responsible for exchanges, so that we can process the second installment of your grant. If you have questions about the credit transfer, please contact [email protected]

The second installment of your exchange grant will be paid after you have returned all the above mentioned documents, and your credits have been transferred to Sisu, if you have completed required number of credits per semester during your exchange.

ARTS Student Exchange Satisfaction Survey

Fill in and submit the ARTS Student Exchange Satisfaction Survey. The link will be emailed to you at the end of your exchange.

After Exchange -forms

Log into the BIZ MoveOn portal to submit the documents listed below, using the After Exchange online form. You can start filling in the form and attaching the required documents as soon as you finish the exchange, but do not submit the form before you have attached all the required documents.

Exchange report

All students who have been on exchange have to write a travel report. The travel report should be returned to Student Exchange Services as soon as possible after the exchange; the deadline is within one month after the exchange semester has ended. Instructions for writing the report can be found further down on this page. You can also write the travel report together with another student on exchange at the same destination (max 2 students / travel report).

Students can substitute writing the travel report by blogging during the exchange. We expect a minimum of two posts per month on the same topics that the student would cover in the travel report. In addition students can blog about any other topics that might be interesting to fellow students. Links to the blogs will be published in Into. If you are interested in blogging while on exchange, please contact [email protected].

Transcript of records from the host university

The exchange universities normally send the transcripts directly to Student Exchange Services and we will then forward them to the students. If we receive hardcopy transcripts they will be sent automatically to the address the student has registered in Sisu - please make sure your address is up-to-date in the system! In case the transcript is sent directly to your home from your exchange university, please upload a copy of it to the After Exchange form. The electronic transcripts of records are official only in their digital form and not as paper-printed copies. Check from your exchange university whether transcripts are sent automatically or do you have to order them separately. If your exchange transcript is available for us in the university system, please let us know.

The transcript of records from the host university is the only official certificate of the studies completed by the student during the exchange period, so it is worth keeping.

Transfering credits completed on exchange

In order to get the credits completed abroad to your Aalto transcript, you need to apply for a credit transfer in Sisu. In majority of the cases the studies will form a minor to student's degree. You need to apply for inclusion in the Sisu credit transfer application. Add all the courses you have completed abroad to one application. These studies will then form your international minor.

Students in the Global Management program apply for substitution for their studies instead of inclusion. Instructions on credit transfer will be given by CEMS Office.

In case you completed more than is needed for the International Minor (BSc 30 credits and MSc 24 credits), you can use the extra credits to your electives, for example. For these credits you need to fill a separete credit transfer application, which will be processed by your departmental study coordinator.

If you failed to complete the required amount of courses on exchange, you will need to subsitute the missing credits with other courses completed at Aalto. In order to form the international minor to student's degree a minimum of 18 ECTS need to be completed abroad.

Exchange studies cannot be transferred into the Aalto degree until we have received an official transcript from the host institution. Getting the transcript may take several months, so please take this into account especially if you plan on graduating immediately after the exchange. Additionally, the personal study plan must be up to date and approved by your study coordinator. All the courses transferred from exchange will be recorded separately onto your Aalto transcript, i.e. the names of the courses completed while on exchange will be visible. Exchange studies will be graded with pass/fail. 

The following exceptions also apply:

• If you want to use a course completed on exchange to directly substitute a course in the Aalto study programme, or otherwise include exchange courses in the study programme (outside the International Minor), you will have to supplement the International Minor with other courses to complete the required scope (min. 24/30 ECTS). Please contact [email protected] for instructions on how to supplement the International Minor.
• If you have not been able to complete the required number of credits on exchange, you will have to take supplementary courses to complete the International Minor's minimum scope (24/30 ECTS). Supplementing the international minor is meant only for special cases (if you get ill while on exchange or fail a course despite your best efforts). The International Minor should primarily be completed on exchange. Supplementary courses can be English-taught, internationally oriented courses completed in Aalto University or language courses with min. B1 level. Supplementary course can also be internship completed abroad if the credits have been transferred to student's degree already and it fulfills other requirements. Courses completed at Universities of Applied Sciences cannot be used as supplementary courses, except the language courses included to the cooperation agreement of Aalto University, Haaga-Helia, Laurea, Metropolia and Asia Network (min B1 level courses).
• If you complete less than 18 ECTS credits on exchange, the International Minor cannot be formed into your Aalto degree. This means that you will have to select another minor to your the degree. The second part of the scholarship will not be paid and, depending on the reason for the low number of credits, you may have to refund also the first part of the scholarship either partly or in full. You can try to have the exchange study credits transferred through to the usual credit transfer procedure.

Feedback survey

Link to the Aalto University School of Business electronic feedback survey will be sent to all students after the exchange. All students who have been on exchange are required to answer the feedback survey. Through the survey we collect data on the academic level as well as the level of services at partner universities. It's also important for us to hear of the possible problems and challenges our students have faced at each university. The feedback from our students is essential in developing the partner university network.

Erasmus+ documents

1. Erasmus Letter of Confirmation. Students who have been on Erasmus+ exchange have to submit the Erasmus Letter of Confirmation after their exchange and with the starting and ending dates of the exchange. The minimum length of an Erasmus+ exchange is 3 months. The Letter of Confirmation must be signed by the coordinator of the exchange university and returned to the Student Exchange Services after returning to Finland. Erasmus+ countries include all EU-countries as well as Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Turkey and Macedonia.
2. Signed Learning Agreement. The Learning Agreement form with possible changes (signatures of the host university included) has to be returned to Student Exchange Services after returning to Finland.
3. Erasmus+ OLS Language Assessment. All students going on exchange through the Erasmus+ programme must complete an online language test before and after the exchange. The test is a mandatory part of the Erasmus+ programme. The link to the test is sent to students before the exchange, and the second test will be sent automatically according to the defined ending date of the exchange. Both tests have to be completed before the second part of the scholarship can be paid.
4. EU Survey / Participant report. Students on Erasmus+ exchange have to fill out the EU Survey after the exchange. This is an electronic feedback form which is sent automatically by the European Commission to all Erasmus+ students after the exchange.

After exchange -form

Log into the TECH exchange portal to submit the documents listed below, using the After Exchange online form. You can start filling in the form and attaching the required documents as soon as you finish the exchange, but do not submit the form before you have attached ALL the required documents. The documents are listed below. After submitting the form, remember to inform the exchange coordinator of your own Aalto school by email that you have completed the process.

The documentation related to the exchange must be taken care of and returned after the exchange, even in the event that the second part of the grant will not be paid.

Documents to be returned after the exchange

1. Official transcript of records from the host university.
2. Exchange report (guidelines below).
3. Aalto transcript of records, exchange studies included.

Erasmus-students

In addition to the documents listed above, Erasmus students must also return:

1. Letter of Confirmation completed and signed by the host university, i.e. a certificate of the duration of your exchange. The the start and end date of your exchange must be clearly stated in the LoC.
2. Learning Agreement which has all the signatures: yours, planning officer's, exchange coordinator's and coordinator's of the host university.
3. Erasmus Participant Report survey (you will receive a link to the survey by email at the end of your exchange).

Transfering of credits completed on exchange

In order to get the credits completed abroad to your Aalto transcript, you need to apply for a credit transfer in Sisu according to Aalto University policy on credit transfer.

You must show the original transcript issued by your host university to the Planning officer/study coordinator of your degree program when you submit the credit transfer application. You should also deliver the course descriptions of the courses you completed during the exchange (e.g. from the exchange university's study guide or course portal). It may also be necessary to update HOPS.

The purpose of the exchange report is to provide information to future students selected for the same destination and to those students who want to compare different universities and countries before applying. The last two questions are meant to help with reflection and self-evaluation of the exchange experience.

Preparing for the exchange

• What documents did you submit in the exchange university's own application process?
• How long did it take to get a visa (if one was needed)?
• Traveling to the exchange university, registration, orientation
• Possible challenges

General information related to studies

• Semester start and end dates (including orientation and exams)
• General information about the courses
• Was the course offering sufficient?
• What courses and at what level (bachelor's/master's) was it possible to choose?
• Which program's courses did you study?
• How freely could you choose courses? Did you have to choose the courses from a specific program?
• What was the language of instruction?

The following information about each course you took:

• Course name and course code as well as level (Bachelor's/Master's) and extent in credits
• Teaching and assessment methods (exam, project, practice work, etc.)
• Content of the course
• Your assessment of the usefulness of the course
• Your own positive and negative comments about the course

Free time and other matters outside of studies

• Living costs: possible fees at the university, exam books and other study materials, housing, food and other expenses
• Free time and getting to know other students Information about the city, the surrounding area, the climate and cultural differences
• Travel in the destination country
• Useful tips

Final comments

• Would you recommend the exchange university to other students? Justify your answer.
• Would you do anything differently if you went to the same destination again?
• What did you learn during the exchange experience?
• What did you learn about yourself during the exchange or because of the exchange?

Please attach atleast one photo.