Beginning next fall, all students at the Tuck School of Business will be required to complete a course that involves spending time in a country new to them, the school announced yesterday. The new Tuck Global Insight Requirement will be mandatory for all members of the Class of 2017 and beyond – part of an effort by the school to ensure that a Tuck education includes global immersion, which the school deems essential in today’s business environment.
“The world has become much more global,” Phillip C. Stocken, Tuck associate dean for the MBA program, said in a statement. “As a result, we believe our graduates must have a global business capability—a global mindset—to successfully navigate the different cultures, countries and markets in which they will inevitably work. There is no better way to do this than spending time on the ground in another country.”
Students will have a choice between several immersive courses carefully designed to help develop the necessary skills and knowledge to solve problems and lead effectively across cultures and in a range of business environments.
Each credit-bearing course will be taught by a member Tuck faculty. It will include pre-travel orientation, an immersive experience in a country new to the student and reflection. Two current classes – OnSite Global Consulting, a global first-year project, and Global Insight Expeditions – will satisfy the requirement.
According to the school, global immersion is already a key part of the Tuck experience for many students. The new requirement will simply extend it to all MBA candidates. Of the Class of 2014, almost 67 percent reporting spending time in a country new to them during their time at Tuck.
“Tuck is a pioneer in global learning,” Tuck Associate Dean for Faculty Matthew Slaughter said in a statement. He noted that Tuck was among the first MBA programs to include a globally focused core course as part of its curriculum, back in 1991. “Making an immersive global experience a required part of the curriculum strengthens this commitment to ensure that every Tuck student receives outstanding preparation for the global leadership that businesses are today seeking,” he continued.
The new Global Insight Requirement was based on a recommendation from Tuck’s recently completed strategic review. It was approved by faculty vote in early June.
