Asia Business Program

Overview
In order to take full advantage of Asia's tremendous business potential, multinational firms must employ managers who understand Asian languages and cultures, who have a solid grounding in the fundamentals of business, and who have experience living and working in the region.  The Asia Business Program prepares these managers..

The University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is one of the top three or four universities in the world in Asian Studies, with hundreds faculty specialists in its departments and professional schools, including more than thirty faculty in political science, economics, sociology, psychology, and anthropology who teach and conduct research on issues related to Asian business.  The federal government recognizes Michigan's leadership in Asian studies by supporting four  national resource centers in Chinese, Japanese, South Asian, and Southeast Asian studies, each of which sponsors its own masters degree program.  All the key business languages of Asia are taught on the Michigan campus, including Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, Thai, Indonesian, Tagalog, Hindi, and Tamil.  The Association for Asian Studies, the world's largest scholarly organization devoted to Asian studies, is headquartered on the Michigan campus.

Centers and programs such as the four area centers mentioned above, the International Institute, the Center for International Business Education, and the William Davidson Institute provide Asia Business Program students with financial support, overseas opportunities for work and study, and funding and organizational support for extra-curricular activities.

The Joint Degree
The Asia Business Program comprises four joint degree programs that combine a full Michigan MBA with a masters degree in Asian studies, with a required concentration in Chinese, Japanese, South Asian, or Southeast Asian studies.  The joint degree on Southeast Asia is the only one of its kind in the United States, and the South Asia program is one of only three.  Graduates leave the Asia Business Program with a comprehensive set of international business skills, work experience in Asia,  an in-depth knowledge of a particular Asian country or region, and proficiency in one or more Asian languages.

Students pursuing the joint degree must separately apply to and be accepted by the two respective degree programs.  Two separate degrees are awarded by the University.  Some students choose to enter a single degree program--usually the MBA--in their first year at Michigan, entering the second degree program in their second year.  

The Asia Business Program typically requires three academic years and two summers to complete, which allows students to pursue a variety of curriculum options, including up to eight months of work experience abroad, study abroad at one of the top business schools in Asia, and up to four years of language study.  Depending upon entering language proficiency, previous work experience, and choice of geographic concentration, it may be possible to complete the Asia Business Program in only five semesters.

Asia Business Faculty

The following Michigan Business School faculty are some of the regional specialists on Asia who are actively involved in teaching and advising in the Asia Business Program:

Albert Park (China)

Linda Lim (Southeast Asia)

Brad Farnsworth (China)

Ken Lieberthal (China)

Han Kim (Korea, Japan)

Aneel Karnani (South Asia)

C.K. Prahalad (South Asia)

Electives on Asian Business

The following courses are taught on a regular basis at the University of Michigan.  In order to verify that a course is taught during a particular term, or to determine the time and location of a course, consult the University time schedule.

Business School courses with substantial Asia content:

• Business in Asia
• Doing Business with China
• Business Strategies in Emerging Economies
• Global Product Networks
• Principles of International Finance
• International Finance and International Financial Markets
• Managing International Portfolios
• Evaluating and Financing Global Projects
• Financial Management in the International Corporation
• The World Economy
• Strategic Management of Alliances
• Implementing a Vision:  Global Growth
• International Business Ethics
• International Marketing Management

Asian studies courses with substantial business content

• Economy of Japan
• The Economy of the People’s Republic of China
• Economic History of Japan
• Government and Politics of China
• Government and Politics of Japan
• Government and Politics of South Asia
• Japanese Law
• Asian Legal Systems
• Chinese Legal System
• Business Japanese
• Topics in Japanese Culture
• China's Evolution Under Communism
• Topics in Asian Studies
• Modern Korea
• Social Scientific Studies of Historical and Contemporary China (required for all China MA students)
• Humanistic Studies of Historical and Contemporary China (required for all China MA students)

In addition to these conventional classroom courses, Michigan offers a variety of  "hands-on" courses that involve traveling to and working in Asia under the direction of a Michigan faculty member.  The most popular is the International Multidisciplinary Action Project (IMAP), which assigns MBA students to global consulting projects during their first year in the program.  Examples of recent Asia-related IMAP projects are the following:

• A global study of micro-finance (Vietnam and Cambodia)

Extracurricular Resources

The largest student-run conference on Asian business in the United States is held on the Ann Arbor campus every year.  The conference attracts hundreds of participants from the academic and business community and is an excellent opportunity to meet and network with some of Asia's most influential business leaders.  Click here for the agenda for the most recent conference.  For a complete list of student clubs in the Business School, click here.

Many academic units on campus organize lectures series, conferences, and other public programs that are relevant to students with an interest in Asian business, including the Mitsui Life Financial Research Center, the Center for International Business Education, and the William Davidson Institute.

Careers
Asia Business Program graduates have followed a variety of career paths after graduation.  Most are hired by U.S.-based multinationals, often followed by an assignment in Asia after a training and orientation period in the United States.  Some graduates remain in the U.S. but maintain significant international responsibility.  Some have pursued more entrepreneurial possibilities, including management consulting.

While virtually all Asia Business Program students go through the regular corporate hiring process during their final year in the program, many of the best jobs have been secured through networking with alumni, faculty, corporations, and business organizations. Recent graduates of the Asia Business Program have been hired by GE Medical Systems, Cigna, Intel, Procter & Gamble, Northwest Airlines, General Motors, Coopers & Lybrand, United Technologies, AT&T, Bain & Company, Baring Securities, Ford Motor Company, and many other large multinational corporations based in the United States. Graduates are working in Tokyo, Osaka, Singapore, Bangkok, Hong Kong, Jakarta, Shanghai, and Taipei, as well as in the United States

Financial Aid
All four of the Asia-focused area centers offer Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) fellowships to their students at the masters degree and PhD students.  These awards include a full tuition waiver and living stipend and are generally very competitive.  Some of the area centers are able to offer additional financial aid from endowment funds.

Other units on campus offer additional support for summer language study, Asia-based consulting projects, or summer internships and group projects.  These include the International Institute, the William Davidson Institute, and the Center for International Business Education.

For more information
For more information about the Asia Business Program, please contact:

Brad Farnsworth, Director
Center for International Business Education
University of Michigan Business School
701 Tappan Street
Ann Arbor MI 48109-1234 U.S.A.

Phone: 734-936-3917
Facsimile: 734-936-1721
Internet: bradleyd@umich.edu