Since my time here in Spain, I’ve noticed various differences between American and Spanish behavior. From differences in the gastronomy to differences in foot traffic. However, considering that most of my schedule and time in Spain is devoted to my academic studies, I feel it is appropriate to write about the differences I noticed in such environment. I will be using my relationship with my finance professor as the prime example.
Two semesters ago, when I was studying in the United States, I was enrolled in a corporate finance class. This class dabbled in portfolio theory and mathematical equations. In regard to the math, we learned very practical methods of solving for whatever variable, using windows excel. Now, I am enrolled in a financial investments course here in Spain. We are studying practically the same concepts, but the application of math is very traditional. For example, using an equations derivative to solve the slope on a curved line. Essentially, its calculus, which I never studied. Being the responsible student I am, I visited my professor’s office hours to ask for help. To sum it up, my professor responded to my “cry for help” by telling me to go watch YouTube videos.
After describing the situation to my host family and other European international students, I discovered that a potential explanation to this, is that the University of Oviedo is a government funded university, and most colleges in Spain are. What’s the correlation? Incentive. Let me use the analogy of tipping culture to elaborate on my point. The tipping culture in Spain does not exist, so a waitress’s service is not overly accommodating because there is no incentive for it. This doesn’t mean that the professor performs poorly, this is just an archetype of expectancy theory. I guess, it’s true what they say. You get what you pay for.