MGMT228 students celebrating the 10 year partnership between Zhejiang Gongshang University and the University of Canterbury.
UC Business School students recently travelled to three cities in China as part of the annual course, a popular choice for the past decade.
The tour began in Hangzhou, where students attended lectures and classes at Zhejiang Gongshang University. The focus of many of the lectures was on Chinese business practices and consumer trends as well as Chinese culture. Students also participated in the Second Language Promotion Programme (SLPP), with every Kiwi student paired with two Chinese buddies. Through the SLPP programme the students learnt about everyday life in China, including historical practices such as calligraphy, dumpling making and Tai Chi.
They then travelled to Shanghai to gain insight into international businesses operating in China. The tour ended in Beijing, the country’s capital. MGMT228 student, Georgina Dibble, says “The combination of lessons, buddy activities and business visits collectively provided an educational opportunity in which we could never achieve or observe on an individual trip to China”.
The tour provides students with the opportunity to be exposed to perspectives of business in another culture, which in turn builds their confidence to conduct business with other cultures in their future careers. Georgina says the trip “was yet another reminder to be open-minded in every situation, being aware of cultural variations and differences in opinion.”
Dr Russell Wordsworth, who led the tour, feels that the real-life knowledge you gain from immersion while travelling to another country is invaluable, saying that it “aligns with the Chinese proverb which states ‘You will learn more from travelling 10,000 miles than reading 10,000 books’”.
The trip was not all work and no play, students were given spare time to explore the local sights and tastes, making new connections and bonding closely with other students on the tour. Aki Shimahara says
This paper helped me learn so much through the local people and in the process gaining long term friends from both China and UC. I am now more curious and love learning and teaching others about different cultures. I believe this has helped me become more open-minded and adaptable in different working environments in the future.
For more information about MGMT228 course, visit the information page on the UC Business School website.
You can read about student Jules Haus' experience on the UC Business School blog.
