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Dr. Ellen Dowling's China Blog- Beijing International MBA

Apr 18-2013   



 

June 30th, 2010 by Ellen Dowling 

I am a visiting professor in the Beijing International MBA program at Peking University, where once a year I teach a course in communication skills to students pursuing their MBA degrees. 

The BiMBA program is quite unique among other graduate business schools, with its focus on global business practices and entrepreneurial skills. Among the classes that full-time or part-time MBA students take, for example, are such offerings as “Business in China from a Historical and Cultural Perspective,” “Global Leadership,” “Innovation Management,” and “Entrepreneurship.” The goal of the program, as its website declares, is “to cultivate corporate leaders who are familiar with China’s market environment as well as international business practices and are thus empowered with a global vision and a local mindset.” In my own class, “Report Writing and Presentation Skills,” my teaching colleagues and I focus our students’ learning on the practical applications of communication theory, such as learning how to write an effective business plan or deliver a persuasive presentation to potential venture capitalists. Not surprisingly, whenever I ask my class, How many of you want to start your own businesses after graduation? nearly every hand in the room goes up. 

My BiMBA students display an amazing variety of talent and intelligence, and they bring with them to the program a multi-layered background of work experience. Most of the students in my part-time class, for example (who attend class on Saturdays and Sundays) are currently working as mid-level or higher managers in many of the top companies in China: Lenovo, China Mobile, Pfizer, Intel (to name just a few). Not all the students are Chinese. This is an international program, remember, and in any given class of, say, 24 students, I might have 20 Chinese nationals, plus a German, a Ukranian, a Brazilian, and an American. The classes are all taught in English (thank goodness for me!) and while some students are more fluent than others, the majority of them constantly astound me with their ability to communicate effectively in English. (Speaking in public, as you may know, is considered the number one human fear. Imagine trying to speak in public in your second language!) 

It’s an old adage that the best part about teaching is how much you learn from your students. In later posts, I will share with you more of the lessons I’ve learned from my BiMBA students. 

Notes: Dr. Ellen Dowling have recently created "The Standuptrainer's China Blog" (www.standuptrainer.com/blog), where she will be discussing many different aspects of her China experiences, and especially what she have learned from teaching at BiMBA.

Dr. Ellen Dowling's China Blog- Beijing International MBA

Apr 18-2013   



 

June 30th, 2010 by Ellen Dowling 

I am a visiting professor in the Beijing International MBA program at Peking University, where once a year I teach a course in communication skills to students pursuing their MBA degrees. 

The BiMBA program is quite unique among other graduate business schools, with its focus on global business practices and entrepreneurial skills. Among the classes that full-time or part-time MBA students take, for example, are such offerings as “Business in China from a Historical and Cultural Perspective,” “Global Leadership,” “Innovation Management,” and “Entrepreneurship.” The goal of the program, as its website declares, is “to cultivate corporate leaders who are familiar with China’s market environment as well as international business practices and are thus empowered with a global vision and a local mindset.” In my own class, “Report Writing and Presentation Skills,” my teaching colleagues and I focus our students’ learning on the practical applications of communication theory, such as learning how to write an effective business plan or deliver a persuasive presentation to potential venture capitalists. Not surprisingly, whenever I ask my class, How many of you want to start your own businesses after graduation? nearly every hand in the room goes up. 

My BiMBA students display an amazing variety of talent and intelligence, and they bring with them to the program a multi-layered background of work experience. Most of the students in my part-time class, for example (who attend class on Saturdays and Sundays) are currently working as mid-level or higher managers in many of the top companies in China: Lenovo, China Mobile, Pfizer, Intel (to name just a few). Not all the students are Chinese. This is an international program, remember, and in any given class of, say, 24 students, I might have 20 Chinese nationals, plus a German, a Ukranian, a Brazilian, and an American. The classes are all taught in English (thank goodness for me!) and while some students are more fluent than others, the majority of them constantly astound me with their ability to communicate effectively in English. (Speaking in public, as you may know, is considered the number one human fear. Imagine trying to speak in public in your second language!) 

It’s an old adage that the best part about teaching is how much you learn from your students. In later posts, I will share with you more of the lessons I’ve learned from my BiMBA students. 

Notes: Dr. Ellen Dowling have recently created "The Standuptrainer's China Blog" (www.standuptrainer.com/blog), where she will be discussing many different aspects of her China experiences, and especially what she have learned from teaching at BiMBA.