Frequently Asked Questions
Do you have a problem and you don’t know who can help you? Here are some of the most frequent questions asked by students.
Q: Do I have to be a member of a Local Best Group to apply?
A: No, you just have to be a student at a Technical University!
Q: Why are the courses so cheap?
A: The organizing Local BEST Group (LBG) is trying to get as much money as possibly by co-operating with several organizations. The university is interested in hosting foreign students and in becoming more internationally minded. Companies wish to get access to European-minded students, which is done during the event by company presentations, guest lectures or company visits. In some countries, the student union also provides some financial aid.
Q: Why is there a fee for some courses and none for others?
A: The fee depends mainly on the situation in the Local BEST Group, how much support they get from university, student union, etc.
Q: What is the maximum fee for a BEST course?
A: The maximum fee is 4 Euro per day (but no more than 45 Euro). Whether a student pays full or reduced fee depends on his country of studies as follows: 100% of the fee and 60.0 euros deposit: Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden. 67% of the fee and 50.0 euros deposit: Czech Republic, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain. 33% of the fee and 40.0 euros deposit: Bulgaria, Croatia, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russian Federation, Turkey, Romania, 0% of the fee and 30.0 euros deposit: Bosnia And Herzegovina, Macedonia, The Former Yugoslav Republic Of, Moldova, Republic Of, Montenegro, Serbia, Ukraine.
Q: What is the maximum fee for an event on education?
A: There is no fee for attending an event on education.
Q: Why is there a (much) higher fee for Leisure Events?
A: As said above, LBGs fund the events by support from various organizations, like the university, companies and the student union. Most of these organizations are interested in an academical course. Therefore, raising money for leisure events is much more difficult. Moreover these events are more like a holiday and they include some activities like sailing, skiing or wine-tasting – usually you pay more for a holiday like this.
Q: How is the selection for the courses done?
A: The organizing LBG gets all the applications entered by the students and then will decide on regional aspects (they try to get people from all over Europe, so they in general won’t take more than one student from each city/country), on your Motivation Letter (they have to read many of them, so try to be creative!), and maybe on your educational background (only if you need some previous knowledge for a specific course). The organizers also aim at having equal number of male and female participants.
Q: Can I apply for every course?
A: Yes, and no… Yes meaning you can apply for every course, no meaning it might not be reasonable in some cases. It is possible that one course requires some previous knowledge and if you don’t have that you might not be accepted. On the other hand, there might be beginner’s level courses in the field of your study and then the course will get too boring!
Q: For how many events per season may I apply?
A: You can apply for maximum 3 BEST Courses or Engineering Competitions and 3 other (education, leisure) events per season. You can be accepted to maximum one BEST Course or Engineering Competition per season (but any number of other events).
Q: What should I do after being accepted to a BEST event?
A: You can find more information by reading the Never Alone Guide!
Q: What is the BEST Spirit?
A: Well, the BEST answer to that is to experience it… so go ahead and apply now!
Q: What will happen if I go to a BEST Course and get infected by the BEST Spirit virus?
A: It’s likely that you’re going to go on more events, and maybe join your local BEST group and organize events yourself.
Q: What do I do if I’m not accepted to a course?
A: You can try again the next seasons. There are four seasons for BEST Courses: Winter, Spring, Summer and Autumn. You might also join BEST and go to internal BEST events.
Q: Can I get credits participating in a BEST learning event?
A: After the final examination you will get a BEST Certificate to attest your participation and to describe the content of the course. The BEST Certificate has the University stamp and teacher’s signature. It is up to your home University if they will get this course recognized by giving you credits.