Jump to:
-
BSM contact info
Summary of visa requirements
Arriving in Hungary
Orientation Session
Babilon language course
Housing Info
Insurance
Keeping in touch, things to do
"BSM Internet"
Summary: important pre-semester dates
BSM "campus" US Embassy
Academic Issues
Dear BSM Student,
It is our pleasure to welcome you among the students of the 2015 Summer Semester of the BSM program. We, the Budapest directors, the professors and the staff have great expectations of working with you!
I ask you to read this letter carefully, including the last part containing information about the courses of the new semester and the additional message about the housing arrangements.
CONTACT
The country code for Hungary is 36. Our phone numbers are:
(+361) 413 3038 (BSM office), or
(+361) 413 3003 (College International central office), fax: (+361) 413
3030, while the BSM (mobile) hotline
is +36304743924 , answered by Anna, i.e. Ms. Anna
Fóti, our student coordinator, who you will meet upon your arrival
or soon after that. Most probably she is the first person
you will meet from the staff (apart from, in some cases, the student
helper meeting you upon your arrival).
You will
meet Dezsô Miklós, the Budapest director and/or Prof. Ágnes
Szilárd, the associate director
on the 12th of June, Friday, 2:00 pm,
at the opening session of the semester which consists of an Orientation session and a Welcome Party.
In case you are lost at the arrival for some reason (delayed, or missed your plane, etc.), please call the (mobile) hotline and we will arrange a new pick up for you. Or you may send your message to Budapest through email to the following addresses: afoti@mcdaniel.hu or office@bsmath.hu or dezso@renyi.hu or szilard@renyi.hu. Again, in a dire need of urgent info or in case of an unexpected change or delay in your arrival data or on weekends (or being lost upon the arrival) you may call Anna on the cell phone 003630-4743924 or +3630-4743924.
VISA.
Everyone should be in a good
shape by now: you either need no visa to enter Hungary, or have
already submitted your visa application at the appropriate Hungarian
consulate. In case you think you need our assistance,
send a message to dezso@renyi.hu, if you have not done so yet.
Let us summarize here again, briefly, the recent situation: if you are a US (Canadian, Mexican, South Korean, Singapore) citizen, you can enter the countries of the European Union, including Hungary, without a visa and stay for 90 days (within every consecutive 180 calendar days). Since the summer program is much shorter than 90 days, even including the language option and some travel within the Schengen region, you will stay definitely shorter than 90 days, will need NO further paperwork. With your passport you might travel free within the Schengen region, or leave and reenter it.
If you are not a US citizen (or citizen of the countries listed above), most likely you will need a visa which you hopefully have applied for already. In case you still do not have a visa and there are no definite plans when and where to pick up, contact me immediately, please.
Once you arrive with your C type visa, you can freely travel inside the Schengen region (most of the EU countries, except Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia and the British Islands, but including Switzerland and Norway), you will not need a visa to enter those countries or return to Hungary. However, if you have a single entry visa, so you may not leave the Schengen region.
ARRIVAL
Please send us by email
your exact arrival schedule (airline, flight number, city arriving
from, exact date - make sure to add one day to your departure date
since your flight across the Atlantic will be overnight) so we can
pick you up at the airport. Most of you have shared this
info with us already. In case of last
minute changes, please send all relevant information ASAP to
budapestsemesters@gmail.com, afoti@mcdaniel.hu
and office@bsmath.hu.
At the airport/train station, in the arrival hall, look for the BSM signs. A student helper will in all cases be waiting for you (unless it is negotiated otherwise personally with you). In case you miss each other, be patient and try to locate him/her. In dire need, call from the station the emergency number but in no case leave the station/airport before successfully contacting us.
If your luggage gets lost and the carrier asks for your address in Budapest where to deliver it, please give them the BSM address: College International, BSM, 1071 Budapest, Bethlen Gábor tér 2. We have a 24-hour reception there, they will save it for you.
ORIENTATION
You will meet the officers of the program and your professors on the
opening programs on June 12th, Friday, 2:00pm (Orientation Session) and 3pm (welcome party).
(Check the academic calendar
or our events' calendar for details.)
There will also be a pre-orientation info session for those of you who will be participating in the Hungarian language course prior the semester. It will be June 4th, Thursday. Those of you who arrive later and miss this session should come to BSM on June 12th at 1pm already for the pre=orientation.
BABILON LANGUAGE COURSEThose who come at the beginning of June and take the intensive Hungarian language course: be prepared for the challenges of the first couple of days because the course at Babilon school is indeed intensive! Though it includes an orientation tour in the city, the long school hours will take almost all of your days leaving little time for the daily routines of shopping, etc.
The Babilon course begins on Wednesday, June 3rd and ends Friday, June 12th. Click here for the Babilon timetable.
As mentioned above, there will be a pre-orientation session at BSM headquarters on on June 4th, Thursday, to discuss all questions emerging till that point, and get an overview of your life at BSM and in Budapest including safety issues.
HOUSING
We do our best to find you housing as requested.
However, since the demand is changing from semester to semester, it
might happen that you are placed into an apartment not exactly
matching your request. If you are not satisfied with the
accommodation or don't get along with your roommate(s), let us
(actually, Anna) know ASAP because change might be possible! However,
you may be asked to be patient for a few days until our student
coordinators will find you another place to live. Due to our earlier
experience, let me stress: we can solve your housing problems only if
we know about them. So please, in case of having any problem, visit
or contact the BSM office and let the coordinator handle the problem.
Please, be aware, that although BSM is an intermediary between you
and your landlord, you have to agree and sign the Lease Contract with
your landlord. We put a blank contract in English and Hungarian,
which you can use, in the welcoming information package. Be sure you
read and understand it before signing.
Please do not pay any rent
until the contract is signed (but sign a contract as soon as
possible). In case of any doubts, uncertainties, ask Anna!
Let us know of your concerns - we cannot help you if we do not know about them.
INSURANCE
Let us draw your attention to the importance of having an appropriate health
insure policy during your stay in Hungary. Before you leave, please
call your home insurance company and make sure your insurance is
valid in Hungary and make sure to know what type of costs and up to what extend are met
by it.
We expect you to have have a proper, valid insurance policy, covering at least up to
30000 euros for your health expenses, including evacuation to your home country.
Several US companies offer appropriate insurance for your travel, study abroad needs e.g.
Gateway US, IMG,
CMI or ISOS.
Your tuition includes a "parallel" health insurance provided by College International (our umbrella institution
in Hungary) allowing access to a reliable, English
language health service offered by Semmelweis University, the medical
university of Budapest.
Let me emphasize here that it is a parallel
option only — it does not replace your home insurance, especially, since
it does not cover you outside of Budapest i.e. during your travels and does not offer
evacuation!
BSM "campus"
BSM does not have a campus as such. It is located in a large building surrounded by a courtyard.
The building is equipped
with security entrances and you will be able to enter the building
only using your chip card which will be given to you at the pre-orientation or orientation session. You
will have to pay a deposit of 3000 HUF (cash), which will be returned prior your
departure upon returning the chip card.
A list with the names of the
forthcoming BSM students will be deposited at the entrance desk of
the building, so in case you want to visit the BSM
building before the official beginning of the semester, you will be
allowed enter.
We suggest those who have not done so join our summer student Facebook group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/1641791896034349/. Some spring students still in town joined too, willing to help you give advice about the city etc.
Also: check out our map for "useful stores around BSM" as well as a "Things to do" and "Bucketpest list" from the Spring, 2014 class.
In addition, here is advice from our students of previous semesters regarding finances:
1. Bring a bank card (cirrus, MasterCard, Maestro or Visa). It gets the best exchange rate. Check with your home bank about charges for withdrawal abroad. Bankcards are much better than traveler's check, and ATM machines now can be found everywhere.
2. In case you still want to bring them, traveler's checks of USD 50 work best for traveling, and it is a good idea to have varying denominations. The textbooks or reading materials for the BSM courses are, however, only sold for HUF (Hungarian forints), as everything else in Hungary.
3. Bring some American cash (cash is always handy in case of emergency). Do NOT change money in the US, exchange rate is much better in Hungarian banks and exchange counters. The little official exchange booths in the center of the city offer better rates than banks and normally they don't charge a commission. Do NOT change money on the street!
4. It is much cheaper to call Budapest from the US than doing it the other direction. You might also buy pre-paid calling cards, which make international calls really cheap. Most of our earlier students of the recent semesters quickly bought a cell-phone - sometimes calling abroad from them is also relatively cheap - especially in case of the voice over IP solution. It's free to receive calls on your cell-phone. Your apartments should have internet connection as well and calling via skype or other internet based connection should be the cheapest way.
5. Be warned that due to a new law all large stores/supermarkets are closed on Sundays. However, supermarkets stay open late (9 or 10pm during the weekdays) and small, family owned stores are open on the weekends.
INTERNET
You will have Internet access and may use your
home e-mail address if you wish at the computer lab of College
International, our umbrella institution. You can use your laptop all
over the building via WiFi. If you wish to use a local
e-mail address, let us know and a local e-mail
account (firstinitialandlastname@mcdaniel.hu) will be set up by the time you arrive.
Alternatively, during the first days at Bethlen ter you may visit the
computer lab and an account can be set up for you. To use the
computer lab, print or copy pages, you will need your entrance card.
There will be 100 pages (printed or copied) preloaded on the card and
you can top it up in the appropriate office at Bethlen ter.
All BSM students are keen about an immediate INTERNET access in their apartment. We have made serious efforts and as a rule all of the apartments should have fast internet connection upon arrival. The fee for it may be included in your rent or you may have to pay extra to the rental fee, since only long term internet connection is available in Hungary, and the lump sum fee need to be paid for the period when the apartment is unoccupied, too.
FURTHER INFORMATION A printed version of this welcome info with some additional information and a survival package will be given to you as well upon or a bit after your arrival. The Academic program and all other BSM related information is available at BSM's Budapest website, www.bsmath.hu. We update this website regularly, so "www.bsmath.hu" might be the quickest source of information. In the Academic Program you will find information about the requirements, courses, and program of the semester.
Important pre-semester dates, summary
Hungarian language course starts | June 3 (We), 8am | at Babilon (1075 Budapest, Károly krt. 3/a. ) |
Pre-orientation session, for students of Babilon | June 4 (Th), 2:30pm | at Babilon |
Hungarian course ends | June 12 (Fr), 12:30pm | at Babilon |
Pre-orientation session, for those not taking Hungarian | June 12 (Fr), 1pm | at BSM (1073 Budapest, Bethlen Gábor tér 2) |
Academic orientation session | June 12 (Fr), 2pm | at BSM |
Welcome Party | June 12 (Fr), 3pm | at BSM |
Academic Calendar
First day of classes | June 15 (Mo) |
Registration deadline | June 19 (Fri), 3pm |
Drop deadline | July 31 (Fri), Noon |
Last day of classes | August 7 (Fr) |
Final exams | August 6-7 (Th-Fr) |
Grade report sheets handed out | August 8 (Sa) |
US EMBASSY IN BUDAPEST
Last, but not least let us mention the American Citizen Services of the Budapest Embassy of the United States. Please, visit their WEB site http://hungary.usembassy.gov/service.html, it contains useful information for American citizens in Budapest. Pay particular attention to the Tourist advisory section http://hungary.usembassy.gov/tourist_advisory.html. Previous semesters a couple of times we had BSM students scammed in Vaci utca, which I naturally would like to avoid in the future.
Looking forward to seeing you in Budapest
Dezso Miklós, Anna Foti, Agnes Szilard
More on Housing
Dear BSM students,
Since the housing arrangement has become a crucial issue during the last few semesters, we would like to share some information with you about the housing situation here in Budapest, in addition to what is written in the welcome letter above. It is really important for you to know what to expect before you arrive.
You will spend less than two months in the country. It is nowhere easy to find reasonable accommodation for such a short period and unfortunately BSM has no dormitory facilities. Most probably you would not be able to find places with such conditions. This is why we believe it is our (the Budapest office's) duty to solve the housing question. In some of the cases during the last semesters some BSM students thought they were able to solve their housing in a more clever way, but it rarely worked, normally only caused extra trouble for both of us. Therefore, I asked you to act independently only if you are absolutely sure about your possibilities. In that case we might not be able to help you later.
The Budapest office maintains a list of apartments with landlords who are willing to rent out them for short term. The price of these apartments (per person) is calculated under the conditions given, and therefore a bit higher than the normal Budapest market price. But please understand, short term renting is more expensive everywhere in the world.
According to the normal procedure you will be assigned (and guided to) and apartment upon your arrival, as close to your wish described in the housing matching form as possible. The procedure after that is described in the welcome letter above.
In general, please note the following comments:
. BSM students pay between 65000-75000 HUF per person per month (right now 1USD is appr. 220 HUF, but varied between 160 and 240 HUF during the last two years) for their housing, excluding utilities, so called common charges of the houses the apartments are in, cleaning, etc.. There are some exceptions, for example you may pay more at a family stay, but you get food etc.
. Normally 2 or 3 students share a flat, but everybody should get his/her independent room for this price. Those who request it will be housed at a family, if possible.
. We are trying to, but we can't fulfill all wishes! We'll try to find the best apartment to you!
. We have limited amount of families, so not everybody gets to stay with one. You will get a roommate instead.
. Public transportation is really good in Budapest from almost all apartments you can make it to school in 30 min.
. Please understand that not all the apartments are close to school.
. We have apartments on the Buda side as well, but with good transportation in nice areas. Living on the Buda side does not mean to live far away from the center.
. Changing apartment and roommate is possible, but sometimes really difficult. We have limited amount of apartments, so please try to be flexible.
. Conditions rely on the landlords, some collect deposit some not.
. Please always pay the rent in time!
. Let us know if you have any problems with your landlords!
Finally let me ask you to keep your apartment in a good shape during your stay in Budapest and give it back in the same condition you got them. During the last semesters we (almost) completely succeeded in changing the BSM apartments to certain standards, which meet the requirements of the BSM students. However, the monthly rent does not cover the full renovation of the apartments after each semester, so you cooperation is essential in keeping the apartments in good shape. Moreover, any damage will be deducted from your (local or US) security deposit. It is very difficult to demand high standards from the landlords if the tenants do not obey the standards themselves. So, please, keep the apartments in good shape, clean and tidy condition during your stay.