Take a deep dive into doing business abroad
Our world has turned into a global village. Continents have become neighborhoods and the interconnectedness and interdependency between nations is ever increasing. In this globalized world the art of doing sustainable international business between individuals, companies, governments and organizations has become an indispensable quality for professionals in the business field.
Nowadays governments, companies, NGOs and international organizations are looking for skilled experts in business who combine state-of-the-art professional knowledge with highly sophisticated intercultural skills and a keen understanding of global societal issues and challenges related to the field of international business.
At the end of this program you are well-prepared to acquire a final project abroad and to finish it successfully, while working with international colleagues. Moreover, you will have all the knowledge and cross-cultural skills to start an international career in business, communication or HR.
Studie-eigenschappen
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Properties
Language: English
Level: hbo-minor
European Credits:
September - November (Term 1) - 15 EC
September - February (Term 1 & 2) - 30 ECIf there are too few enrolments, this minor will not take place.
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Admission requirements
All students are welcome to participate in this minor. However, we expect students to have a basic knowledge about international business.
Themes
Throughout this minor you will:
- gain knowledge of current issues with regards to European integration, nation branding and economic diplomacy;
- discover what national and international political economics is and how business and governments can you use it to their advantage and disadvantage, and how hard it sometimes is to find solutions for political economic questions that satisfy all;
- develop an interest in strategic and sustainable marketing and work on some exciting business ideas;
- research the role of business in finding solutions to ‘wicked problems’ in the field of sustainable development;
- deppen your cross-cultural sensitivity;
- apply this knowledge in projects within the Food Valley region together with Dutch and foreign students;
- experience what it’s like to study and work together with students from abroad.
Classes and assignments
The learning environment consists of lectures, self-study, seminars, workshops, debates, group assignments and excursions. There will be many practical tests and assignments in which Dutch and foreign students are expected to show both that they have gained sufficient theoretical knowledge and that they are able to apply the newly acquired knowledge. Most importantly, students learn to express themselves in English, because that’s the working knowledge of this minor.
The subjects of this course are the following:
Term 1:
- Cultural Encounters (5.0 EC): cross-cultural communication, nation branding, and economic diplomacy and their role in ‘binding’ and ‘bridging’ in the field of international business.
- International Business (5.0 EC): the role of strategic and sustainability marketing in doing international business.
- Sustainable Development (5.0 EC): the role of business in finding solutions to ‘wicked problems’ related to poverty, inequality, climate, environmental degradation, prosperity, and peace and justice.
Term 2:
- International Business Project (10.0 EC): project in which mixed groups of students work for a company with a real international business problem they need to have solved.
- Political Economy (5.0 EC): a deep dive into the national and international political economic context of businesses and the challenges that our world, both companies and governments jointly, currently faces.
A few examples of assignments of last year:
- In the Political Economy class a number of macro-economic themes were discussed from the perspective of the countries of the participants. In the final assignment students advised the leader of their government on macro-economic themes.
- During the International Business Project students worked together in a culturally mixed group on an analysis of the Moldovan market with regards to energy efficient wall systems. Another group did research on the question whether a particular mushroom production method could be exported to the Ugandan market.
Enough enrollments
If there are too few enrollments, this minor will not take place.
Pay attention to the scheduling when combining minors!
