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Nellie Soudah spends her weekends studying to finish her MBA from Indiana University of Pennsylvania.
But Soudah is far removed from the campus' leafy, iconic Oak Grove and its Eberly College of Business and Information Technology. She's some 5,900 miles away in one of the most dangerous and politically contentious regions of the world.
Soudah is one of 43 students who will earn a master's degree in business administration in August as part of IUP's first graduating class at its offshore campus in the West Bank.
Soudah, 33, a Christian Palestinian, lives in Ramallah. While earning her degree, she's working as an administration support officer for a European Union mission that aims to support and improve the Palestinian criminal justice system.
“I have always wanted to go abroad for my master's, but I have an excellent job and wouldn't want to leave it,” she said. “This program not only was new, but convenient. ... It came all the way to my hometown and was delivered during the weekends — exquisite!”
IUP is the only university in the state system to offer offshore programs. Some state-related schools and private universities, such as the University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon University, have similar international sites and partnerships.
IUP business management professor Prashanth Bharadwaj said the program almost did not get off the ground.
“We went to the IUP Senate to get this program approved. There was some resistance, but most agreed we were there to impart education and won't be involved politically in any which way,” he said.
Students in the West Bank attend classes taught by IUP professors using the same textbooks and curriculum used in Indiana.
IUP partnered with Arab American University of Jenin, which provides the classroom space on its “big, beautiful campus in the middle of nowhere” and arranges transportation and lodging for the visiting IUP professors, Bharadwaj said.
Only about 30 percent of IUP's business faculty has been willing to travel to the West Bank, and last June, the program was suspended for six months during what Bharadwaj called “pretty much full-blown war” in the region.
Bharadwaj, the dean's associate who oversees the West Bank program, runs a similar program in Bangalore, India, that he helped found 10 years ago.
He said both of IUP's programs came to fruition through the personal contacts of professors in those countries. He's hoping to expand the model to additional locations in Europe, East Asia and Central or South America.
“It's a win-win-win for faculty, students and the two institutions,” he said.
STUDY BOOSTS SALARIES
Bharadwaj said he reconnected with a former classmate who heads PES University in Bangalore to establish IUP's partnership there. In that MBA program, students have the option to earn the degree in India or travel to IUP for the second year. Typically, 80 percent or more choose to do one year in India and one at IUP.
“The way business is conducted in the United States is definitely what everybody wants to benchmark with,” Bharadwaj said. “Students who come here and go back, their stock goes up.”
Starting salaries often jump $20,000 to $30,000 after just one year in America, he said.
The India program's ninth class graduated this month with 86 students, bringing the total graduates to more than 700, Bharadwaj said.
For Shreya Sengupta, the first student to enroll in the program in 2005, the program's dual-country option let her study for a year near her family and a year in the United States. It was more affordable that way, too, she said.
Sengupta worked for several years as a manager for the IUP program in India and is now a program manager for IBM Commerce in Bangalore.
Leena Jain, 32, graduated in 2007 and works for Pricewaterhouse-Coopers in Switzerland. She said the two-country program set her apart in a competitive field.
“I have been able to work in a very niche area of tax consulting services — transfer pricing — which is the hot topic in all the countries across the globe,” Jain said. “So a person with international educational exposure, particularly the U.S., was a better candidate to hire.”
INTERNATIONAL LEADER
IUP has a long history as a leader in international education among the 14 state-owned universities, said Michele Petrucci, director of its Office of International Education.
IUP, with 892 international students, accounts for more than 46 percent of the 1,922 international students systemwide.
“One of the reasons we have been so successful is we do have the infrastructure in place in our office to deal with a range of issues for international students,” including intensive English language training, tutors and staff trained to help with everything from roommate or landlord disputes to financial and medical issues, Petrucci said.
“The reality is whether you're going to leave Pennsylvania or not, you're going to be working with people from around the world,” Petrucci said. “Exposure to people from around the world ... will help prepare you to be a better citizen of the commonwealth and a better employee for prospective companies and school systems. You'll go much further in your career.”
Source : http://triblive.com/mobile/8415082-96/iup-program-students