ISP Seminar in Switzerland

Every year over 100 students and staff join the International Student Projects to visit companies and organisations in Switzerland, Asia and the Americas and to learn about the social, economic and political landscapes of Switzerland’s major trading partners.

The International Student Projects 2023 of the FHNW School of Business held their Seminar in Switzerland from 13-17 February at the FHNW Campus Olten. While the project teams have been busy preparing and organizing since last year, the preparatory seminar marks the start of this unique international experience for the delegations of Insight China, Focus India, connectUS, exploreASEAN, and the newest project, HOLATAM.

At the beginning of an equally intensive and insightful week, Marc Blaser, CEO of the projects’ joint platinum sponsor Blaser Swisslube, delivered an inspiring welcome address to the FHNW students and staff. In his speech, Marc Blaser underlined the importance of international relations for the export-oriented Swiss economy and the demand of employers for specialists who are well-versed in working in multinational and multicultural teams.

This provided the perfect background for the Seminar in Switzerland, during which the students engage with the cultural and economic environments of the projects’ respective target regions. Company visits offer opportunities to get first-hand knowledge of the challenges of doing business internationally, while workshops focusing on language, culture and traditions introduce the delegations to the countries they will visit during the Seminar Abroad from 30 March to 16 April. Particularly noteworthy highlights of the Seminar in Switzerland were the visits from the Ambassadors of Colombia, Peru, and Vietnam as well as high-ranking officials from other embassies.

At the end of a packed week-long schedule, a panel discussion about the current energy crisis and a keynote speech by André Dosé on the same topic closed out the Seminar in Switzerland, leaving the project teams and delegations well-prepared for their upcoming travels.