We will also travel to the north and central parts of Taiwan for students to observe and learn about the history, culture, and economy of Taiwan. This will also involve guided visits to world-class companies in Taiwan to meet senior managers who have broad working experiences overseas and locally. The company visits and interactions between the business leaders and the students should strengthen understanding of how the economic policy environment affects the business context and how business leaders see present and future challenges and opportunities for doing business in Asia. The students will also gain insights of the business culture in Taiwan, and the strategies businesses are pursuing to address their corporate social responsibility, drive innovation and entrepreneurship, and create jobs.

At the end of the course, students should have an understanding of the economic policy issues affecting the business environment in Asia for the present and the future. Students should have a framework for thinking critically about policy issues, analyze tradeoffs among policy choices, and articulate how they see the global trends affect business opportunities in Asia and how they can position themselves to seize these opportunities. Students should also benefit from the multinational and multicultural interactions offered in this program.

Students are encouraged to read the headlines of international newspapers such as the Financial Times, International Herald Tribune, or Wall Street Journal and the English language newspapers in Taiwan such as the China Times (http://www.wantchinatimes.com) for economic and business news about Asia and Taiwan.