The Programme
The English programme International Management is based upon the study ‘Commerciele Economie’. From the start of your programme you will be confronted with the pratical business side of your education. You will be working on projects with your class mates as well as across programmes with Trade Management Asia students. This will advance your international network and scope from the start.
All programmes consist of four years. Every year consist of two semesters with different subjects. You will gradually work towards your final degree and thesis.
The Foundation year
After completing the International Management programme you are able to:
- write a marketing or business plan;
- asses export or import opportunities for a company;
- Set up your own trading company;
- Establish and build on new business relations all over the world.
The courses of the first year are built around team projects. Every semester has a business driven project which you will be working on as a member of a team. You will need to plan, allocate tasks, set up meetings on- and off line, work together with all kind of students. You will need to present your findings and write a report. In the first year the theme is entrepreneurship. You will need to set up your own business and run it for real. You will need all the theoretical knowledge you can acquire at courses like marketing, financial accounting, economics, market research and introduction to culture. On top of your theoretical foundation, sports are part of the curriculum as a way to build team work in your class and support your personal development.
The first year is the foundation for the subsequent years. You will need the basic theoretical knowledge before studying all the aspects of doing international business in Europe and America.
Second year
In the second year you will learn everything in the area of analysing the European and American business environment as well as the internal business processes. This year you will be working on an export plan for an existing small or medium enterprise. You and your team will investigate opportunities abroad for this company. You will identify the existing internal and external environment. In the second semester you will analyse the realisation of the international ambitions of your company. This project will be presented to the whole programme (students, teachers and business people) at the International Trade Seminar. You will get the theoretical luggage to accomplish this with courses like global marketing, export management, organizational behaviour, macro economics and international law. Sports are an integral part of your further personal development.
Third year
In the first semester you will get advanced courses on trade subjects like sales management, procurement and cross cultural negotiations. The second semester you will go on exchange to a pre-selected partner business school or university in Europe or America. It will give you international scholar and social experience.
Fourth year
The first semester of the last year you will have an internship. The second part will consist of an import project as well as your thesis.
The internship
You will need to take care of an internship with an international company abroad or in the Netherlands. The internship should consist of an assignment and some relevant tasks in the company. It lasts around 5 months and will be finalised with a report on the assignment and a reflection. The HES international business network can also offer a variety of internships to which you can apply.
The thesis
The thesis is the final test of your education. The thesis reflects all your knowledge and experience gained in the previous four years in a report. You will work on a problem-solving assignment, commissioned by an international operating company. The student is expected to explore and analyse data and make concrete recommendations or offer suggestions for a future line of approach. The student is supervised throughout the process by a member of the IM teaching staff. Examples of thesis subjects are marketing plans for the introduction of a franchise abroad, business plans for a whole company, import plans for specific products.
| Programme | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Year 4 | |
| Projects | Young Enterprise Project | Project Export Planning | Project Import | |
| Marketing | Marketing Management | Marketing Planning and Market Research | Strategic Marketing | |
| International | Export Management, Trade Logistics & Documentation | Import and Procurement | Global Marketing & Communications | |
| Legal | International and Business Law | Trade Law | ||
| Economics | Macro Economics | Trade Economics | Globalisation 1 | Globalisation 2 |
| Quantitative/ Qualitative | Market Research and Statistics | Customer Relations Management Systems | ||
| Finance | Financial and Management Accounting | Trade and Corporate Finance | Management Accounting | |
| Management and organisation | Strategy, Structure and Human Resource | Organisation Analysis and Organizational Behaviour | ||
| Culture | European Culture and Trade | European History and Culture | Cross Cultural Negotiations | |
| Language | English | English | English | English |
| German, French or Spanish | German, French or Spanish | German, French or Spanish | German, French or Spanish | |
| Other | Physical Education and Sports | Physical Education and Sports | Exchange in Europe or Americas | International Internship |
| Personal Development | Critical Thinking | Thesis | ||