News and Spotlights
Spring 2010
New Exchange Partnership with Vienna University of Economics and Business
Beginning this fall, Terry undergraduates and MBA students will be welcome to spend one semester in Vienna, Austria at Wirtschafts Universitat Wien (Vienna University of Economics and Business). The largest business university in the European Union, WU offers a wide range of programs and specializations in business and economics, particularly in Finance and International Taxation. Students can also take courses in German language and culture. Vienna's position in the heart of Europe means students will have access to international companies and be able to visit other great cities in their free time. The campus is conveniently located just a few subway stops from Vienna's historic downtown.
MBA Students Study Abroad in China
Now in its 4th year, the MBA Travels to China program attracted 30 full-time and evening students to spend spring break traveling together to Shanghai and Beijing, where they visited top companies and cultural sites. Their tour began in Shanghai in the old financial district, the Bund, along the Pudong River where neon names and logos of familiar corporations define the horizon. Nearby, in stark contrast, they toured the one-story, candle-lit rooms which surround the temple of the jade budah, adorned by squat juniper and cherry-blossom trees, koi ponds, and artistic tiles and masonry.
Students not only sit for a lecture on Chinese Culture, Civilization, and Implications for Doing Business in China, they see it firsthand. Before leaving Shanghai, students hear presentations on finance at GE Capital, on logistics at the Yangshan deep-water port, on going-global at Cisco Systems, and still have time to take-in the thrilling Shanghai acrobatic show before transferring to China's capitol.
In Beijing, students hear presentations on the legal environment from Allen & Overy and a couple presentations on the special challenges of the Chinese market from TEWA and Airbus. Of course, no visit to Beijing is complete without a tour of the Forbidden City, bargain shopping at the Silk Market, and a walk upon a section of the Great Wall of China.
Before their feet even hit the ground back in Atlanta, some were convinced they could live and work in China.
In Their Words: Jonathan Wiese's story of travel in China
The MBA Travels to China trip was an incredible experience. In 10 days, our group was able to see and learn more than most could do in 3 months. Over thirty students and staff members traveled to both Beijing and Shanghai where we met with numerous businesses. With environmental changes providing every company the opportunity to go global, the chance to meet and speak with both legal and management teams provided us insight unobtainable inside your home nation's borders. General Electric taught us about changes companies face raising capital in the highly competitive market and growth methods in their dynamic economy. At the deep-sea ports, we found consumer product goods with destinations ranging from Australia to London. We handled information systems used to track goods from the point of conception to sale. The MBA Travels to China was an eye opening experience; we learned it's a small world after all. I look forward to the opportunity to travel again within the MBA program.
Real World Experience: IB Alumni Speak to the IB Society
On February 10, 2010, the International Business Society helped promote a Terry Alumni Panel about "Working Abroad: Truths and Myths." The panel included the following UGA alumni with professional global experience: Susan Driscoll, Christy Plott-Redd, Eddie Carneiro (calling in from Miami), Rob McLendon (calling in from London), and Scott Scharf (calling in from Brazil). The standing-room-only event was a great success. It was inspiring to hear from alumni who were able to acquire professional international jobs.
The International Business Society members have had the opportunity to meet and learn from several UGA alumni this year. Aaron and Angela Saldana came to UGA on February 25 and shared their different domestic/international professional experiences. On March 4, Scott Borders spoke to the IB society about Orange Business Services and his personal professional experience with the firm.
One memorable event was the generosity of KPMG consulting who invited 10 IB members to attend a KPMG social on February 11, after a long and fruitful discussion with the IBS. We learned about the international opportunities available in consulting and what it means to be a consultant.
We greatly appreciate each alumni speaker providing advice towards reaching an international career and working with people of different cultures. The IBS is continually soliciting alumni from small and big firms to educate members about the different opportunities in the international job market.
What's New with You?
If you would like to share a major accomplishment or accolade with your fellow IB or Terry alums, please send us a note. We're always interested in what notable enterprises are engaging our alums both here and around the globe.
