INDIANA UNIVERSITY PURDUE UNIVERSITY INDIANAPOLIS

COMMUNICATIONS & MARKETING Administration Building, Suite 136 355 N. Lansing Street Indianapolis, Indiana 46202-2896 317-274-7711 Fax: 317-274-5457

CHINA VISIT PAYS DIVIDENDS FOR BUSINESS, ART AND LAW STUDENTS AT IUPUI

When eight IUPUI students went out for a professional business dinner with a colleague in China, they didn't expect to find themselves dancing on tables. But they quickly learned that refusing to do so would have been impolite.

They weren't the only students from IUPUI to visit China during the summer.

Seventeen Herron School of Art students traveled to China for three weeks this summer with professors Robert Eagerton and Jean Robertson. The program, in its fourth year, allows students to visit individual artist's studios, attend lectures and demonstrations and visit museums and galleries in Beijing and Hunan Province. Students say one of this year's highlights was observing one of the most revered calligraphers in the country.

Second-year law student Ayoade Adewopo was one of the IU School of Law-Indianapolis' connections with China this summer. The law school intern assisted attorneys at the four-year-old Equal Opportunities Commission in Hong Kong. His focus was disability, family status and sex discrimination issues.

More Americans may soon be finding themselves in China following passage of historic legislation that grants permanent normal trade status for China, laying the framework for a new trade arrangement under which China is to open its doors to American businesses and investors.

That's why the IU Kelley School of Business has been offering its MBA students a chance to prepare through an annual elective course entitled "China in Transition." Over the summer, students study about and then travel to China to offer consulting services to a metropolitan company.

In August, eight students from IUPUI, traveled to the coastal city of Dalian where they worked with Dalian Diesel Engine, a state-owned enterprise facing problems with increased foreign competition. The students worked in small groups with students from the City University of Hong Kong and met with the company's employees to learn more about its problems. After two weeks, the groups presented their solutions to company executives and then submitted a detailed paper upon return to the U.S.

For several of the students, the experience of traveling abroad is already helping them to better perform their daily jobs. Lori Handy, a 29-year-old diversity trainer from Cummins Engine, frequently works with employees from other countries. In China she learned firsthand the experience of being a foreigner.

Sean Conley works in the International Programs office at Raytheon Technical Services and handles product support for Asian countries. He found learning about the culture to be invaluable in dealing with foreign customers on a daily basis.

"It is important to know about different cultures and to learn that they approach problems differently," said class professor Marjorie Lyles. "The students also learn that there are different norms and methods of etiquette. In China, building relationships is very important."

For example, Handy learned that exchanging business cards in China is more than just a quick pass of hands and if not done properly can offend the giver. The card must be respectfully presented with both hands. When receiving a card, the recipient is expected to look it over with interest and never write or sit on the card.

Another custom that Lyles found surprising when she first visited China is the expectation that everyone stands up and sings at a banquet. After being caught unprepared, she made sure this year's class came ready with a song sheet.

Adewopo said the time he spent working in Hong Kong was valuable. "You see things from a different view. That exposure expands your scope. It gives you understanding of different countries' legal systems."

###

Return to IUPUI Home