Details

• United States of America
• BaWiSo-23
• Undergraduate
• SoSe 2026
• Time spent at the partner university: 3 months
• Contact: Login to see contact information

1. Preparation

After you are accepted for your exchange I highly recommend starting your preparations the moment you receive your acceptance. The US visa process requires significant lead time because of all the paperwork. It is also important to map out which courses you want to take and if you can transfer those credits to WU. To get to Corvallis I took a plane from Munich to Portland with a connection through Chicago, from there you can choose between Flixbus and "Groome Transportation" which costs about 60$, both options drop you off close to the campus.

2. Accommodation

There was no mandatory on-campus housing. I found my housing in a Facebook group. (Oregon State University (OSU) Apartments and Housing). I lived in an off-campus apartment rental called "The Retreat" in a house with 3 other Americans. I had a room to myself as well as a private bathroom. The house was very spacious with a big kitchen, living room, we had wifi and a washer and a dryer. It was about 15 minutes walking distance to the College of Business and around 30 minutes to the next supermarket. The housing area was very safe but Corvallis in general is. I would recommend buying a bike on facebook marketplace, it is way faster to get around with it around campus and to the local stores than waiting on the buses or walking.

3. Academic life at host university

Business students have most of their classes in Austin Hall, it is a modern building with study spaces project rooms and a cafe. On campus you can also find the Dixon Recreation Center, it features a swimming pool, volleyball and basketball courts, a massive space with gym equipment and a cafe. At all of my classes, the final grade was distributed across midterms, weekly homework assignments, group projects and class participation. The teaching style is also much more interactive, rather than just listening to a lecture in a massive hall, professors expect you to engage in discussions. I took the classes finance, macroeconomics, managing organizations and innovation management - I liked all of them but I learned the most from innovation management, it was an interactive class that teaches frameworks for how companies develop and scale new ideas.

5. Every day life in the host country

Public transport is available and free for all students. Depending on where you live, you can also walk to the campus and stores but I would recommend buying a bike or getting some local friends that own a car. I never had a situation in Corvallis that made me feel unsafe, there are some homeless people but they don’t bother anyone. In your free time you can go to some local bars that are close to campus and the nature around Corvallis is something everybody should check out, Newport is the closest city to corvallis on the ocean and you can get there by car in one hour other than that you can find a lot of parks and nature attractions. In spring term you can go to baseball games every week, food courts and vintage markets. The sports options are great in Corvallis, I took a golf class but there are many different classes you can attend, you can also use the tennis, football and volleyball courts in your free time.

6. Testimonial

My exchange at Oregon State University was shaped by the stunning nature of the Pacific Northwest and the incredible people I met along the way. From my roommates to my professors, everyone’s genuine kindness and eagerness to include me from day one allowed me to build lasting American friendships. To top it off, the courses I took offered interesting, international perspectives that completely shifted my academic mindset, making the entire semester unforgettable.