College of Business Abroad: Faculty Travel to India

While the rest of Valparaiso University was nearing the end of finals and preparing for the winter break in early December, a small group of faculty members from the College of Business was heading to the other side of the globe. Sanjay Kumar, Ph.D., professor of information and decision sciences, Musa Pinar, Ph.D., professor of marketing, and Jiangxia “Renee” Liu, Ph.D., associate professor of accounting, traveled to the Global Challenges: Collaboration, Ethics, and Resilience conference in New Delhi, India. The conference was the result of a co-sponsorship between Valparaiso University and Gurugram University in Haryana, India.

The conference brought together an international group of students, professors, administrators and industry professionals, along with local leaders, to explore the issues and opportunities inherent to the rapid growth of technology, continued international relationships, working in a post-COVID 19 world, and how those factors are changing University curriculums and employer expectations around the world.

Professor Pinar presented a paper in the marketing section of the conference that had been written in collaboration with alumna Cassi Belk ’22. Their work examined the difference that virtual learning made in the student experience during the COVID-19 pandemic. The project was awarded best paper of the seven presented on the marketing track.

“We looked at the student experience with interacting with professors, peers, that sort of thing,” Professor Pinar says. “They wanted to know how students felt experiencing these online courses versus in-person classes.”

The trip also served as a means of sparking interest in Valparaiso University in a large, international audience. The conference made headlines in regional newspapers and broadcast media, spreading awareness of its message — and its participants — to a vast audience.

“If people don’t know you, they can’t select you,” Professor Pinar adds. “If we’re going to attract students from India, the first thing is creating awareness of the University. We also have to show-case the quality experience that allows students to pursue different things at Valpo.”

To reach more students in-person, the Valpo representatives spent time outside the conference visiting Deen Dayal Upadhyaya College, one of the top ten business schools in India, and part of a higher education system serving 800,000 students. There, they spoke to faculty and students to seek research partnership opportunities, find ways of working together, and discussed the education opportunities Valpo could offer.

“There are lots of opportunities in India,” Professor Liu says. “There are many Indian students that want to continue their education in the U.S, so we want them to come to our University.”

Once those students arrive on Valpo’s campus, however, it’s up to the students, faculty, staff and community members to support them.

“It can be simple things, like showing them how to get about, where to get groceries or where they can do their laundry,” Professor Kumar says. “That’s part of a liberal arts education, being exposed to different cultures and languages. And these students add a lot of value in terms of perspectives from a cultural and geographical difference.”

Professor Liu believes that the kind community Valparaiso University can provide, especially the connections between students and faculty, is one of the University’s main strengths when catering to an international student audience.

“Our faculty are passionate about teaching. We really care about students,” she says. “We tried to really talk to some students and listen to their questions, and many students were impressed by the Valpo way.”