Abstract
American universities have maintained a strong presence in Florence, Italy education for several thousands of U.S. students. Florence remains the American hub of study abroad even with recessionary constraints in this tumultuous economic European region. The demand for students in study abroad programs continues to grow, with business management as one of the top fields of study for U.S. study abroad students. Profit driven enrollment models continue to clash with the wealth of research literature that cites a lack of academic rigor and of academic regulations among certain colleges and universities. Equally, there are different faculty views on the definition of quality in education. Anecdotal evidence of the lack of rigor in courses at two Florence schools affiliated with several prestigious U.S. universities is presented from naturalistic observation data over the summers of 2008 and 2009. The outcry for process improvement initiatives are outlined, along with practical ways business management course instructors can design-in quality measures that go beyond personal growth, language and cultural experiences for students. This manuscript proposes that business faculty integrate a metric-based strategy that incorporates academic outcomes for their business management courses taught in Florence. Several proposed quality initiatives are introduced for integrating industry partners through experiential learning into courses for a quality study abroad program in business education. By fully integrating business experiences with industry partners into curriculum, institutions can begin to transform the inherent negative quality image existing in study abroad programs.
Original language | American English |
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State | Published - 2013 |
Externally published | Yes |
Event | PROCEEDINGS OF THE MUSTANG INTERNATIONAL ACADEMIC CONFERENCE - Las Vegas, Nevada Duration: Jan 1 2013 → … |
Conference
Conference | PROCEEDINGS OF THE MUSTANG INTERNATIONAL ACADEMIC CONFERENCE |
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Period | 1/1/13 → … |
Keywords
- Business education
- Quality
- Study Abroad
- Florence Italy
- Business management
- Academic Outcomes
Disciplines
- Business
- Education