With a growing array of international partnerships with China, the College of Business at Florida International University (FIU) continues to hone its exchange programs, touching base with universities already in the college’s Dual Degree network and reaching out to potential new partners.
Shortly after his arrival as dean of FIU’s business school, David R. Klock met with a five-person presidential delegation from Dual Degree partner Shandong University of Finance and Economics (SUFE). The delegates invited Klock to visit them in China.
In January 2013, he reciprocated, adding three other college partners—Tianjin University of Commerce (TUC), Tianjin Foreign Studies University (TFSU) and Qingdao University—to the five-day itinerary. The trip delivered on the goal of FIU President Mark B. Rosenberg to establish new relationships with Chinese universities and strengthen existing ones.
“The presidents of our Chinese partner institutions appreciate FIU as a respected, well-branded institution,” Klock said. “They understand the importance of our deep connections in Latin America, and want their best and brightest to learn from us.”
Klock was accompanied by Senior Associate Dean Christos Koulamas and Chun-Hao Chang, chair of the Department of Finance. The group met with academic leaders from the partner schools to explore future collaborations at both the undergraduate and graduate levels, and to evaluate how well the current agreements were working.
“The Chinese universities place great importance on these agreements,” said Koulamas, who has traveled to China before on behalf of the college. “FIU is perceived very positively by Chinese businesses.”
The trip was Chang’s first college-related visit to China.
“We stayed in two provinces and traveled 550 miles by high-speed train,” he said. “We are looking at sending other delegations in the near future.”
Peng Lu, FIU’s assistant provost for Chinese affairs, planned the trip, in consultation with the college’s representatives.
Second contingent spreads word about MSIRE program.
William Hardin, director, Hollo School of Real Estate, and Finance Department faculty member Zhonghua Wu, visited five universities to promote the college’s Master of Science in International Real Estate (MSIRE) program.
“We made presentations to more than 50 agents in Beijing and met with senior administrators—many of them our counterparts in their university’s business, finance and real estate programs—and nearly 400 students in three other cities,” Hardin said.
