Foreign cultures and countless new impressions are waiting for the around 70 students from ISM‘s Indian partner university IILM Institute for Business and Management. For three weeks, they will attend Summer School in Munich and Hamburg. In addition to courses in management and finance, the guest students will also go on various excursions.

Each year, the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) awards a prize to international students at German universities. Besides her excellent academic achievements, Maria Perez Phipps of ISM Frankfurt stood out due to her social commitment and received the award worth €1,000.

Top-notch studies in the heart of California: The University of California, Riverside (UCR) is now also open for ISM master students. Starting in winter-term 2020, they can experience the typical American lifestyle during their semester abroad.

Slowly but surely, the new semester is approaching. A perfect opportunity to keep up to date with the latest ISM News.

A semester abroad in Finland is a real attention grabber in your CV and all the more interesting if you are actually from Tanzania like Naureen Gamdust. At the age of 19, Naureen moved from Africa to Germany to complete a bachelor’s degree in International Management on the English Trail at ISM Dortmund.

Haaga-Helia University in the small town of Porvoo was not simply a random choice – Naureen was looking for a stark contrast to her home country and a first-class education system. And she was not disappointed. Like ISM, Haaga-Helia University focuses on small groups and personal contact between students and teaching staff – being on first name terms is perfectly normal in Finland. “I was also fascinated by the lecture rooms. A few are very traditional, but the majority of them boast a very individual design, partly without tables but with large beanbags. The atmosphere is very relaxed.” Naureen was particularly impressed with the way the visiting students were welcomed by those from Finland. Since they attended all the courses together, the guests were immediately part of the group.

In addition to wonderful excursions in Finnish forests and a breathtaking ice hockey game in Helsinki, the highlight for Naureen was actually a course task. “Event Management was my favorite course, as we were allowed to organize the graduation ceremony for 200 students. It was great fun to gain such practical experience and I now realize that I want to work in this sector.” You should definitely be prepared for a lot of group work and a manageable night life. Naureen is still happy with her decision: “During this period I learned to be more open to new ideas and experiences, to work better in teams and to adapt to other cultures and ways of working. The time in Finland has even made me more confident.”

Curious? Read the full interview with Naureen on the ISM Blog.

The ISM delegation had spent months preparing for this week: Keeping an eye on political developments around the world, researching strategic partners, looking for sponsors. Still the start of the National Model United Nations in New York City was a case of jumping in at the deep end for the twelve students.

“I was definitely in awe, since the first speeches set the bar very high and the experienced participants instantly picked up the pace,” explains Katharina Hausfelder from ISM Stuttgart, who represented her delegation in the UNICEF Committee. The team was busy preparing working papers, adding the finishing touches to speeches and looking for partners to share their interests from early in the morning until late at night. When summarizing her impressions, Katharina says: “Everyone plays a small role in a larger process but can still achieve so much – especially within a team.”

Thanks to a healthy amount of ambition, assertiveness and strategically clever decisions, the group succeeded in getting the interests of their country, Botswana, back on the agenda time and time again. In the end, the ISM delegation even received a certificate to honor their performance and team spirit. What remains are unique experiences, new friendships and the conclusion: Although I am doing something that is actually a little too big for me – I can still do it!