Exchange Report

University of Alberta, Canada

Alberta School of Business

Kitty Choi

ACCT, Year 4

Fall 2018

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Table of content

Part 1 Monthly Activity Log P. 3 – 4

Part 2 General Exchange Information P. 5 – 10

Part 3 Items to Bring P. 11

Part 4 Useful Links P. 11

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Part 1 Monthly Activity Log August

Being the only exchange student to UofA this semester, I had to go to Edmonton alone. I arrived at

Vancouver on August 26 midnight and took another flight to Edmonton in the morning. Maybe

because it was Sunday, there was no one in the Welcoming booth in the airport. I took Route 747 to

Century Park and then LRT to downtown. It was a bit scary to me because there were just 2 or 3

people in the LRT station and on the street. I took a great rest in the hotel and went to UofA next day.

After getting out the LRT station, I went to Hub directly as they were connected. There were some

Residence Assistants (RA) at the main level of Hub Mall. After settling down, I went to Safeway to buy

some groceries. I was very surprised to see the name of a famous HK businessman on the way to the

supermarket! Orientation activities started on my first day in residence! I was very happy to make

friends with Japanese students in orientation. Later, I met an exchange student also from HK and we

went shopping together.

September

Fall semester started! I was busy with buying textbooks, kitchenware, groceries and a down jacket. I

was very excited to see the snow! Sometimes, my friends and I went out and had lunch together.

We were curious about all the things in Edmonton. Once, they invited me to their room and we had

dinner together. We joined Mid-Autumn Festival gathering which was organized by Cantonese

Fellowship. On September 29, a fire broke out in Hub! All of us had to go out of our rooms!

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October

It was sad to have a midterm exam in the first week. After that, we joined a tour to Jasper and Banff

National Park during weekend and Thanksgiving holiday. Banff was really magnificent, especially for

Lake Louise! I watched a live hockey competition, which was very exciting. I also joined a trip to

Drumheller near the end of the month.

November

This month was full of midterm exams, projects and trips to other parts of Canada. The reading week

was very long, and I travelled to Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal, Quebec and Vancouver. Unfortunately,

I got a cold during the trip and I was tired afterwards.

December

There was no study break before final exams, so I started to do revision at the beginning of this month.

On 20 December, I left Edmonton and travelled to Yellowknife and Vancouver. On December 30, I

took a return flight back to HK.

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Part 2 General Exchange Information

Visa Procedures

HKSAR passport holders can apply for eTA (Electronic Travel Authorization) online. Visa is not required.

An eTA is valid for staying in Canada for up to 6 months. You have to pay CAD 7 online to complete

the application.

Orientation Activities

There are many orientation activities that you can join. Some of them need prior registration. You will

receive a detailed schedule of the activities when you check in student housing. I joined the

following orientations:

- Eastern Ascent (by Residence Services): You will meet your RA and other students living around

you. There are team building games, campus tour and kick-off events.

- New Student Orientation (by Student Union SU): I got to know other students from HK in this

orientation! Students are divided into groups based on their faculties. Activities included an

introduction of SU, icebreaking games, campus tour, faculty welcoming speech and President’s

address.

- Transition orientation (by International Student Services): It includes talks on various topics

including InfoLink, campus safety and health insurance. In addition, you can open a bank

account or set up a Canadian mobile phone number by visiting the counters in InfoMart.

- Chinese student gathering (by Chinese Students & Scholars Association): It invited a lawyer to

share information about Canadian law. A representative from Consulate-General of the People’s

Republic of China in Calgary also came to deliver a speech on approaching consulate for help

and some reminders for staying in Canada.

International Services & Activities

You can get in touch with international services staff inside Telus Centre. Sign up for their bi-weekly

newsletter to get updates on activities and trips for international students. My trip to Drumheller was

organized by international services team. I know that there was a trip to Banff at the beginning of

the semester. Trips arranged by them are very appealing to students because they only charge a

very low cost.

Accommodations

I lived in a furnished studio in Hub. It was just finished renovation last summer. The room is clean and

tidy. I chose to live in Hub because it is very close to the business building. It only takes around 5

minutes for me to go to the classrooms. Because the contract for a studio is on a month-to-month

basis, you will have to pay prorated monthly rent (from move-in date to the end of August). Even if

you submit Notice to Vacate one month before your expected date to leave, you will have to pay

the full monthly rent in the last month. Remember to bring your keys before leaving your room or you

will be subject to a fixed fee of CAD 50 to get your doors open.

Most of my friends lived in shared rooms. Some of their roommates cook and have a party at

midnight, and do not keep the kitchen tidy. It is important to sit down and discuss the details of

roommates’ agreement seriously during the first few days in residence. Later when you have any

concerns, RA can help you based on the agreement.

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Courses Registration

You will need to use Bear Tracks to register courses. It is a system that is very similar to SIS at HKUST.

However, there is no waitlist mechanism. You can add the courses into watch list and turn on email

notification when there is an available seat. Wait patiently and act fast. Then you will have your

desired courses registered.

Teaching & Assessment Methods

I took 5 courses in total this semester while most exchange students that I knew took 4 courses. You

are required to enroll in at least 3 courses.

ACCTG 418 Advanced Financial Accounting

Midterm 1 – 25% / Midterm 2 – 25% / Final exam – 50%

This course covered accounting for not-for-profit organizations, hedges, translation of financial

statements in foreign currency, short-term and long-term investments, consolidation at acquisition,

post-acquisition consolidation and deferred income taxes. Both IFRS and ASPE (Accounting

Standards for Private Enterprises) accounting standards will be discussed. ASPE is applicable for SMEs

in Canada.

Prof may get angry if you come to class late. Laptop usage is strictly prohibited in class. Texting is also

banned except for students sitting in the last roll. You need to purchase a course package which

includes printed lecture notes and past exam questions at the beginning of the semester. To get the

most out of the lecture time, it is better to read the lecture notes before coming to class. You may

not be able to follow what the Prof is saying when you are copying notes.

Average mark for midterm exams is around 65-70%. Do as many past paper questions as you can in

order to get a satisfactory result. There are two full-day tutorial sessions on accounting for NPO and

post-acquisition consolidation. Basically, you will be randomly assigned to a group of three and you

have to complete a comprehensive question with them in the tutorial. You can ask questions and

Prof will be there to answer.

ACCTG 456 Assurance on Financial Information

Midterm – 25% / Group case assignment – 20% / Participation – 20% / Final – 35%

This is a typical auditing course. Teaching style is similar to a HKUST course. After finishing each

chapter, there would be a discussion on selected practice problems. It is a good idea to be

prepared for the questions, so you can participate actively in both group and class discussion.

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Prof always takes attendance at the beginning of each class. Midterm and final exam are mainly

short questions and multiple-choice questions. The time limit is very tight. Try to write as fast as you

can to finish all the questions. A single sided letter size cheat sheet is allowed in the final exam.

ACCTG 467 Basic Income Tax

Midterm 1 – 25% / Midterm 2 – 25% / Final exam – 50%

After taking this course, you should be able to file Income Tax and Benefit Return T1 in Canada.

Topics include employment income, retirement savings, capital cost allowance, business income,

capital gain, property tax and other allowance. Canadian tax system is quite different from Hong

Kong tax system. For example, there are total income concept and tax on capital gain in Canada.

The teaching method is similar to ACCTG 418. You need to put down a lot of notes in class.

A formula sheet is provided in both midterm and final exams, so you do not need to remember all

the rates. Practice problems released about 1 week before exams are extremely useful. Textbooks

also contain many practice problems and detailed examples. Prof usually holds a review session a

few days before exams. It is quite useful as he will highlight the key points for revision and he may

provide some hints to the exams.

BLAW 422 Law of Business Organization

Midterm – 50% / Final exam – 50%

This is a Canadian company law course. Topics include agency relationship, business forms and

arrangements, incorporation, corporate liabilities, duties and liabilities of directors, shareholders’

rights, credit, bankruptcy, securities law, trusts and money laundering. In lecture time, Prof usually

gives explanations to the legal concepts and examples. Midterm and final exam are all multiple-

choice questions focusing mainly on practical applications of legal concepts.

MIS 437 Accounting Information Systems

Project 1 REA diagram – 15% / Project 2 QuickBooks – 20% / Project 3 IDEA – 15% / Quiz 1 Cardinality – 5% /

Quiz 2 Query using MS Access – 5% / Final exam – 40%

This course includes both lecture and lab. Topics include 4 types of modelling, inputting accounting

information using QuickBooks, computerized auditing procedures using IDEA and SQL queries using

MS Access. There are also some guest lectures on ERP system, generating financial statements and

accounting issues in real life. All the projects are individual projects. Quizzes are open-book quizzes.

Sports & Recreation

Many inter-universities competitions are held on campus. It is free of charge with a valid ONEcard.

There are a lot of sports skills classes held in Van Vilet Complex. Have a look at the recreation guide

booklet to find out more details. In addition to sports, there are also some outdoor activities like

snowshoeing, star gazing and hiking in Elk Island.

If you are looking for a musical or a classical music concert, Citadel Theatre and Winspear Centre

are the places that you wish to go.

Cameron library and computer lab B26 inside business building open 24 hours. They are good places

to go if you want to study at night.

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I always went to West Edmonton Mall (WEM) and Southgate Centre during weekends. Many shops

are located inside WEM and I think you can certainly buy the things you want inside WEM. To get a

great deal, wait for Black Friday and Boxing day sale.

Social Clubs & Networking Opportunities

There are more than 450 clubs at UofA. Visit the Clubs Fair during the first week of the semester to

find out which club interest you! I joined activities organized by Cantonese Fellowship several times

and met many students from HK! Activities are usually a party, broad games night, and bowling. It

does not matter whether you are a Christian or not, just feel free to go and have fun with them.

In addition, I joined the buddy program and I was matched with a local business student. She was

willing to help me settle down. If you want to make friends with local students, buddy program can

be your first step to go.

Finance & Banking

I opened a bank account in ATB Financial during exchange. Debit cards are widely accepted in

Canada except for small amount transaction like CAD 1. There is no limit on the number of

transactions for using ATB debit card. For other banks, there may be a service charge after a certain

number of transactions.

Exchange rate fluctuated a lot during my stay in Canada (CAD 1 to HKD 5.7X-6.1X). If you are

planning to exchange Canadian dollar in HK, try to request small denominations like CAD 50. The

situation of using CAD 100 banknote is similar to using HKD 1000 banknote. Normally, shops and

restaurants are not willing to accept CAD 100 except for supermarkets or large transaction amount.

If there is UnionPay logo on your bank card issued in HK or mainland China, you can take out money

from ATM machine on campus. For TD ATM machines, you can choose the denominations freely. For

BMO ATM machine, the take-out amount is restricted to multiples of 20. Using my Hang Seng Bank

card, HKD 20 and CAD 3 are charged for every transaction.

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You may consider depositing money into ONEcard for payments on campus, including printing,

laundry, food and bookstore. Its usage is like an Octopus card in HK. Try to use all remaining balance

before leaving Edmonton because requesting ONEcard refund requires CAD 25 service fee

Expenses in HKD

Excluding travelling expenses outside Alberta

Rent 28,700

Air ticket – Round trip from HK to Vancouver and from Vancouver to Edmonton 9,100

Essentials – Kitchenware, water-resistant boots, parka, second luggage 5,600

Banff tour 4,900

Food – Eating out 4,600

Insurance – UAHIP and private insurance pan bought in HK 4,400

Groceries 4,300

Souvenirs 2,400

Activities – Skating class, skates, trip to Drumheller 2,200

Study – Textbooks and printing cost 1,800

Telecommunication – Mobile data plan in Canada and 2 tourist prepaid sim card 1,500

Transportation – UPASS and several ETS tickets 1,000

Hotel – Accommodation before residence move-in date 700

Laundry 300

eTA 43

Total 71,543

Health & Safety

UAHIP is a mandatory insurance scheme which gives you protection within Alberta. You can pick up

your UAHIP card at the beginning of the semester and keep it with you all the time.

It is generally safe in most of the places in Edmonton during the daytime. Avoid going out alone

(especially going to China Town) late at night. There are usually very few people taking LRT and bus

at night.

The sound of the fire alarm in Canada is different from that in Hong Kong. Every time when you hear

some loud and non-stop sound in residence, go out of your room immediately.

Food

There are various types of food in Hub including Chinese, Indian, Japanese, Korean, Thai and

Western. You can also find bubble tea there. My favourites are poutine from New York Fries and

chicken fried rice from Savoy’s Express. Poutine is a classic Canadian food with different flavors and

it is very tasty! There are also many restaurants at Whyte Ave (82 Avenue).

Due to the money concern, I usually cook for myself. Safeway is the nearest supermarket to Hub. If

you want to buy groceries at a lower price, you may go to No Frills and Dollarama. T&T supermarket

is a great place to buy Asian food, like Nissin noodles, chicken powder and fish balls.

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Transportation

UPASS is a sticker on your ONEcard which gives you access to LRT and bus including route 747. You

need to present your UPASS to driver every time when you get on a bus. If you are caught for taking

LRT without UPASS, you will have to pay a fixed fine of CAD 250. Google Maps is very useful to get

the real-time information on the next bus/train arrival time.

Climate

The climate in Edmonton is extremely dry! It only takes 4 to 5 hours for washed clothes to become

dry. I recommend putting on hand cream every day to avoid cracking of your skin.

Although it is Fall season from September to December, the temperature can drop to -20 °C. First

snow fell in mid-September, so you have to be prepared for the cold weather. There are lots of

brands and styles of parkas sold in Canada. Some manufacturers may put a label on the parka to

indicate how cold can this parka resists, like -15 °C and -30 °C. You may use this label as a reference

when selecting a parka suitable for you. It is very common to wear water-resistant boots, so your

shoes will not get wet easily after walking on the snow. Gloves and hats are also essential to keep

yourself warm. Outdoor environment is really cold, but you will be warm when you stay indoors. I

usually wear two long sleeves and a parka outside and take off the parka inside classrooms.

There is a 1-hour time adjustment on the first Sunday in November. Remember to adjust your clock if

it does not adjust automatically.

Communication

I subscribed Fido’s monthly data and calls plan through Wirelesswave in Infomart. Monthly rate is

CAD 40. The plans included 4 GB data, 500 minutes Canada wide phone calls and 1,000 minutes

international calls to HK. Be careful that you may get the SIM card at no cost but there may be a

card activation fee. Besides, your request may take a few months to be handled if you are not

applying to the telecommunication service provider directly.

Two WIFI connections are available in UofA. You can access the network through UWS (using UofA

CCID) or eduroam (using HKUST ITSC).

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Part 3 Items to Bring

- UofA admission letter, HKUST decision letter, eTA Status page

- HKID, passport, passport copies

- Laptop, mobile phone, calculator, charger, adapter

- Stationery, paper

- Travel hair dryer, travel kettle

- Warm clothes, hoodies, jeans, underwear, towels

- Down jacket, gloves, hats, scarf

- Hand cream, body lotion

- Clothes hangers

Part 4 Useful Links

Bear Tracks – Similar to SIS at HKUST

https://www.beartracks.ualberta.ca/

Cannabis at the University of Alberta

https://www.ualberta.ca/campus-life/cannabis-working-group

Cannabis in Canada

https://www.canada.ca/en/services/health/campaigns/cannabis.html?utm_campaign=cannabis

-18&utm_medium=vurl-en&utm_source=canada-ca_cannabis

Copying & Printing using ONEcard

https://www.onecard.ualberta.ca/copying-and-printing

eClass Portal – Similar to Canvas at HKUST

https://eclass.srv.ualberta.ca/portal/

Golden Bears and Pandas Athletics

https://www.ualberta.ca/athletics

MyONEcard Log on – Checking ONEcard balance and transaction records

https://www.myonecard.ualberta.ca/OneWeb/Account/LogOn

Residence Services

https://www.residence.ualberta.ca/

U of A Used Books For SALE! – A Facebook group for buying and selling second hand textbooks

https://www.facebook.com/groups/2255838850/

Yelp – Similar to OpenRice in HK

https://www.yelp.com/edmonton

If more information is needed, get my contact from SBM Exchange Team by emailing at

bmugexch@ust.hk.