Sussex MBA students meet with businesses, government and alumni on recent study trip to Madrid
By: Jessica Kistnasamy
Last updated: Wednesday, 2 May 2018
Sussex MBA students took a four-day study trip to Madrid in March 2018 to learn more about management in government, business and research and to meet with Sussex Alumni based in the city.
The aim of the trip was to combine active learning with history and general sightseeing. Accompanied by MBA Course Directors Isabel Fischer and John Luiz, students visited Madrid as part of their study abroad trip and immersed themselves in the business and cultural life of the capital city and the country.
For some students, the trip was part of their international business elective. The opportunity to see international business in action is one of the unique characteristics of the Sussex MBA: bringing the international business environment to light and life in the classroom.
The trip was enormously successful, with high-level company visits to BP, Ericsson, the Madrid stock exchange, as well as cultural visits to museums such as Museo Reina Sofia. Students attended presentations from senior technocrats at the Economic Ministry of the Spanish government, who spoke about how the Spanish economy has bounced back from the debt crisis and how it has increased competitiveness over the last few years.
The alumni networking event was well received by both current MBA students and Madrid-based alumni. The dinner proved a great opportunity for both to interact and to celebrate Sussex and its current and past students.
Current MBA student, Samantha Neame said: “The visit to Madrid was very insightful. We had interesting company visits and it was good to spend more time with fellow students and staff. As I am studying on the MBA part-time, I was also able to join the two previous study visits - to Berlin and to Rome - and I’d recommend to all Sussex MBA students to take part in future study visits.”
Professor John Luiz commented on the success of the trip: “The students have given us tremendous feedback and it has once again reminded me how important these experiential trips are - there’s only so much we can do in the classroom and the experience of international business company visits is so important on a global MBA. It also reinforces to me the calibre of students from Sussex and our global footprint. Sussex graduates go places and make an impact.”