2011 MBA Field Study Trips
Executive MBAs Visit China for Experiential Learning Opportunity
The 16-month program — which is designed for professionals on the fast track to career advancement — allows students to take courses on topics ranging from industry analysis and strategic thinking and execution, to the roles of government and leadership. For the past five years, students in the program have spent a global residency in China and Mexico. While in these countries, they work as part of cross-cultural teams with several hundred participants from other MBA programs, including executives from South America.
Participants also spend three days in Washington, D.C., to learn about the inner workings of the U.S. government and the economy. Ravi Ramamurti, Distinguished Professor of International Business and director of Northeastern’s Center for Emerging Markets, developed and runs the 12-day residency in China. He stressed that today’s American manager must learn not only to think strategically but also to think globally.
“We try to create a global mindset,” Ramamurti said. “Students are connecting different geographies and seeing that the world out there is highly interdependent. They’re also recognizing that powerful new competitors are emerging from unexpected places like China and India.” The impact of China’s burgeoning economy on the global landscape made the trip to that country a necessity, Ramamurti said. As he explained, “All managers in the United States need to understand the implications of these high-growth, fast-changing megamarkets. This program really transforms people’s view of the world, their mindsets, and sometimes even their career paths.”
2009-2010 Student Field Trips
Professor Ronald Whitfield Takes Students to Costa Rica for a Field Study in Sustainability
In May 2010, Professor Ronald Whitfield of the College of Business Administration led nine undergraduate students to Costa Rica for a field study in sustainability. The interdisciplinary program, which attracted students from a wide range of majors, consisted of three separate, but interrelated components: coursework, company tours and home stays with local families. The first part of the field study had students study sustainability at Northeastern's partner university, EARTH University, where they learned about calculating carbon footprints and eco-effectiveness. Students also had the opportunity to tour several companies, ranging from macadamia nut and coffee farms to the high-tech aerospace firm of Ad Astra where students learned about plasma rockets and problems relating to space debris.
In addition to classroom studies and company tours, the students were also able to stay with local families or on local farms. For engineering students staying at a macadamia nut farm, they were given the chance to lead an experiment aimed at extracting and collecting oil from the damaged nuts that were normally discarded. According to Professor Whitfield, the farm's owner has now refined the process and gone commercial. Having made a success of their experience at the farm, the owner has invited Northeastern students back next year. For those students who stayed at traditional home stays, Professor Whitfield stated that many students were surprised to find that many local families lived without electricity. In spite of this, however, students noted that the families managed to live quite happily despite the lack of modern conveniences.
The program will continue next year, with two trips planned to Costa Rica in May-June and in July-August. Professor Whitfield also hopes to develop a domestic program for next year, which will focus on sustainability energy in Colorado.
Professor Denis Sullivan Takes Students to the Middle East Through the Dialogue of Civilizations Program
Professor Denis Sullivan is the founding Director of Northeastern University’s Dialogue of Civilizations Program. Since 1993, Professor Sullivan has taught and led over 500 students to Egypt and other parts of the Middle East. The program provides students with various learning opportunities while living, studying and traveling abroad.
During the summer of 2009, Professor Sullivan led the Dialogue of Civilizations Middle East Program to Egypt, Syria and Qatar. For nearly two months, Professor Sullivan and a select group of students toured government and media institutions and learned about the practice of journalism and activism in Middle Eastern countries. In Egypt, students met activist and politician, Ayman Nour, who spent several years in prison for criticizing the Egyptian government. In Syria, the group with government officials and students from the University of Damascus. The program’s last stop- Qatar- afforded the students the opportunity to tour the al-Jazeera studios and view a live news broadcast.
Professor Denise Horn Takes Students to India
The fall 2009, nineteen Northeastern students participated in a semester-long program, designed to provide students with a better understanding of current social and political issues in India. The program, created and led by Dr. Denise Horn of International Affairs and Dr. Lori Gardinier from the Human Services program, allowed students to travel to Hubli, India to engage in service-learning and a training program in social entrepreneurship with their Indian peers.
Students participated in intensive pre-departure instruction where they learned about India’s economy, society and political system. The ‘on the ground’ portion of the trip was divided into two sections. Dr. Gardinier led the first section where students learned how culture and social/political factors influence non-profit program design. Dr. Horn led the second portion of the trip. NU students were paired with Indian students and participated in a cross-cultural workshop on grassroots organizing. As a result of the program, NU students gained a deeper understanding of community development issues. “The success of this pilot,” says Professor Horn, “has promoted discussions with the Desphande Foundation on strategies for building this program...the program will be repeated in Spring 2011.” The program received partial support from the CEM.
Professor Dennis Shaughnessy Helps Students Participate in Field Study Through the Social Enterprise Institute
The Social Enterprise Institute (SEI) provides interested students with the opportunity to become globally aware business leaders by helping to build micro-enterprises catering to the poor in emerging market economies. Through the SEI’s Field Study Program, students gain academic experience abroad in the fields of social entrepreneurship and micro-enterprise development. “What is unique about our program is that we pair Northeastern students with local students from the communities that we work in,” says Professor Dennis Shaughnessy, Executive Professor of Entrepreneurship and Innovation, and founder and director of the SEI.
Students also gain field research experience, working with partner organizations such as leading micro-finance institutions. In the Dominican Republic, students work directly on social impact metrics for Esperanza International, a micro-finance institution with over 18,000 borrowers in Hispaniola.
With the support of the CEM and a special grant for education abroad, the SEI was able to expand the program into Central America. This coming summer, students will work with indigenous communities in Belize with the help of a local micro-finance institution. The CEM was also able to provide scholarship opportunities for need based students to participate in this program.
Professor Denise Garcia Takes NU Students to Copenhagen Climate Change Conference
In December 2009, Denise Garcia, Assistant Professor of Political Science and International Affairs and International Student and Scholar Institute Dean, Scott Quint, led a group of fifteen students and Northeastern alum, Richard Mclaws, to the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen.
The fourteen day conference brought together United Nations member states with the express purpose of addressing global climate change. Although the result fell short of expectations, the participating countries signed the Copenhagen Accord, which outlined a framework for addressing climate change, including an acknowledgement that man-made industries are affecting the planet’s climate. In addition to attending key panels, students also met with important figures, including former Vice-President Al Gore and California Governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger.
“In this deeply divisive scenario, the Northeastern Huskies thrived,” says Professor Denise Garcia, “Students have learned that top down change may seem extremely difficult to achieve with a very slow and deeply divisive process. However, significant bottom-up change and innovation is already occurring at the local level across the world.”
2010 MBA Field Study Trips
MBA Program Launches Summer 2010 Russia International Field Study Trip
Northeastern University’s Full-Time MBA program has launched a new International Field Study (IFS) trip to Russia. This summer, twenty-eight MBA students and CEM faculty associate, Sheila Puffer (left), Walsh Research Professor and Cherry Family Senior Fellow of International Business, will travel to Moscow and St. Petersburg where they will be hosted by Moscow State University. This new course is partly supported by the CEM’s BIE grant from the US Department of Education.
As part of the program, students will learn about Russia’s transition over the past two decades from a communist political system and centrally planned economy to a more open political system and market-oriented economy. Students will attend lectures by local industry experts, visit government offices such as the Information and Communication Technologies Committee, and tour multinational and Russian businesses, such as the Mars candy factory, the law firm of Baker &
McKenzie, Alfa Bank, and start-ups located in Moscow Science Park. Cultural activities will include tours of the Kremlin and Red Square in Moscow, and the Hermitage Museum and the Fortress of Peter and Paul in St. Petersburg.
According to Christopher Robertson, Faculty Director of Full-time MBA Program and Associate Professor of International Business, “the BIE grant from the Center for Emerging Markets was a big help in getting a record high enrollment for this new field study course to Russia.”
Chile-Argentina
The 2010 Chile-Argentina IFS trip was led by Professor Christopher Robertson. It included visits to several Chilean and Argentinian companies, such as CPT Empresas Maritimas (shipping) and the William Cole Winery in Chile and the Nucete Company (olive oil) and IMPSA (hydro and wind energy) in Argentina.
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China
Professor Shiawee Yang led the 2010 China IFS trip. The trip included visits to the cities of Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen. Company tours included: Wal-Mart Shenzhen, Coca Cola Beijing and Shenzhen Shekou Container Port.
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China
In spring 2010, a group of NU EMBA students, along with Professor Ravi Ramamurti, traveled to China as part of the program’s global residencies requirement.The students visited several Chinese cities, including Shanghai, Shenzhen, Beijing and Hong Kong. They met with corporate representatives and toured several businesses and factories.
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Other Student Activities
CBA Students Participate in Co-ops in Asia with CEM Support
In keeping with NU’s goal of encouraging undergraduate students to do coops abroad, CEM is partially supporting students from CBA who are working in Asia. Associate Dean Coleen Pantalone notes that “we currently have three students working in China, six students working in Hong Kong, and one working in Singapore. Prior to the start of their work placement, these students spent a semester studying business and language at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) and at Peking University.” All of these students have been placed in work assignments in the region. Among them are students working in Hong Kong at Goodyear Tire, Allegis-BN, KT 2Mico Securities, IFE Elevator, Windy City International, and Merck Chemicals. In China, students are working at Ultizen Games and Brookstone International. Yet another is working for Goldman Sachs in Singapore. A small stipend, provided by CEM out of the BIE grant from the US Department of Education, helps make up for the higher stipends that companies pay for coops in the US or Europe.
University of Ghana Business School EMBA Cohort Visits CBA/NEU
The University of Ghana Business School’s EMBA cohort, which included some 120 students and was led by Ms. Esther Asiedu, visited Northeastern’s College of Business Administration (CBA) on February 18th, 2010 to gain insights into the CBA’s unique methods and practice of education. Professor William Tiga Tita, CEM faculty associate, and Professor Kwamina Panford organized the exchange and hosted the group. Professor Jeffrey Born, Professor of Finance and Co-Director of Northeastern’s EMBA program, welcomed the group and provided an overview of CBA graduate programs. They were then treated to several sessions on selected topics, educational technology and library resources, the school’s i-cubator, and nanotechnology center. They also visited area technology and community incubators at Boston University and MLK Empowerment Center in Worcester respectively. Professor Ravi Ramamurti, Center for Emerging Markets Director, was the luncheon guest speaker and spoke on the changing role of emerging markets in the global economy.
Photo: Professor Tita (center) with Ghana EMBAs