Description

The program offers two components:

(1) Short term study abroad (STSA) with 2 weeks in Germany gaining insight in to German and EU business practices and also gaining insight into German culture.

STSA program will allow students to be exposed to the Business and General Culture of Germany and gain a better understanding of international business issues through first hand experience in another major world business culture.

Instruction will include pre-trip sessions with lecture/discussion, in-country academic sessions, and in-country field-trips, both business and culture oriented. Language of instruction is English. German language instruction will be provided prior and during the trip.

(2) In-Country Negotiation Course (ICNC)-optional third week participating in a negotiation course offered by Paderborn University with Dr. Eckert as instructor.

ICNC program will help students to learn and practice the basics of negotiation in a B2B setting with emphasis on the global influences on this process. This course is taught in English. German students enrolled will provide an opportunity for the WMU students to experience the German language in communication.

* German Business & Culture + Global Negotiating

Concept: Get a chance to add international understanding to your life experiences and your resume without having to commit to an entire semester abroad. Additionally, this trip requires no language competency which makes it more accessible to many people (people with German language skills are absolutely invited also!). The total trip involves an educational program tour of German business and cultural sites and interactions with German university students, while the optional third week involves an intensive negotiation course taught in English by Dr. Eckert at Paderborn University. The tour part of the trip is scheduled as BUS 5940 and the Negotiation component is MKTG 4780 (MKTG 6780) for graduate students. Each of these is a three credit course.

The Educational Program Trip: (BUS 5940): We will start in Hamburg, Germany's famous port city. We will explore the harbor district, gain some insight into the German media and communication industry (centered in Hamburg), and take a stroll down the famous Reeperbahn in Hamburg's entertainment district. Our next stop will be the world headquarters of Volkswagen in Wolfsburg. We will have a trip to the production facilities and get to hear about their brand strategies. Volkswagen is one of the largest car manufacturers in the world and Dr. Eckert's good friend has promised us a great day there. From Wolfsburg we will travel by train to Berlin, Germany's capital and explore how German business culture differs from the US (e.g. the role of Government in the economy) while also exploring the history and culture of this once divided city. 2009 saw the celebration of the 20 year anniversary of the Berlin Wall coming down and we will explore that remarkable historical event. From Berlin it is back on the train to Dr. Eckert's "Deutsche Heimatstadt" (German Hometown) of Paderborn, home of WMU's partner school ; Paderborn University. Here we will hear from Dr. Andreas Eggert, an expert in customer value, and interact with German Uni students via a couple of case experiences. From Paderborn we will head to the Rhein river area and explore the castles and the wine industry that surround the Rhein River. We will conclude our trip in Köln (Cologne) which is home to the world famous "Kölner Dom" (Cologne Cathedral) and is often known as the center of the German festival industry (they take their festivals very seriously!).

The Negotiation Course (MKTG 4780): Each year Dr. Eckert teaches a week long negotiation course at the Uni Paderborn, and if you stay for the third week you will get the opportunity to participate in this course. Side-by-side with German students you will learn the strategies and tactics of effective negotiation. The course, taught entirely in English, meets six hours per day and requires work every evening, so it is definitely not a vacation! However, negotiation skills are considered one of the most fundamental abilities for a successful business person and this course takes an intense, yet highly practical approach to teaching you those skills. The course concludes with a negotiation case where each student must put what they have learned to use in a head-to-head negotiation. My German colleagues and the German students are excited to have American counterparts involved and the experience should be culturally interesting and enlightening for all. And if that is not a good enough sales pitch .... The week concludes with a great group social event at Paderborn's best restaurant and Beirgarten!

Common Questions:

Course Credits? For the Educational Program Trip part, students will enroll in BUS 5940 for 3 credits. This course may be applied to the business electives you need. Generally, HCOB students must take 7 business electives. Pre-approval by your academic advisor is required for all students to verify how BUS 5940 would count for you.

The negotiation course is MKTG 4780 for 3 credits. For Marketing Department or ISM students the course will generally fit as one of your major electives. For others, you will need to meet with your major advisor to determine where and how the course could count. Dr, Eckert will be glad to discuss the course with any advisor to help best apply it to your course of study.

The Experience?
The world is a big place, and we are going to try and become familiar with just one part of it. But that part is Europe's biggest Economy and a place that has seen a great deal of history (some good and some bad). We are going to try and plug-into German life as much as possible. So for instance, we will be staying at smaller hotels within the cities (versus chain hotels), we will be using the train system to travel (not a tour bus) and we will get to spend time with our counterparts at Uni Paderborn. A trip can not fully simulate a live-in country experience, but we will do our best to not just be tourists. As part of our pre-trip sessions we will discuss and learn a little bit about German history and culture as well as have a little fun learning some basic German. When we are in Germany we will observe and discuss the similarities and differences between the US and Germany in both a respectful and fun way. And hopefully when we conclude we will have had an enlightening and fantastic experience that will help us be better global business people and citizens and just maybe this trip will be the gateway for further travels. In the US we might call it the travel bug, in German it is known as Wanderlust and I hope our experience infects all of us with this wonderful infliction!

Dr. Jim Eckert
Faculty Program Director

Degree Level

Bachelors Degree (Undergraduate)

Minimum Education

High School

Subject Areas

• Business
• Culture
• German
• Marketing, Ad., & Pr

Cost in US$:

USD 3,225 Summer 2012

Program Fees Include:

Program fee and room. Food and travel extra.

Experience Required

no

This Program is open to

Worldwide Participants.

Typical Living Arrangements

• Other

Application Process Involves

• Disciplinary Clearance Form
• Online Application plus Application Assessment
• Other
• Physical Exam/Health Records
• Transcript

Western Michigan University's Mission Statement

The Diether H. Haenicke Institute for Global Education, established by the Board of Trustees in 1998, promotes and supports efforts towards globalization and internationalization of the academic environment of Western Michigan University. The Institute works closely with the International Education Council of the WMU Faculty Senate, as well as with international education committees and projects within and across colleges.

Year Founded

1903