!
Philipp&Laufenberg&–&philipp.laufenberg@cemsmail.org&
CEMS%Exchange%
University*of*Sydney*
Philipp*Laufenberg*–*WS13/14*
Courses:*
Strategic*Innovation*
Strategy*and*Entrepreneurship*
Business*Tools*for*Management*
Technology*Enabled*Business*Innovation*
Chinese*Business*Institutions*

!Exchange&Semester&WS13/14&–&USYD,&Australia& & & & & Philipp&Laufenberg& 5&
The!courses!are!divided!into!exclusives!and!electives.!An!innovation!
block!seminar!kicked!of!the!semester,!followed!by!4!other!courses.!
We!selected!the!courses!after!our!arrival!and!welcome!event.!
Strategic&Innovation&(Block&Seminar)&//&Deloitte&FASTRACK&Challenge&
In!this!seminar,!we!were!to!develop!a!$50M!idea!for!Deloitte!Australia!or!it’s!clients.!We!were!formed!
into!teams!and!were!allocated!a!coach!to!help!us!with!the!process.!We!started!with!ideation!and!were!
guided!through!the!process!of!rapid!prototyping,!agile!project!management!and!business!plan!creation.!
In!the!end!we!pitched!in!front!of!Deloitte!executives!and!got!feedback!on!our!overall!performance.!
Business&Tool&for&Management&
In!this!course,!we!learned!how!to!do!analysis!with!MS!Excel!and!SPSS.!Some!knowledge!about!statistics!
is!helpful.!It!is!a!very!much!hands?on!class!with!real!life!examples!and!practical!tasks.!In!my!opinion,!this!
class!should!be!mandatory!for!every!single!business!student!in!his!or!her!first!year!of!study!!Highly!
valuable!course!!
Strategy&and&Entrepreneurship&
In!this!course,!we!focused!on!entrepreneurship!in!a!mixture!of!theory!and!practical!tasks.!We!learned!
about!the!history!of!innovation!and!behavioral!aspects!and!biases!of!entrepreneurs.!We!also!focused!on!
design!thinking,!empathy!maps!and!conducted!a!group!work!to!innovate!for!a!company!in!Australia.!
Very!interesting!insights!into!innovation!and!what!it!really!means!for!companies.!
Technology&enabled&business&innovation&
We!learned!about!upcoming!technologies!that!will!reshape!the!companies!and!will!give!opportunities!
for!great!changes.!The!main!part!of!this!unit!of!study!was!a!group!deliverable!in!which!we!had!to!come!
up!with!an!innovation!that!extends!the!core!competencies!of!an!existing!global!player!leveraging!
innovative!technology.!No!prerequisites.!
Chinese&Business&Institutions&
We!learned!about!business!in!China!and!how!it!is!different!from!our!business.!Many!guest!lectures!and!
real!life!experiences!of!the!professor!helped!to!understand!how!a!communist!economy!works!and!what!
the!main!differences!in!doing!business!are.!Very!interesting!to!learn!!This!was!the!most!theoretical!class!
during!my!time!at!USYD.!

!Exchange&Semester&WS13/14&–&USYD,&Australia& & & & & Philipp&Laufenberg& 2&
The!visa!and!the!flights!are!the!only!things!that!have!to!be!taken!care!
of!before!arrival.!The!budget!should!be!around!AU$2500!per!month!
all?inclusive.!
1
VISA&
After!receiving!the!official!enrolment!letter,!you!can!apply!for!
the!student’s!visa!online.!You!should!do!that!as!soon!as!
possible,!because!sometimes!they!might!require!you!to!
undergo!medical!inspection.!I!had!to!do!appointments!at!two!
designated!clinics!for!chest!x?ray!and!general!tests.!
Flight&
Flights!should!be!booked!as!soon!as!possible,!because!prices!
tend!to!go!up.!You!should!allow!approx..!a!week!before!
semester!starts!for!flat!hunting.!I!recommend!open!return!
flights!in!case!you!want!to!stay!a!little!longer.!
Accomodation&
Hunting!for!flats!in!Sydney!can!be!a!pain.!There!are!several!
options!to!look!for!a!flat:!
University!accommodation:!on!the!website!they!say!that!
priority!is!given!to!undergraduate!students,!nonetheless;!there!
are!some!houses!reserved!for!postgraduate!students.!Rent!is!
very!reasonable!and!location!is!right!on!campus,!which!is!close!
to!the!city.!Use!this!link!for!application!(choose!either!terraced!
housing;!I!would!recommend,!or!Darlington!
2
house):http://bogong.ucc.usyd.edu.au/starappweb/NewApp.as
p!.!Application!is!for!free.!
!
?!www.gumtree.com.au!is!a!website!where!you!can!basically!
find!everything!from!flats!to!surfboards!to!vehicles!
!
!https://www.facebook.com/groups/380020932103524/!!
?!Scroll!down!in!this!group!and!talk!to!CEMS!students!from!last!
semester!to!get!contact!details!of!their!landlord!!
!
If!you!want!to!have!an!own!room!you!should!calculate!around!
$250!per!week.!A!shared!room!is!about!$180?200!per!week.I!!
highly!recommend!looking!for!accommodation!AFTER!you!
arrived.!A!lot!of!the!flats!are!dodgy!and!you!should!not!make!a!
contract!without!visiting!the!place!first!!!
Enrolment&
Course!enrolments!can!be!made!after!your!welcome!event.!It!is!
all!very!easy!and!relaxed!–!no!worries!!
Budget&
Including!accommodation,!travels,!food!and!drinks!I!needed!
around!$2500!per!month,!which!was!average!in!our!cohort.!
*
USYD*Preparation*
Visa,*Flights,*Enrolment,*Accomodation*and*Budget*

!Exchange&Semester&WS13/14&–&USYD,&Australia& & & & & Philipp&Laufenberg& 4&
*M*Attribution*
Cras*faucibus*tempor*magna.*Maecenas*dapibus*sodales*erat.*
Aenean*sem*felis.*
Life!in!Sydney!is!amazing.!It!is!full!of!possibilities!and!gives!you!the!
chance!of!going!to!the!beach,!relaxing!in!one!of!the!many!parks,!take!
a!break!with!amazing!coffee!or!visit!one!of!the!national!parks!around.!
Make!the!most!out!of!your!stay!by!enjoying!the!city!and!it’s!
many!events,!markets!and!pubs.!A!decision!that!has!to!be!taken!
is!either!living!in!Bondi,!or!near!uni.!!If!you!are!into!surfing!or!
just!cannot!live!without!the!beach,!Bondi!is!the!way!to!go.!I!
moved!there!after!my!semester!when!I!started!my!internship!
and!experienced!a!whole!new!way!of!life.!!Getting!up!in!the!
morning!and!go!for!a!run/swim/surf!before!heading!off!to!work!
is!an!experience!that!I!might!never!get!again.!I!loved!it.!
However,!the!commute!from!Bondi!Beach!to!USYD!is!about!45?
60!min!one!way.!
For!activities!you!can!rely!on!a!very!good!CEMS!club!that!
organizes!beach!days,!BBQs,!hiking!trips!and!a!lot!more!!!
For!your!semester!break!or!before/after!the!semester,!there!
are!many!destinations!you!can!easily!travel!to.!Just!to!name!a!
few:!Goldcoast,!Great!Barrier!Reef,!Fraser!Island,!Ayers!Rock,!
Kangaroo!Island,!Great!Ocean!Road!and!many!more.!!
Or!leave!the!country!and!explore!Fiji!or!New!Zealand!!You!
won’t!regret!it!!Let!me!know,!if!you!want!more!tips!for!
traveling!in!OZ.!
I!hope!I!could!help!your!decision!process!a!bit!with!this!short!
journal!and!hope!that!you!will!find!your!perfect!exchange!
location!!Wherever!you!will!end!up:!It’s!gonna!be!awesome!!
*
Some*Impressions:*Twelve*Apostels*&*Kangaroo*Island*