INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MANAGEMENT

Transcription

1 INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MANAGEMENT International Semester or Year (30-60 ECTS) FALL SPRING 2015

2 TABLE OF CONTENTS Howest University of Applied Sciences 3 Is this course for me? 4 1 Course concept 5 Course overview 6 English for exchange students in higher education A TWO-WEEK INTENSIVE LANGUAGE PREPARATION 10 Academic recognition 10 Prerequisites 11 Practical information 13 TIMING AND LOCATION TUITION FEE ACCOMMODATION Registration and deadline 14 Contact and more information 14 2

3 HOWEST UNIVERSITY OF APPLIED SCIENCES Howest is a dynamic university of applied sciences, focused on innovation, creativity and entrepreneurship. Our core values serve empower care stimulate an open, pluralistic and international outlook on education, research and service to society. Howest is a member of Ghent University Association, which provides high-quality higher education to about 1/3 of Flanders student population. We offer degree programmes in Architecture, Healthcare, Business and Management, Industrial Sciences and Technology, Education and Social Sciences, on four campuses in the historical cities of Bruges and Kortrijk, in the province of West Flanders, Belgium. Over the years, Howest has built a solid reputation in application-oriented scientifi c research, services and continuous education, working with distinguished academic, social profi t organisations and enterprises as partners in Europe, and all over the world. Our students and staff are given plenty of opportunities to go global, thanks to regional, national and international networks, scholarships and exchange programmes. Howest has coordinated highly successful national and international projects, and is an active partner in many others. We constantly develop our course offer in English in order to position Howest as an attractive academic choice for students from abroad, who are looking for an open, vibrant, cosmopolitan and friendly destination. We warmly welcome students from our Erasmus and overseas partner institutions for an exchange period. At this moment, Howest offers one full degree programme in English, the Bachelor of Digital Arts and Entertainment ( as well as 12 English taught International Semesters in 11 different study areas, each of them representing at least 30 ECTS. jan Darthet 3

4 INTERNATIONAL SEMESTER PROGRAMMES IN AUTUMN: FROM SEPTEMBER TO THE END OF JANUARY International Business Management I Applied Computer Sciences - Fall International Semester Professional Development Digital Creative Projects in Tourism Digital Creative Projects in Journalism Realization in Product Design INTERNATIONAL SEMESTER PROGRAMMES IN SPRING: FROM FEBRUARY TO THE END OF JUNE International Business Management II Applied Computer Sciences - Spring Digital Creative Projects Communication Digital Creative Projects in Business Digital Creative Projects in New Media & IT Visualization and Communication in Product Design Studying in Bruges or Kortrijk means having several tourist attractions within easy reach: the Belgian coast, the Flemish & Belgian historical cities Antwerp, Brussels, Ghent... And in a couple of hours the train will take you to European cities like Paris, London, Amsterdam, Cologne etc. IS THIS COURSE FOR ME? The international semesters International Business Management are aimed at both bachelor students and graduates. Since there is the possibility for an individual itinerary, the international semesters are interesting for students of different study programmes, especially commercial sciences, business and management, but also other fi elds of study such as computer sciences. This semester will surely add value to your degree and your career opportunities as your team working and communication skills will improve. 4

5 PROFIEL COURSE CONCEPT THE INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MANAGEMENT I- SEMESTER (FALL) IS COMPOSED OF 6 MODULES: Introduction (3 ECTS) International Communication Skills (3 ECTS) International Business Skills (9 ECTS) Accounting (3 ECTS) 2 modules to be chosen from the following three (each module = 6 ECTS) Marketing Finance Interpersonal Skills The International Business Management II-semester (Spring) is also a modular semester. All modules concern Business Management topics, covering different specialisations. Depending on whether a student attends only this Spring Semester or is staying a full year, the modules which can be chosen will differ. During the fall semester, emphasis will be on lectures as well as on learning-by-doing. The spring semester is more project based. Students will work on different projects, mostly in international teams. The aim is to integrate students from abroad with Belgian students and stimulate teamwork and international communication and co-operation. During the semester company visits are arranged, so that students will learn about the Belgian corporate culture. 5

6 COURSE OVERVIEW INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MANAGEMENT I - FALL COURSE UNITS HTC n-tc SL INTRODUCTION 3 ECTS CULTURAL AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC INTRODUCTION TO BELGIUM SURVIVAL COURSE DUTCH You will stay for one semester or even a full year in Belgium. Therefore, we would like you to get to know a bit about the (business) culture in Flanders and in Belgium. You will also get an intense survival course Dutch and do an assignment introducing your own culture to the Belgian co-students. INTERNATIONAL COMMUNICATION SKILLS 3 ECTS INTERNATIONAL COMMUNICATION Competent intercultural communication has become essential in this post-millennium world: there is a very strong imperative for you to communicate in both your public and private life with people whose cultural heritage makes them different from you. The aim of this course is to provide you with the knowledge, motivation and skills to accomplish that objective. INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS SKILLS 9 ECTS INTERNATIONAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP You write a business plan in an intercultural and multidisciplinary team. You will develop entrepreneurial skills and learn about economic and cultural differences in doing business. CRM Customer Relationship Management (CRM) is a business strategy to select and manage the most valuable customer relationships. CRM requires a customer-centric business philosophy and culture to support effective marketing, sales, and service processes. CRM & e-commerce applications can enable effective customer relationship management, provided that an enterprise has the right leadership, strategy and culture. WORLD ECONOMY This course is intended as an introduction to world economy, with a strong focus on Europe in the globalized world. The objectives are to analyse the current international economic key indicators and trends and evaluate the benefi ts versus the costs of international trade. ACCOUNTING 3 ECTS MANAGEMENT ACCOUNTING Management accounting is a course focused on the legal and technical aspects of accounting in a national and international context. Topics such as fusions, acquisitions and liquidations are also discussed. 6 *HTC = Hours of Teaching and Coaching n-htc = non-teaching or Coaching Hours SL = Study Load (*) optional module

7 COURSE OVERVIEW INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MANAGEMENT I - FALL COURSE UNITS HTC n-tc SL MARKETING 6 ECTS (*) EXPORT MARKETING You become aware of specifi c aspects of international marketing and export management, such as important international organisations, Incoterms, import and export documents and the international marketing mix PROJECT EXPORT PLAN In this project you put the input of International Marketing into practise by writing an export plan for an existing company with concrete export plans FINANCE 6 ECTS (*) INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL TOPICS In this current situation of fi nancial turbulence it is not easy to keep up with all evolutions in the sector. In this module, recent fi nancial topics and the dependency of the international markets are discussed. FORECASTING AND BUDGETING Based on historic data about sales, you will learn to make a short term prognosis, in quantity and in quality, of the corporate activity in the upcoming year. Coordination of business units is also discussed. INTERPERSONAL SKILLS 6 ECTS (*) SELF-MANAGEMENT Management accounting is a course focused on the legal and technical aspects of accounting in a national and international context. Topics such as fusions, acquisitions and liquidations are also discussed. CHANGE MANAGEMENT When the rate of external change exceeds the rate of internal change, the end is in sight. Companies thus cannot afford a status quo, although implementing change in a company is not an easy task. You will achieve the competencies needed to establish change in your later working environment. OPTIONAL COURSE ENGLISH FOR EXCHANGE STUDENTS IN HIGHER EDUCATION Two-week course prior to the international semester (see further). Fall-semester course: Monday 8 - Friday 19 September

8 COURSE OVERVIEW INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MANAGEMENT I - SPRING COURSE UNITS HTC n-tc SL INTRODUCTION 3 ECTS (This module cannot be chosen by students staying a full year) CULTURAL AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC INTRODUCTION TO BELGIUM SURVIVAL COURSE DUTCH You will stay for one semester or even a full year in Belgium. Therefore, we would like you to get to know a bit about the (business) culture in Flanders and in Belgium. You will also get an intense survival course Dutch and do an assignment introducing your own culture to the Belgian co-students. LOGISTICS 6 ECTS SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT A company can economize by optimizing the fl ow of goods, i.e. from raw materials to the fi nished product. The objective of Supply Chain Management is to obtain insight in an optimal fl ow of goods by managing the demand from customers, the offer of suppliers as well as all production and transport phases as a whole for certain product groups. BUSINESS PROCESSES Business processes are the corner stones of a company and thus, it is essential that they be optimized. In this course you will learn the various principles to analyse and improve business processes and safeguard the overall quality. ONLINE COMMUNICATION 6 ECTS SOCIAL MEDIA We use social media privately all the time well so do companies. In this course you will learn why social media are so important in a business context. Companies usually also have a strategy about the use of social media. This will be the main topic. WEBAUDIT E-commerce websites are still gaining importance: selling online is continuously increasing. It is thus of great importance that the website of a company is attractive to consumers. There are some general principles that companies can apply. Furthermore, there is some legislation to respect when putting a website online. You have to assess if a website lives up to the relevant EU Directives and marketing techniques. You write an advisory report for a specifi c company. 8 *HTC = Hours of Teaching and Coaching n-htc = non-teaching or Coaching Hours SL = Study Load

9 COURSE OVERVIEW INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MANAGEMENT I - SPRING COURSE UNITS HTC n-tc SL SUSTAINABLE INNOVATION 6 ECTS CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY Economic development is a must for human welfare. However, economic growth can equally be seen as a threat to our planet. In this course, it is discussed whether or not economic growth can go hand in hand with the protection of our planet and its limited resources. INNOVATION MANAGEMENT (Eco-)Innovation is a global trend. Companies will make the difference, not (only) by keeping costs low, but by keeping on renewing products, processes etc. You will learn why innovation is so important, how innovation can be triggered in a company, and which are the necessary ingredients in an innovation process. Furthermore, the topic of managing innovation is also covered. BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE 3 ECTS BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE Business Intelligence is the transfers of data into knowledge. The objective of BI is to integrate all relevant information from various operational sources and to analyse this information for decision making purposes. BUSINESS GAME 3 ECTS BUSINESS GAME During a full week, students will play an international business game in heterogeneous teams. The game consists of different rounds with increasing degree of diffi culty in the team decisions. RESEARCH PROJECT RESEARCH PROJECT The research module is a module that is aimed at preparing students to write a fi nal thesis. You will learn to select a relevant research topic, and get some tips and tricks about writing a thesis. The focus is mainly on desk research, however an introduction of market research is included. OPTIONAL COURSE ENGLISH FOR EXCHANGE STUDENTS IN HIGHER EDUCATION Two-week course prior to the international semester (see further). Spring-semester course: Monday 26 January - Friday 6 February

10 ENGLISH FOR EXCHANGE STUDENTS ENGLISH FOR EXCHANGE STUDENTS IN HIGHER EDUCATION: A TWO-WEEK INTENSIVE LANGUAGE PREPARATION This course has been designed for our incoming and outgoing exchange students in order to provide them with an optimal linguistic preparation for their English study abroad (one semester or year). It is offered as a two-week crash course (a total of 60 hours, Mondays to Fridays) before the start of the international semester at Howest (see course overview). Classes will take place all day, every day, except for weekends. This course provides exchange students with an intensive training in speaking, listening, reading and writing skills, and is focused on their upcoming academic experience. The diversity of the academic backgrounds of the participants will be taken into account by choosing and covering a wide range of relevant topics. The course will also function as an excellent networking opportunity for the students who are about to start their study abroad. One field trip will be organised. We strongly recommend English for Exchange Students in Higher Education for students who have not fully achieved the B2-level in English at the moment of application. More proficient students will benefit from the immersion and acclimatisation experience. This course will always fall under the Learning Agreement and has to be attended for the full two-week period. As the number of places will be limited, we expect students whose attendance has been confirmed to show up in time and to fully participate. There is an extra cost for the handbook and the field trip. ACADEMIC RECOGNITION Howest fully applies the ECTS grading system and awards credits for the successfully achieved course units. After concluding the semester, all students receive an official ECTS Transcript of Records and a Certificate. 10

11 PREREQUISITES Minimum 2 successfully completed semesters in a Bachelor Business programme or an equivalent of 60 ECTS. This will need to be confirmed by means of an official certificate, a survey of completed courses, or a signed letter from the sending university. The profi ciency level we expect from incoming students is the B2 level of the Common European Framework of Reference for Foreign Languages (CEFR), in writing, speaking and understanding skills. We expect applying students to provide proof of their proficiency in English in one of the following ways: A signed confi rmation letter from the sending university, stating that the applicant s language skills reach the B2 level and thus are suffi cient to attend courses, participate in different types of classroom and examination activities. (only valid for exchange students) The results of a (free) online language test which can be related to the CEFR B2 level,such as the Erasmus online language test, Dialang and Testpodium. The online test should have been taken under the supervision of the sending institution. The result sheet needs to be stamped and signed by a staff member of the sending institution. (only valid for exchange students) An offi cial certifi cate or score report referring to the European Framework or from one of the recognized language tests, e.g. TOEFL: paper based 550/internet based 79/ computer based 213 or IETLS: 5.5, no partial results below 5. The following applicants are not required to document their language skills: applicants from countries having English as their national language. applicants attending a full-time English taught degree programme at their home institution. All Howest and exchange students should bring their own laptop, with all necessary and offi cially licenced software. Howest applies a very strict policy on the use of legal software. For Applied Computer Sciences you need Microsoft Offi ce, and for the Fall programme you also need access to course material of EC Council for the CEH-certifi cation (costs 150 Euro). 11

12 PREREQUISITES Howest reserves the right to contact the sending university to verify the information on language profi ciency, or to contact the applicant to have a telephone or Skype conversation in English. All Howest and exchange students should bring their own laptop, with all necessary and offi cially licensed software. The course overview above mentions the specifi c software (if any) necessary for the course unit. Howest applies a very strict policy on the use of legal software. Non exchange students can only attend the international semester as a Postgraduate course and need to have completed at least a full Bachelor degree programme at the time they start the international semester course at Howest. 12

13 PRACTICAL INFORMATION TIMING AND LOCATION Both semesters take place in Bruges. Our Fall semester runs from September 15th 2014 until January 30th The fi rst week is an orientation week; students are informed of the exact day of their welcome session by . From 27/10/ /11/2014 there is one week of Autumn Holiday. Winter holidays are from 22/12/2014 till 04/01/2015. The examination period starts immediately afterwards. The spring semester is from February 9th 2015 until June 30th. From 06/04/ /04/2015 there is a two week Easter Holiday. The examination period starts in the beginning of June. Students who attend the two-week intensive course English for exchange students in higher education should arrive in time to start the lessons on Monday morning 8 September 2014 or 26 January You fi nd our academic calendar in English at Address of the campus: Howest Brugge. Rijselstraat 5, 8200 Brugge (Sint-Michiels), Belgium. Howest s campuses are cashless. You will need to activate the Maestro function of your bank card before departure from your country. More detailed info on this on our website. TUITION FEE AND ACCOMMODATION For exchange students sent by our Erasmus and overseas partner institutions this course is tuition free. Non exchange students pay a tuition fee of The fee does not include course or other materials, nor the cost for cultural visits or study excursions (transportation, museum entrance ). Those have to be paid on location. Howest has cashless campuses. Payments can be made through a debit card. Don t forget to activate the MAESTRO function on it before you leave your country. Stuvo Howest, our students services, will assist you in your search for accommodation if you wish. You can also fi nd accommodation via which has a search engine in English, but be aware that fi nding student accommodation on your own in Bruges is a challenge. A student room in Bruges will cost you between 225 and 350 per month. 13

14 REGISTRATION REGISTRATION AND DEADLINE THE APPLICATION DEADLINES ARE: June 20th for study in Fall Semester. For nationals from outside the European Economic Area we recommend one month earlier! November 30th for study in Spring Semester. For nationals from outside the European Economic Area we recommend one month earlier! Because of the international nature of this semester, we strive for a well-balanced composition of the project teams. This balance will be taken into account during the selections. All applications are subject to approval by the Howest IBM team. Send your Howest Application Form to international.office@howest.be. You can download it at Please also send your proposal of Learning Agreement. CONTACT 14 For more information about the CONTENT contact Ms Ellen Taylor, the IBM coordinator. Rijselstraat Brugge - Belgium Tel +32 (0) ellen.taylor@howest.be For more information about your APPLICATION contact Ms Sophie Dewitte of Howest International Offi ce Marksesteenweg Kortrijk - Belgium Tel +32 (0) Fax +32 (0) international.office@howest.be For all further information concerning study MOBILITY to Howest, have a look at our Practical information package for incoming students :