UTSA marketing professor teaches graduate course in China
(Jan. 30, 2002)--Joel Saegert, chairman of the Department of Marketing in the UTSA College of Business, taught a two-week graduate marketing course at Tongji University in Shanghai in December.
At left, Saegert is joined by the students who participated in the class. Saegert taught in the MBA English language program offered by the university and lectured one afternoon at Suzhou.
"I was invited to teach in the program by one of the faculty members who studied here under the college's Liu's Family Foundation Program," said Saegert. The Liu's Family Foundation Program supports faculty and student exchanges between the College of Business and top universities in China.
His students were studying full-time in the program and came from a variety of provinces. Students typically graduate from the program in two years.
The curriculum was similar to coursework that he would teach at UTSA. "I gave them exams and exercises just like those that I'd give to our students," he said. "The only difference was that I had to speak a lot slower."
Saegert was housed in the university's expert house located about 20 minutes from campus. During his visit he was busy teaching in the morning, grading in the afternoon and attending banquets in the evening. He also had dinner with a group of alumni from the Liu's Family Foundation Program during his stay.
"I got a great sense of satisfaction relating to these students," said Saegert, who has also taught in Singapore. "The students were extremely nice and went out of their way to make me feel at home there. I would enjoy coming back and teaching in several years to see their progress in the business sector."
Tongji University was established in 1923 and has over 41,000 students. The name Tongji suggests cooperating by riding in the same boat.
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© The University of Texas at San Antonio, 2003