Thomas G. Burish, Charles and Jill Fischer Provost of Notre Dame (left), and Roger Huang, the Martin J. Gillen Dean of the Mendoza College of Business
Notre Dame MBA students have long benefitted from the international experiences the university affords them—from securing internships abroad to spending four days immersed in international business in China, Brazil or Chile through the Interterm Intensive program.
With the launch of Notre Dame’s new Global Gateway in Beijing, the university ensures that an even greater number of MBA students can gain professional experience in a country that is shaping the way the world does business.
Beijing Global Gateway: A hub of exchange seven years in the making
Global Gateways are operated by Notre Dame International, and provide hubs for exchanges between scholars, students and leaders from universities, government, business and the community. The Gateway’s new home in Beijing is indicative of China’s explosive prosperity, located as it is in the Genesis Beijing complex, which houses space for GE and the BBC, outdoor gardens, lecture halls and an art museum, among others.
The Beijing Global Gateway is the result of Notre Dame’s continued efforts to provide students with meaningful international experiences. “The Beijing Global Gateway is a vital part of Notre Dame’s commitment to strengthening internationalization, scholarly engagement and cooperation throughout the world,” said Thomas G. Burish, Charles and Jill Fischer Provost of Notre Dame. “Working with our partners in Asia, our goal is to provide an opportunity for our students and faculty to work with colleagues in that part of the world to promote discovery and understanding.”
Since 2010, Jonathan Noble, assistant provost for Asia and director of the Beijing Global Gateway, has been building Notre Dame’s academic reputation and network of partners in China. The University has forged academic cooperation agreements with several leading universities in greater China, including the University of Hong Kong, Tsinghua University and Peking University.
Noble and colleagues have developed a wide range of programs for students, including options focused on Chinese language and society, business, engineering and service learning in Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Guizhou.
For example, the Global Professional Experience program offered through Beijing Global Gateway provides students with the opportunity to learn about U.S.-China business relations, China’s economic and social history, and to work on collaborative projects with researchers and business executives at Xiao Mi—one of China’s largest tech startups—and IBM China. The Global Professional Experience joins the IBM China research internship program, which has included participation by more than 20 Notre Dame graduate students and faculty since 2010.
Mendoza will play a major role in Beijing Global Gateway
During October 2017, a contingent of Notre Dame officials spent a week meeting with educational leaders throughout China leading up to a celebration of the opening of the Beijing Global Gateway. Among the university’s representation was Roger Huang, the Martin J. Gillen Dean of the Mendoza College of Business.
Huang—a native of Hong Kong who has paid special attention to creating relationships with Chinese universities during his administration—has a deep understanding of the economic growth in China and the corresponding educational needs.
“China has a 5,000-year- long culture,” Huang notes. “In the last few decades, it has managed to move hundreds of millions of people out of poverty. Currently, they are attempting to enhance their education in this country. To do so, they would like to partner with Notre Dame. To achieve that partnership, we visited a number of people in China, including the Chairman of Peking University and the Vice Minister of Education. This has led to many ideas for our students to study here in China, as well as for their students to study at Notre Dame.”
Beijing Global Gateway has already hosted Fulbright scholars, panel discussions, and nearly 40 Notre Dame students, alumni and parents, who visited as part of the first summer celebration and forum co-sponsored with the University’s Liu Institute for Asia and Asian studies.
And this is just the beginning. Thanks to Dean Huang’s involvement with Beijing Global Gateway, Mendoza students can look forward to doing business in Beijing for years to come.
Originally published by at mendoza.nd.edu on October 23, 2017.