That is Manish Kandhi’s message to fellow Indian students, who consider studying at Zealand Institute of Business and Technology. He is one of three, who won the competition Top Talent Denmark in India in 2014 and a semester at Zealand Institute of Business and Technology during the fall of 2015.
Before the competition the three students Manish Kandhi, Gayatri Kale and Pawan Saket knew that the first prize was a stay in Denmark, but not at which institution. None of them had been abroad before and their knowledge about Denmark was limited.
“I was shocked that I won. I did not expect that and it surprised me. I had never heard of Zealand Institute of Business and Technology before,” says Gayatri Kale.
“I could not believe it when I received the call, so I had to double-check it on the internet,” says Manish Kandhi.
International students raise the bar
During their semester in Denmark, Manish Kandhi and Pawan Saket have studied Web Development at Zealand Institute of Business and Technology Roskilde, while Gayatri Kale has been enrolled at the International Sales and Marketing programme at Zealand Institute of Business and Technology Roskilde.
“It is important for us to get young and talented students to attend our courses and in that way get inspiration from outside. They help raise the bar at our international educations and boost the cross-cultural understanding. It benefits both the international and the Danish students, who are going to work in another country,” says Lars Kofod, Head of Studies at Zealand Institute of Business and Technology Roskilde.
Practical approach and problem based teaching
The three exchange students all feel that the educational approach at Zealand Institute of Business and Technology in many ways differ from their institutions back home.
“Here there is a high degree of interaction and a more practical approach. The theories, which we learn about, are used in practice,” says Gayatri Kale.
“The teaching is problem based and does not only depend on theories. We have to argue for our solutions to the problems that the teachers present for us,” says Manish Kandhi.
International cooperation and the students’ career opportunities
The teachers at Zealand Institute of Business and Technology Roskilde have appreciated having the three students as a part of their courses.
“We can learn from both the differences and the similarities and the teachers’ general impression is that the students from India have been very ambitious and good at articulating their opinion,” says Lars Kofod.
“When we cooperate across borders we learn to adjust and optimize our teaching, our exams and other parts our education. If we only looked at education from our own point of view it is not certain that we would move in the right direction at the same speed as we do now.”
The three Indians agree that their stay in Denmark has been fun and valuable.
“For me it has been a big career opportunity. I have learned to cope in another country,” says Pawan Saket.
“I want to continue my studies and take my master’s degree in USA. The experience at Zealand Institute of Business and Technology has prepared me for that,” says Manish Kandhi.
“It has been really good to have a course together with other international students and I consider this a first step towards an international career. To have an education from another country is a star on my resume,” says Gayatri Kale.
She is going to stay in Denmark and study at Zealand Institute of Business and Technology.You can follow Gayatri Kale’s experiences at Zealand Institute of Business and Technology on her blog here. Among other things she has written about food from different cultures.
Focus on keeping international students in Denmark
“We attract many talented young students from other countries to our programmes and many of them find student jobs, learn Danish and complete an internship in a company while they study here. That is the reason why we at the moment focus even more on helping the international students in the transition from study life to employee,” says Jørgen Heramb, who is Head of Internationalisation at Zealand Institute of Business and Technology.
Zealand Institute of Business and Technology focus on keeping the international students in Denmark in cooperation with partners such as Dansk Industri, Dansk Erhverv, Tænketanken DEA and Væksthus Sjælland.
