AUC School of Business Students Fuse Learning and Culture in China
The AUC School of Business is committed to providing an international and culturally-diverse intellectual environment to its faculty, staff and students. An integral part of our internationalization strategy consists of exposing our students to diverse cultures in various regions such as Africa, Asia and Latin America in addition to the USA and Europe so that our graduates appreciate different cultures and can lead across cultures.” ~ Karim Seghir, Dean, AUC School of Business
The People’s Republic of China is known for many things: a rich ancient civilization with profound history, the world most populous country and the third-largest in term of size, the fastest developing major country in the history of the world; it’s as fascinating a place as it is overwhelming and for the first time AUC School of Business students got to experience its wonders and paradoxes.
Randa Sherif, a double major in finance and accounting and Ahmed Samir, economics major were the first AUC School of Business students to experience the exhilaration of a study program in one of the most exotic countries in the world – China.
“School of Business built the first academic exchange partnership with a Chinese School this summer, with Southwestern University of Finance & Economics (SWUFE). The travel of Ahmed and Randa to SWUFE Summer Camp marks the first activity with the new Chinese partner.” ~ Sherine Gad El-Mawla, Director, Office of Internationalization and Partnerships
Joining the SWUFE program both students received full scholarships to a memorable and powerful two-week encounter with SWUFE and China. The program included over 50 undergraduate students representing 38 countries and 43 top universities. Participants receive an exceptional academic/professional learning experience through a range of lectures, delivered in English, by leading professors from SWUFE and the chance to meet with senior professionals from local businesses; the students also went in an unforgettable journey into other aspects of life in modern China by learning Chinese calligraphy, martial arts, cooking and traditional music; these experiences combined gave a unique and first-hand understanding of Chinese culture, language and business.
“The first few days were difficult to adjust to, China is another planet, everything here is different – the people, the food, the driving, even the chicken is different!! The bright side is once you get used to it, you start getting familiar with everything. The people here are welcoming to foreigners, most of the camp is from Europe so almost everyone speaks English; the program is really organized with very interesting lectures given from a whole new perspective. Aside from the culture shock, I’m really starting to like China!” ~ Ahmed Samir
“I have never thought that I would one day visit China. I was truly amazed by the Chinese culture, architecture, language, calligraphy, and spicy FOOD! I was also amazed by the respect that the Chinese people have for the elderly and their extreme helpfulness to strangers, most importantly, I fell in love with my favorite animals, PANDAS. All in all, the SWUFE Summer Program was an excellent opportunity that made me gain new interests, get to know more about China’s economic and political systems, and gained an appreciation for diversity. This experience and the people I met along the way will forever be engraved in my heart.” said Randa Sherif.
Both students had quite an enriching experience and both got A’s in their presentations at SWUFE, Randa on culture and Ahmed on Business Innovation and Entrepreneurship; Ahmed also received a special award for the whole program.