Study Abroad Scheme 2014 Division of Business Community College of City University Student Report of Visiting The University of British Columbia Vancouver, Canada 19 July 2014 19 August 2014 1
Contents Page No. The University of British Columbia and The 3 Faculty of Land and Food System The Agribusiness Management Courses 4 Review by the Faculty of Land and Food 4 Systems, UBC Teaching and Learning in the Class 5 Certificate Presentation Ceremony 6 Guest Speakers of the Course Food and 7 Agribusiness Enterprise Management Guest Speakers of the Course Food and 8 Agribusiness Marketing Management Sightseeing in Vancouver 9 Student s Reflection 12 2
The University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia is a global center for research and teaching, consistently ranked among the 40 best universities in the world. It is the oldest institution of higher learning in British Columbia and enrolls over 58,000 students. Vancouver campus is located within about 10 km (6 mi) from Downtown Vancouver. 3
Agribusiness Management Package offered by the Faculty of Food and Land System The 2014 University of British Columbia Agribusiness Management Package included the two following courses: FOOD AND AGRIBUSINESS ENTERPRISE MANAGEMENT: This course is designed to introduce the principles of financial and business management that are most relevant to food and agribusiness related firms. This will be accomplished through the presentation of management fundamentals, financial principles, decision and project planning frameworks, completion of cases and current article reviews, class discussions and final enterprise management presentation. Review by the Faculty of Land and Food Systems, UBC The students from the Community College of City University completed all of these requirements at a very high level of proficiency and with strong enthusiasm... They were very professional, respectful and enthusiastic learners both in the classroom, during lectures and guest speakers, and during field trips... I was impressed by their excellent in-class presentations and professionally presented. These are young students being asked to develop marketing and business reports in a short timeline and they did a great job! Overall, I consider the students from the Community College of City University to be very strong students, both academically and professionally. Kelleen L. Wiseman, MBA, PhD Food & Resource Economics, Faculty of Land and Food Systems The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada Dr. Kellen Wiseman is on the far right. 4
Teaching and Learning in the class 5
Certificate Presentation Ceremony 6
Guest speakers of the course Food and Agribusiness Enterprise Management Inner City Farms Speaker: Mr. Will Valley Will Valley is the first guest speaker in our course. He is one of the owners of Inner City Farms which grows beautiful and organic fruits and vegetables primarily in residential spaces throughout Vancouver. Mr. Valley (middle) with CCCU students. Oceans Brand Pattison Group Speaker: Ms. Katelyn Fines Ocean Brands has been providing Canadians with high quality, authentic foods from around the world for more than 50 years. The products in Oceans Brand Okanagan Specialist Fruit (Arctic apple) Speaker: Mr. Joel Brooks Arctic apples are truly nonbrowning by applying modern science tools to the ageold art of apple breeding. During the talk, Mr. Joel Brooks showed us the arctic apples and it is really nonbrowning! 7
Guest speakers of the course Food and Agribusiness Marketing Management Ethical Bean coffee Speaker: Mrs. Aqilla Aziz Ethical bean coffee is a B-Corp certified by the nonprofit B Lab to meet rigorous standards of social and environmental performance, accountability, and transparency, which fulfills the triple bottom line requirements: Social, Environment and Financial. R & B Brewing Speaker: Mr. Rick Dellow and Mr. Barry Benson R&B Brewing is a small beer factory and it is a local brand in Canada. During the trip, the staff explained and introduced the function of the machine and the process of making the beer. Products of R & B Brewing 8
Sightseeing Stanley Park Named as the best park in 2013 by Travelers Choice Awards, a total area of 1,001 acres, it is undoubtedly a renowned tourist spot for us to visit. Grouse Mountain If you want to get in touch with the nature, you must go to the Grouse Mountain. It is one of the North Shore Mountains in North Vancouver. Its peak exceeds 1200 meters. The view is really breath-taking when you are having a skyride to the mountain top. 9
The Whistler The Whistler is located in North Vancouver, and is famous for its enchanted scenery with two majestic mountains. Richmond night market It is one of the biggest night markets in Vancouver. It is just like the carnivals in Hong Kong, with different kinds of stalls for example, food, clothes, games, etc. On that day after our examination, we went there and had a lot of funs! We can eat the traditional Chinese food in the food stalls like dim sums and fish balls. As the airport is nearby, we can see the airplanes lands and takes off frequently. The dusk there are gripping and we took a lot of photos. 10
Vancouver Island It is the capital city of British Columbia and it is located in the south Vancouver. And it is known as the city of gardens because of its attractiveness and popularity These are the photos in Butchart Garden, and the Empress. Granville Island Granville Island is a peninsula and shopping district in Vancouver. It was once an industrial manufacturing area and now it has turned into a place of tourism and leisure. 11
Student s Reflection Eric Associate of Business Administration (Financial Services) It was a great and unforgettable experience in Vancouver this summer. Through the trip, we not only had a chance to experience the new culture, but also gained much more knowledge about marketing management. The knowledge relates to what we learn in CCCU, and strengthens what we learnt before. Moreover, I previously thought that the professors in UBC were solemn before I went there, until I met Dr. Wiseman who is a very nice professor! What s more, this trip brought me a lots of good friends even the lecturer Mr. Toby Butt, who took care of us in Canada, has become much closer with us after this trip. All of the memories in this month will be kept in the bottom of my heart. Tracy Associate of Business Administration (General Management) UBC is a great university that provides a platform for me to study agribusiness which I cannot get in touch with in Hong Kong schools. Besides lectures in class, there were some field trips and guest talks in the course. It enhanced my knowledge agribusiness and allow me to explore the world in an interesting way by going out and having a look. As for myself, this trip has definitely improved my English proficiency especially on communication skills, as we needed to speak English all the time. Last but not least, I have learnt to be independent in the exchange programme since I needed to take care of myself and handled all the work by myself! 12
Evan Associate of Business Administration (Financial Services) Although I just stayed for a month, I have gained a lot from this study tour in different aspects. For personal aspect, I the tour has really enriched my experience since I explored in an unfamiliar place that most of the things were totally different from Hong Kong For the academic aspect, the teaching method could inspire me because the professor, Dr. Wiseman, not only taught us the knowledge and skills in notes, but also invited many guest speakers to give us concrete examples. Overall, it was worth participating in this study tour and I wish I could join another study tour in the near future. Natalie Associate of Business Administration (General Management) In the program, I have met a very passionate professor, Kellen, and learned lots of useful knowledge about Food and Agribusiness in a beautiful campus. As the teaching style in Canada is very different in Hong Kong, at the beginning of the program, it is hard for me to fully understand the content of the note. However, with the help of the professor and my classmates, I had overcome the problem and found the suitable learning style quickly. 13
Coco Associate of Business Administration (General Management) Through this study abroad scheme, I have met many students from other university. The classes were so interesting because we had learning outside the classroom. There were guest speakers from various companies who provided us up-to-date information about the food industry. The field trip also provided us an opportunity to experience a working environment in Canada. The experience obtained from this study tour has been beneficial to my personal growth as I could meet more new friends from this trip. Garrick Associate of Business Administration (China Business management) Being the 2 nd best university in Canada, UBC is in no doubt the dream university for lots of people. With gorgeous weather, fantastic facilities and experienced professors, 28 of us could receive the best knowledge in 1 month. Agribusiness Management has a brand-new subject to us but we were able to manage it and apply to our daily life. I believe this experience and knowledge would be useful to our future career. Apart from the remarkable knowledge, we have gained friendship that made this trip to be the best one in my life. In this seemingly short trip, we studied, played sports, cooked meals, chitchatted, and fought for our presentation and examination together. The time with them was unbelievably unforgettable. 14
Cynthia Associate of Business Administration (General Management) It was my great honor to take part in the study abroad scheme because I did learn a lot from the trip. For example, my proficiency in English has improved, especially the ability to communicate with foreigners effectively. Also, I learnt to leave my phone in the pocket and experience the nature. Unlike Hong Kong, in Canada, we cannot enjoy the unlimited data and Internet service everywhere. On the other hand, Canadians were so nice and lovely, they often offered help and chatted with us. I am really thankful for the wonderful memories in Vancouver and miss the days in UBC. Heison Associate of Business Administration (Accountancy) For the study life in UBC, it is really rushing. We do only have very limited time for reviewing the lecture notes and limited time for finishing the project and marketing research. Unfortunately, there are not many opportunities to talk with the local students, although there are few students always with us. Hopefully, I can meet more Canadian and be friends with them. Overall, I learn and enjoy a lot with the classmates. UBC & Canada are worthwhile to go and explore. It is highly recommended there will be another chance to UBC for the next year students. 15
Jennifer Associate of Business Administration (General Management) As a top-notch university, UBC provides an excellent platform for academic exchange. Instructors gather all over the globe, either being general practitioners or experts in their own fields. We were so lucky to have Miss Kelleen Wiseman, a former banker who is a businesswoman as well as an academic research analyst to teach us. With fundamental knowledge and real-life experiences in agriculture food business industry, we were able to put theories into practices by interviewing guest speakers and entrepreneurs. Field trips, on the other hand, helped consolidate our knowledge in this once-in-a-lifetime chance. Wilson Associate of Business Administration (Financial Services) Study Abroad Scheme is really beneficial for students. It has broadened our horizons since we were exposed to different cultures and customs when studying in Vancouver. I have become more independent after this trip. In UBC, we lived in a dormitory and responsible for cooking and cleaning by ourselves. Furthermore, this trip provided a platform to group students from different backgrounds together so that we got a chance to meet lots of friends. Therefore, I wish CCCU would continuously provide this kind of scheme next year, and I highly recommend our students to pursue this precious opportunity to study in the universities overseas. I am so grateful to live with my study buddies, who come from different business programmes. There are always lessons to learn from each one of them who possesses unique personalities and strengths. 16