. Business YOU landed an interview with a giant company in th e business world. You were fre sh out of college and compet– . ing with 20 other bright-eyed, eager business men and women. Your palms were sweaty , and you fe lt quite small compared to the inte rviewer opposite you. Halfway through the interview, he asked, "'What are your views on conducting business internationally?" You r e laxed, smiled and replied, "Actually , sir, let me tell you about a conversation I had in London at Tate and Lyle where we addressed that very issue." Thanks to the Co llege of Business Admi n – istration joining up with the Harding Uni – vers i ty in England ( H UE) program, students could reply with knowledge , expe rience and confidence about global business affairs. 'COBA was an organizat ion designed for senior business students interested in inter – national business. COBA HUE was a six-week summer study abroad program that focused on how business was done differently on the in– ternationallevel. " It' s an experiential learning opportunity," Bryan Burks. Dean of College of Business, said. "It allows students to get out of the class – room and into the boardroom of big compa– nies in London." 38 student life Around The World Burks also said that London was known as the international finance heart of the world . Harding students sat in boardrooms with gi – ants of Fortune 500 compa nies and listened to their discussions of strategy and procedure. "The businesses we visited were very infor – mative concerning their different industries," senior Andrea Higginbottom said. "They gave in - depth presentations covering anything from history to market -share in their industries." The 2009 HUE group visited Leeds, Tate and Lyle , Murphy Oil, Sky Television and Wimbledon to learn the ir business techniques as international companies. " It 's not like working in the U.S. with U.S. people," D r. Al Frazier , busin ess professor , said. "You are working with people from Eu– rop e, Asia, America, everywhere. Leaders of these companies work in a global market and und e r stand the compl exities of exchange rates and issue s in th e international sphere. Our stude nts ge t to see thi s fir sthand." COBA HUE stud ents commented that their favorit e company to tour was Tate and Lyle, the sugar refinery that owned and produced Splenda . They we re taken on an extensive tour from the executive offices to the manufactur – ing faciliti es . However , the trip wasn ' t all business. Stu– dents were abl e to take in the cultural side of England as well. In addition to visiting busi– n esses, th e group also toured S1. Paul ' s Cathe– dral, Westminster Abbey, Stonehenge, Picca – dilly Circus and the Tower of London. They also saw various plays and perfor– mances and were able to watch the semi-finals of the Wimbledon tennis tournament. At the end of the four weeks, students were also given an optional twO weeks of fr ee travel all over Eu– rope. "Many d ays we would get done with our business tours by two 0' clock, ,. senior Andrew Flesher said. "So we would just hop on the tube and explore England. We got to see more in six weeks than many people do in a lifetime. It was a great experience Studen ts earned up to 10 hours of credit and were able to experience and understand the culture and busi ness of England during their six -week stay. "1don' t know how you could put a value on it ," Frazi e r said. "I t is a unique experience that they can put on the ir resumes and bring up in interviews. It gives our students the competi– tive advantage they need." Janet Orgain
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