ESB Firmenforum 2014 - “Meet your Future”

Whoever happened to be on campus during the last couple of days certainly noticed that a lot of students were wearing their suits. This is because during the past week the ESB Firmenforum (or FIFO for short), one of the most important events for IB students during the winter semester, took place on campus! The FIFO is a career fair, which gives all IB ( as well as all other ESB students) the possibility to get in touch with well-known and internationally operating companies.

This years' two-day event offered a unique possibility to ESB students to get in contact with 41 of our sponsoring companies. From consulting firms and banks to manufacturing and transportation companies, all firms were given the chance to inform and showcase their internship programs and career paths.

But what is it that makes FIFO so special? Students have the chance to learn about the companies during presentations and while
talking to company representatives. Secondly, many companies are conducting interviews for internships, trainee programs and jobs directly on campus during the business fair. But let's also not forget about the famous “Start-Up evening” organized by the ESB Entrepreneurs, which typically takes place on the day before the FIFO, and focuses especially on alumni who founded their own start-up companies and are able to provide students firsthand information and insights if they are interested in becoming entrepreneurs themselves. Most importantly, the FIFO  is almost completely organized by ESB students for ESB students proving our famous ESB spirit!

FIFO's motto “Meet your Future” summarizes what the business fair is all about: informing yourself about many exciting career opportunities in different business sectors all around the globe. So to all future IB students: 
Get your suits ready and meet YOUR future next year at the ESB Firmenforum 2015! 

ESB-breviations

Like every other institution, the ESB has some abbreviations which are used almost daily. At the beginning it can be quite confusing, so we have compiled an exclusive list of the most common abbreviations used at the ESB.

1. The first one is of course ESB which formerly stood for European School of Business. But honestly, not even all of the students know that, everybody just says ESB. Since the merger in 2008 of the faculties ESB (European School of Business), SIB (School of International Business) and PM (Production Management), the name ESB is not an abbreviation anymore. Since 2008 it's simply a name. Not more - not less. 

2. If you want to tell your fellow students in which program you are in, you don’t say “International Business” but IB and usually the semester. So if you start at the ESB you are IB1.

3. The other study programs at the ESB also have abbreviations. The “International Management Double Degree” program is called IMDD and is also closer described with the semester and the country link they have selected. You sometimes will also hear IPBS which is the old term for IMDD.

4. RIO stands for the Reutlingen International Office, an important place to go if you are an international student! They help with lots of paperwork and questions you may having coming from a non German or EU country. 

So now that the basics are clear, I would like to introduce three more abbreviations that help you through the Winter semester. 

1. The first one is FIFO. This is the short version of “Firmenforum” and describes the annual business fair on campus. Companies come to the ESB to meet with students and provide the opportunity to inform yourself about programs such as internship places. 


2. The second business fair we have on campus is IBF, which is short for “International Business Fair” and takes place in April every year and is organised by the IB program.

3. Before we totally overwhelm you, there is just one last appreciation. Bib,  while sounding a little bit strange, is used quite often among the students. Bib is short for the German word “Bibliothek” which means library and during your studies you’ll definitely have to go there. But don’t worry, its quite a nice place.

So with this short guide you are well prepared for the ESB and you will (hopefully!) understand everyone on campus.

Let's Get Down To Business - The Internship Semester

Within the International Business Program, the 4th semester is your first test of what you have learned  at the ESB. My name is Ramona, I come from the South of Germany and I am currently doing my Internship in the Communication Department at Airbus Group in Toulouse, France. I started my internship directly after the exams in June. This internship has to be a minimum of 24 weeks long, or 26 weeks if you intend to do the Masters option.

I started looking for an internship already in January, which was much too early as companies usually have interns for 6 month and don’t start looking for a new intern more than 2 months beforehand. However, just keep your eyes open for deadlines of the different companies. I got my offer six weeks before I started and it was no problem to find an apartment etc.. So don’t be too anxious if the deadline approaches and you don’t have an offer yet. 

Thanks to the courses at the ESB I felt very well prepared for it, even though I am doing my internship in a department that is not really covered in classes. The first important subject is the first and second’s semester Business Technology, as companies Companies assume that you know all about Excel (a fellow student just got a “Excel for Dummies” book from his boss – so they assume that you know even more) and Word of course. The Management and Financial Accounting classes helped me to understand financial results, which I had to put on the homepage of my company. Thanks to the second semester’s Project Management course I learned how to handle “virtual teams” as half of my team is based in Munich and even though I am working with them every day, I haven’t met some of them in real life so far. Last but not least thanks to the courses in English and Spanish, I have no problems to communicate with my colleagues and to understand their languages. As it is a very international team, small talk occurs in their native languages. 

The Internship semester is of course not just all about work. I am having a great time here in France. I enjoy being in the South of France where it is still 25 degrees in the end of October and I take the opportunity to visit other cities in France and Spain for the weekends. In big companies like Airbus Group there will be other interns which gather for Intern activities just like lasertag or afterwork parties.
I am very happy that the ESB has the integrated internship semester as I am not missing one semester for it and it gives me a feeling about what I can do after my studies. I am proud to say that I took the right decision to study International Business at the ESB.

the IB Photographer

Name: Yash Bothra
Home country: Jaipur Rajasthan (Northwest of India)
Semester: 3rd

Had you ever visited Europe before?
No, Germany was my first country in Europe.

When you arrived in Germany, did you have kind of a cultural shock?
Yes, a big one. One of the biggest differences I recognized quite fast is the interaction between boys and girls. In India it is a big thing, especially for guys because you have to meet the father of the girl to ask him for any permission, so you have to go through a lot of communication channels and processes.

So what do you like and dislike about Germany?
I love the beer and drinking, it is on another level here in Germany but in a positive way.
What I really dislike it the food, especially Kaesespaetzle.

When did you start to take pictures and who inspired you?
I started when I was about 13, when I got my first camera and since then I like to do it.
Well it fascinated me when my father and grandfather took pictures of our family or when we traveled around and they seemed to have so much fun taking pictures.

Do you have a favorite object you like to take pictures of?
I prefer abstract thing in combination with people or landscapes but mostly I like night photography. But I am still exploring myself, what I am good at and what I can do.

Why did you started as the ESB Photographer?
I arrived a week later than the other students who were already joining a resort, I asked my mentee what to do, who told me; I should go to the photo resort because no one applied for it.
So I thought about the photo club in my hometown which I joined 5 years ago and where I learned how to work with pictures and cameras in a more professional way.

What was your first event?
My first event was the 'All in White' party and at this night I shot more than 700 pictures within 3 hours. Since then I went to every party, shot the pictures, processed them over night & upload them the next day before people ask for them.
But I also take pictures at business events like the IBF or last year’s FIFO and other events which are somehow related to the ESB.

Is it sometimes annoying when you can’t party because you have to take pictures?
Oh yes, it’s sometimes annoying because at the parties all of my friends are dancing and I stay somewhere taking pictures. In that case I put my camera away for 5 minutes, go dancing and then rush back to it. I like what I’m doing but I need a little bit less intensity of it, because people are expecting way too much.

What is the most difficult thing about taking pictures of so many people?
Sitting in front of the screen and going through all the 600 pictures of 1 night. Especially if you have 10 pictures of the same group and they all look similar and you have to figure out which is the best one to upload.

What is your biggest Pro and Con about taking the pictures for the ESB?
My biggest pro is that I get to meet a lot of people, and the biggest con is that I don’t get paid for it.

What advice do you have for your successors?
Be patient 

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Block Seminar Week

Have you heard? This week isn’t any ordinary week for the IB Students, it’s the infamous Block Seminar Week. 

For one week early in the semester, Block Seminar occurs, and during this week all IB students only have one subject, to be able to really focus on it. All IB semesters on campus take part in this Block Seminar week. However, the  course is different depending on the semester. The first semester students (IB1) have Information Systems, where they learn everything about Microsoft Excel in detail and have to have to execute a custom project. IB2 concentrates for one week on Presentation Skills. This course is really helpful in the second semester since there are a lot of presentations coming up for the students. In the third semester (IB3), students learn about Business Research Methods ( EDIT- This has been changed to Intercultural Management as of Summer Semester 2015!)and for the first time get the feeling of what will face them when dealing with their bachelor thesis. In IB5, the course in the block seminar depends on which major they have previously chosen. 


The students always look forward to this week, since it’s more ‘relaxing’ and really brings some variety to campus compared to the regular class schedule.Overall, Block Seminar Week is a really helpful week since students will learn a lot about this one subject and are not distracted by any other tasks as there are no other classes. During the week, they usually have to make a presentation or a project about what they have learned which they will present on the last day. It's nothing to worry about, as they are really fun and not all of these projects will be graded. 

We love projects!

You’ve probably already read about the various projects at ESB Business School that make our lectures so special. 

This semester,  IB 3 students had the amazing opportunity to gain a deep insight into the market research process and into the challenges that come with it. 

Lisa Petit, Maia Korradi, Jana Röcker (IB3)

How an International Evening should look like

This Wednesday, the Reutlingen International Club (RIC) organized again the so-called "International Evening". Students from all over the world were asked to prepare a little typical dish from their country.