MBA Students Get a Lesson on Brexit

What better way to learn about global leadership than by traveling overseas? Our ten-day international residency program brings Executive MBA  students face-to-face with emerging and established business economies.

During her spring semester, Amanda Knutson ’18 traveled to the UK to study Brexit with her Executive MBA cohort. They prepped for the trip by reading journal articles and interviews about business in London and Ireland. “The content was fascinating,” she said. “But experiencing Brexit first-hand was something else.”

Students heard a variety of opinions from the outskirts of London to the heart of Dublin. “We challenged people in the pubs and asked their thoughts on the vote and Brexit. Being right in the middle of all the turmoil was eye-opening.”

The Executive MBA cohort also studied the GDPR -- a timely issue given news around consumer data protection. The European Union (EU) is a huge market for US products and exporters. “The EU is putting restrictions on data owning and data collecting,” said Knutson. “We learned from the top 100 Forbes companies how they're going to do business with them.”

Students also actively conducted industry research while abroad. “I met with industry leaders about what they're dealing with in health care,” said Knutson. “We tapped into really great resources to help us with our senior capstone project.”

Traveling with her cohort of Executive MBA peers made the trip extra special for Knutson: “Our cohort went through this whole program together, so this trip felt like a big send-off before we graduate.”