Shanghai Pudong District SkylineOne Thursday night near the end of March, I stood in a shoulder-to-shoulder packed, smoke-filled room in Shanghai, at the best club I’ve ever been to, called “Babyface.” The energy in the club was incredible; it felt reflective of that of China as a whole, with its breakneck-pace development and optimism for the future. For my spring break this year, I traveled to Shanghai, Beijing and Seoul as part of a Kellogg program called Global Initiatives in Management, or more affectionately, “GIM.” The GIM program is a completely student-planned program, consist of a 1-quarter course developed (I developed the curriculum for my course, GIM China-Korea), followed by a 2-week spring break trip to the countries of study to meet with business leaders, tour the country and have a great time.
The program, which started almost 20 years ago with a trip to Soviet Russia, is one of the quintessential parts of the Kellogg experience. Nearly 1/3 of the first year students participate in the program, studying countries/regions such as China, India, Tanzania, South Africa, South America, Southeast Asia, Russia and Europe. The trip provides an incredible chance to learn about and experience the country first-hand, providing an international element to the Kellogg experience.
My experience in China and Korea really reinvigorated my fascination with East Asia. Even though I had been to Shanghai and Beijing previously, I didn’t experience the cities to their fullest. Nor had I thought too seriously about doing business there. I’ve come away with a renewed desire to improve my Mandarin and to gain more exposure to China. We’ll see what opportunities I have in the future.
Our group meeting w/ S. Korea President, M.B. LeeSeoul, S. Korea
Read the full article: Spring Break in Asia!