20D Ce Faq
20D Ce Faq
20D Ce Faq
Changes to the rules regarding Campus Exchange (CE) are at the discretion of the MBA Office.
It is likely that amendments will be made to the bidding system for your class.
Please note that CE is not automatic, you can only exchange to another campus with INSEAD or
outside with a partner school through the bidding process.
Any CE is contingent on the host country’s student visa decision. INSEAD has no influence on these
government decisions.
In Singapore, when applicable, the INSEAD MBA Office will initiate the Student Pass application process
with the Immigration & Checkpoint Authority (ICA). In France, the MBA Office will provide information
on the type and process of acquiring an appropriate visa in accordance with guidelines from the French
Immigration and Integration Office (OFII).
For more information, please refer to the relevant visa sections on MyINSEAD.
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CAMPUS EXCHANGE FAQ - FOR CLASS OF ‘20D | MBA Programme Management – Oct 2019
1. When can I exchange?
INSEAD encourages every student to spend some time on the other Campus during his/her MBA
Programme. You must spend your first two periods (i.e. 4 months) at your Home Campus*. Campus
exchange is only possible from P3 onwards. Around 4-6 weeks into your Programme, you will be asked
to indicate your exchange preferences for P3, P4, and P5 using the online bidding system. In order to
make your selection(s), you will be allocated 200 bidding points + bonus points (if any) which you will
use to indicate your preferences and priorities for BOTH Campus Exchange AND electives.
If you are successful with your bid for Campus Exchange, your Home Campus status will be postponed
for the duration of the stated period(s). Therefore, should you change your mind after the bidding
results have been communicated, you will need to join the waitlist (if any) during the Add/Drop Period.
*Home Campus is the campus where you are formally registered for the entire duration of the MBA
Programme (from P1 to P5). Unless and until you are successful in obtaining a Campus Exchange, as
validated by the MBA Office through the bidding process, you remain registered to your Home Campus
and must attend classes offered at the Home Campus. INSEAD guarantees a minimum of one period
exchange to another campus, but we DO NOT guarantee WHICH exact period will be available.
Whether you can exchange to another campus for a certain period will depend on your personal
bidding decision (i.e. how much points you decide to bid) and those of your promotion through the
bidding system.
INSEAD: Singapore or Fontainebleau, P3–P5 (Abu Dhabi P3 is also an option for the
July Class only)
US: Wharton (P4 for both classes and P5 for December Class only) or Kellogg (P4 only
for both classes)
China: CEIBS (P4 or P5 for December Class only)
Students cannot exchange with more than one partner school and this exchange is limited to one
period.
Each partner school determines the number of seats to be allocated to INSEAD students after the
bidding closes. The numbers fluctuate yearly and can be lower than previous years.
Students with US Federal loans are not allowed to go on exchange to Wharton, Kellogg and P3 Abu
Dhabi per US Government regulations.
INSEAD has exchange agreements with Wharton and Kellogg in the US and you are eligible to apply to
exchange to one of the two schools in Period 4. Students who are in the December Class also have a
few seats available at Wharton in Period 5. Interested students will need to bid for these US exchanges
and will be able to exchange if they qualify (the decision is based on a combination of bid points,
motivation essays and GPA), or as seats remain available. Students must be in good academic standing
(i.e. GPA>2.1) at INSEAD in order to exchange to one of our partner schools.
CAMPUS EXCHANGE FAQ - FOR CLASS OF ‘20D | MBA Programme Management – Oct 2019
Students may decide to go to the US for different reasons. The US exchange allows you to continue
expanding your network beyond INSEAD and will give you the opportunity to familiarize yourself with
US business and academic environments. Many students who are interested in pursuing their post-
INSEAD career in the US will also choose to go to Wharton or Kellogg, so that they can continue building
contacts in the US. The US exchange is limited to one period of study per student. Access to US schools’
career services is limited to the time spent on exchange. Non-US citizens do not have any special work
visa advantages post academic exchanges.
Students with US Federal loans are not allowed to go on exchange to Wharton, Kellogg and P3 Abu
Dhabi per US Government regulations.
Around 75% of INSEAD students will participate in an exchange for at least one period (2 months) within
INSEAD or to one of our partner schools.
There are many benefits to undertaking an exchange. Campus exchange can help you to:
There is no official limit to how many periods a student can exchange within the INSEAD Campuses,
subject to bidding results and campus capacity constraints. It is important to note that there are different
peak periods of excess demand for each campus/class, which means that not all Campus Exchange
requests can be accommodated during those periods. Therefore, we encourage you to consider
exchanging during the non-peak periods to increase your chances of ensuring an exchange. Students
who do not secure a Campus Exchange for a specific period remain registered to their Home Campus.
7. How do I apply?
The Campus Exchange process for the December’s class is a 2-phase process.
If you do not wish to spend any time on a low-demand campus as shown in the following table, then
you do not have to participate in this Phase 1.
CAMPUS EXCHANGE FAQ - FOR CLASS OF ‘20D | MBA Programme Management – Oct 2019
It is very important to note that the decision to apply for a low demand campus is unbreakable and is
treated as first phase of the formal campus exchange process, so we encourage all MBAs to think
carefully before making the decision. Once you decide to go to a low-demand campus and receive
the bonus bidding points, you can no longer change your mind.
In other words, the global bidding capital will be used for both Campus Exchange AND electives
course bidding.
The online bidding system’s purpose is to match student demand (i.e. preferences) with supply (i.e.
maximum seat capacity). Campus capacity / Elective course capacity limits exist to ensure optimal
learning experience for everyone (i.e. avoid over-crowding) and to ensure that INSEAD complies with
safety regulations.
! Making trade-offs between popular Campus Exchange destinations and/or popular Elective courses is
strongly encouraged. For example: By spending P3 in Singapore, you will maximise your chances to
attend Elective courses with star Professors and/or to win an exchange spot at WHARTON.
INSEAD will provide historical bidding data from previous MBA classes for your information and for
indicative purposes only. Please DO NOT rely solely on this data for your bidding strategy, as
successful bidding scores do not fluctuate uniformly or predictably each year. Bidding is based on
each student’s willingness to pay in order to obtain a Campus Exchange for a specific period relative
to other students’ willingness to pay for the same period(s).
The short answer is no. Whether you can exchange to another campus will depend on your personal
decision on how much/little to bid for a specific campus for a specific period. If your bid is below the
cut-off point which is determined by campus capacity constraints, you will be put on a waitlist. The
waitlist may clear during the Add/Drop Period following the publication of the bidding results. If you
are at the bottom of a long waitlist, your chance of obtaining the Campus Exchange for that specific
period is extremely small.
Whilst the School will strive to meet the students’ requests for exchange as much as possible, we
typically experience a high volume of requests for Singapore during the winter months (November to
February) and for Fontainebleau during May/June. INSEAD guarantees that you can spend at least
one period on the other Campus (if you choose to do so), but we do not guarantee a specific campus
for a specific period, due to campus capacity constraints. Students who do not secure a Campus
Exchange for a specific period remain registered to their Home Campus.
CAMPUS EXCHANGE FAQ - FOR CLASS OF ‘20D | MBA Programme Management – Oct 2019
9. How does exchange affect my elective choices?
INSEAD MBA follows a “one School, two Campuses” operating model. This means that in both
Singapore and Fontainebleau, on the social and academic sides, we have created a mirrored structure
with the same rules, administrative support and academic rigour. More than 90% of electives are
offered on both Campuses (except for a few specific courses). Before you are asked to state your
Campus Exchange preferences, we will provide you with a comprehensive list of elective courses that
will be offered for your class from P3 to P5. This should also help you make an informed decision on
how to bid, taking into account your academic priorities as well.
It is difficult to give a precise answer to this question as each student’s job search is unique including
very different backgrounds, experiences, and career strategies. While on-campus recruitment takes
place in P4 and P5 (first and second round interviews both on- and off-campus), P3 is also a crucial
period that will allow you to prepare your strategy and build your network.
Generally, it is important be in or near the region you want to work in; it shows commitment and further
rounds of interviews may be happening in the company offices which makes it more difficult if you are
on the opposite campus. Building relationships is also easier face-to-face on the same continent. If you
are trying to build a career in a new geographical region or making a career change, it is advisable to
be as near to the action as possible. If you would like to discuss in more detail how a campus exchange
influences your job search, make an appointment to talk to someone in the Career Development Centre
prior to the bidding deadline.
Large consulting firms will interview and select students regardless of campus location, but for many
corporates, the HR processes in Asia and Europe are totally dissociated. If you are part of the December
graduating class and are looking for investment banking internships, be aware that London-based
banks generally travel to Fontainebleau and Asia-based ones to Singapore. Generally, you will have
the same success rate in interviewing, but you might miss out on the networking if you are in the other
region. If you are thinking of exchanging to Wharton or Kellogg, be aware that there will be no formal
recruitment in the spring in the US schools (only in the fall), and while you will still have access to
INSEAD CDC resources and interviews, you might miss out on some networking. On the other hand,
you will be exposed to the US and have access to the alumni network, clubs, and speakers on- and off-
campus.
Although it may be disappointing to not get your preferred Campus for a specific period, many former
students have handled this situation with success. If getting the multi-Campus experience is important
to you, you may want to consider exchanging to the other Campus during non-peak periods.
Students who do not secure a Campus Exchange for a specific period remain registered to their Home
Campus.
Exchange is a personal choice, and thus it is not an obligation. Around 25% of our students decide not
to exchange at all. The Campus Exchange is there to give students options but, depending on your
specific circumstances, you may decide that you do not want to exchange, and that’s fine!
CAMPUS EXCHANGE FAQ - FOR CLASS OF ‘20D | MBA Programme Management – Oct 2019
Students who don’t want to exchange at all are encouraged to take part in Phase 1 to benefit from the
bonus bidding points (see Question 7).
After the Campus Exchange results (Phase 2) have been released, students can only change their minds
about their campus locations if there are available seats on the other campus. As mentioned in Question
8, we generally experience an excess demand for Singapore from November to February and for
Fontainebleau in May/June, so once you have made a campus choice, it will become more difficult to
change your mind, especially in peak periods.
No. INSEAD has exchange agreements with Wharton and Kellogg in the US and CEIBS in China (for
December graduating class only). It is not possible to undertake an exchange with any other school
outside of these partners.
As part of the exchange agreement with our partner schools, INSEAD cannot allow students to go for
exchange for more than one period or with more than one partner school.
Each partner school determines the number of seats to be allocated to INSEAD students. These
numbers fluctuate yearly and can be lower than previous years.
Campus Exchange gives you an amazing geographical reach and will allow you to expand your mind
and your network in new and exciting ways. However, there are a few things to bear in mind before
you decide to exchange:
It is possible, and it’s entirely up to you to decide. However, many families that do choose to exchange
find it easier to exchange only once rather than multiple times. You may also want to take into account
the age(s) of your children, and whether or not they will be in school during your time at INSEAD.
You will be given a detailed presentation about the mechanisms of the bidding system about 4-6 weeks
into P1.
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CAMPUS EXCHANGE FAQ - FOR CLASS OF ‘20D | MBA Programme Management – Oct 2019