Global Practicum on Strategy
Given the current focus for businesses to be global in their strategy and operations, a Global Practicum on Strategy (GPS) will be arranged between the 1st and 2nd years of your program. This will consist of an international trip to one or two countries. This will be a weeklong visit spanning two consecutive weekends, with visits to global companies in locations abroad interspersed with sightseeing activities.
While the majority of the program is completely online, GPS will expose you to the business environments in other countries thereby providing you with the unique cross-cultural and multinational experience that very few of the online MBA programs have. GPS will incorporate business visits that highlight the global strategic initiatives of various companies in different countries.
The Global Practicum is optional at additional cost, which includes roundtrip economy airfare, lodging at 4-5 star hotels (double occupancy), meals, ground transportation, local guides and business visits. Multiple faculty members lead the trip and students have the additional option of bringing an adult guest on the trip (at extra cost). The packed itinerary has ample opportunities for interactions and visits with executives in major corporations; and also includes local sightseeing activities and cultural immersion. The Global Practicum adds a significant value to the program and to your degree. With the overall, global strategic focus of the program, you will get the critical, practical knowledge you need to progress in your career.
"The global practicum is an essential component of the Online MBA Program. It serves to integrate a practical experience-based component in the global, strategic aspects covered in the program's courses. This practicum provides the necessary cultural and corporate immersion that is so essential to an MBA education today," commented Dr. Kaushik Sengupta, Executive Director of the Online MBA Program and chair, Department of Management and Entrepreneurship.
Explore the details from some of the previous Global Practicums.
Online MBA Program Embarks on Global Practicum to Japan
A cohort class of Hofstra University's online MBA program traveled to Japan, visiting global companies, touring production facilities, and meeting senior executives as part of a global practicum designed to immerse students in foreign cultures and business practices.
The group of 40 students and four faculty members visited four cities – Tokyo, Yokohama, Osaka and Kyoto. A number of companies were visited including Morgan Stanley MUFC Securities, TKS Group (hosted by a Zarb MBA alum), Japan Post and Toshiba. Additional visits were made to specific healthcare organizations like Kindai University, Okubo Hospital and Maruho Pharmaceuticals.
As part of the itinerary, the group toured famous cultural centers, such as the Kotokuin Temple in Kamakura, the old Tokyo town of Asakusa, Tokyo's ultramodern Ginza district, Osaka castle and the old capital of Kyoto with its iconic Kinkakuji Golden Pavilion, Nijo Castle and Kiyomizu temple. The trip lasted 10 days with an intercity transport from Tokyo to Osaka using the famous high-speed Shinkansen network.
Online MBA Program Takes a Journey to South Africa
"I would like to compliment the professors on this trip. This journey to South Africa was a great opportunity that certainly exceeded my expectations"
Online MBA students traveled to South Africa for their global practicum. Students visited a number of companies in Cape Town and Johannesburg, and met with top-level executives such as the senior vice president of Philips and CEO of Philips Africa, a multinational corporation committed to delivering meaningful innovations that enhance the lives of Africans; the head of human resources and marketing of Cape Union Mart, a large upscale retail chain in South Africa, and the founder of Waterford Wine Estate.
The group also met with the chief executive officer of Yum Brands in Johannesburg, the largest food/ beverage producer in South Africa, and visited Mediclinic South Africa, a major private hospital network, where they attended presentations by its chief financial officer and chief clinical officer. The program culminated in an exciting two-day trip to the Entabeni Game Reserve where they experienced a traditional safari.
Global Practicum in Brazil and Argentina
A cohort of Online MBA program students traveled to Brazil and Argentina. This was the first year when such an experience has covered two countries in 10 days. This visit was focused on Sao Paolo and Buenos Aires with an optional travel component to Rio de Janeiro.
Students, for the first time, had an option to engage in consulting type of projects with companies in the locations. Companies were vetted to provide challenge questions to students prior to the trip; students had an opportunity to work together in teams before the visit. Interactions with company executives were completed through online meetings leading up to the actual in-person visits during the Global Practicum. Students had an opportunity to present their recommendations and findings to the companies during the visit.
Apart from the business visits and consulting engagements, students had an excellent opportunity to see the working of two of the leading Latin American economies and their culture. This 2-country experience has been repeated in multiple other such immersions during subsequent trips to Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Delhi; Seoul and Tokyo; Mumbai and Singapore.