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learning how our schools are similar or different, and sharing how we view education and management. It's a very enriching experience for staff as well as students." —Michele Pekar-Lempereur, ESSEC Business School in Paris Graduate School of Management, Nashville, Tennessee. It has simply changed the landscape. "The number of participants in our program from abroad has not declined, probably since Nashville is not considered a dangerous area of the world," Christie says. "We've had some difficulties from areas such as the Ukraine, China, and India, where the embassy refused to give visas to students. Interestingly enough, however, we've had students from countries such as Uzbekistan and Jordan who have had no problem at all." September 11 has not affected ESSEC's non-American it all comes down to is that these international exchanges are the only way we're going to be able to avoid another event like September 11. Through educational exchanges, we can increase people's understanding of what's going on around the world. You're not going to achieve that digging trenches." exchanges, says Michele Pekar-Lempereur, the school's director of MBA development. It has, however, had a "strange" impact on exchanges with the U.S., she says. "In some cases, universities have told us they don't plan to send students this year. In other cases, we've received more stu- dents than we had expected." Because U.S. visas are difficult to obtain, many schools in Building Relationships In the end, business students aren't the only ones clamoring for an international education. Business school staff and fac- ulty involved with coordinating international programs are getting a perpetual education in world culture. "I've had the pleasure of working with many colleagues at other countries are actually reporting a boom in applicants. "We've been fortunate that many students have seen Denmark as a safe place to go for their international experience," says Jensen of CBS. In the end, however, she sees international education as having an impact beyond business school. "What Learning to Adapt INTERNATIONAL STUDENT REPORT Madhurima Agarwal Home School: Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad Gujarat, India Host School: Copenhagen Business School Copenhagen, Denmark In the few months that Madhurima Agarwal, an MBA student, has been working for a Danish com- pany, she has learned a great deal about European economics and the dynamic of the workplace in a European country. "Most Indian companies have a very hierarchical structure. As an intern, you don't get to interact with the top management directly," explains Agarwal. "Here, you're our more than 60 partner universities around the world," says Pekar-Lempereur. "Our staff is building partnerships and relationships, learning how our schools are similar or differ- ent, and sharing how we view education and management. It's a very enriching experience for staff as well as students." With the Internet and real-time interaction becoming the norm, business schools, probably more than other disci- plines, realize that globalization is no longer a trend. It's a fact of business life. As a result, the role of international busi- ness school programs only promises to become an even more integral part of every business student's education. ■ z free to approach the managers if there are any problems." As a participant in CBS's internship exchange students, so that everyone can learn Danish." Even so, people have gone out of program, Agarwal has been able to work on the Copenhagen Stock Exchange as well as in corporate offices. Everything is done in Danish, says Agarwal, which has been a diffi- culty. She wishes she had time to take a more comprehensive course in Danish during her business studies. "I had a four-day crash course in the lan- guage, but I didn't have time to learn the language properly," she says. "I think a language course should be com- pulsory for all their way to help her surmount the lan- guage barrier and work effectively with- in her internship. "If a document is rele- vant to me, someone will give me a copy in English. Everyone here takes care of you if you're a foreigner and takes the time to explain," says Agarwal. That sort of interaction has been "the most satisfying part" of her international experience, adds Agarwal. Learning to adapt to new cultural protocols as an "outsider" has become an incredibly important skill in today's business envi- ronment, she believes. "I get to see how people in other countries work, learning a new culture and getting used to different ways. I have learned how to adjust and how to adapt in a totally new environment." BizEd JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2003 37