Germany greeted the seven arrivals from the sunny state of Florida on May 17, 2007 with continuous rain and cloudy skies. Within a short time, however, the group of MBA students who had come to exchange with the German MBA group won over the Germanic weather gods with their bright and open nature, so that the sun shone almost continuously during the following 10 days. A packed program with all kinds of excursions and insights into German and European business, culture and politics, as well as joint lectures with the German MBA students at the Transatlantic Institute (TI) kept the seven participants busy. Whether it was long bus rides to Holland or Belgium, extended financial policy discussions at the European Central Bank in Frankfurt, city tours in the sweltering heat of Heidelberg, Mannheim and Maastricht, or the intensive lectures, nothing could dampen the young people's zest for action and discovery, true to the motto: "I'll sleep back in the US!"
The Transatlantic Institute places special emphasis on internationality and intercultural exchange of experience, especially within the Executive MBA Program in General and International Management.
This year's was the third group of students from the University of West Florida (UWF) to come to Ludwigshafen as part of TI's "Spring School" initiative. No textbook, no matter how good, and no presentation or lectures, no matter how professional, can replace direct contact and first-hand experience of the other culture, according to the philosophy of the higher education institution.
The German MBA students in the cooperative degree program between UWF and TI get two opportunities to experience American culture firsthand during their 18-month studies. Both the start and the Degree of the program take place on the campus of the American university in Pensacola.
For most of the American guests, this was their first visit to Europe. However, the enthusiasm was so great that many expressed a desire to return again soon, or even to participate in the program again next year.
