Dear friends:

Business education truly spans the globe. Most business academic societies have worldwide membership, top conferences attract international attendees, and journal article authors regularly originate from six different continents. Reflecting most business PhD programs in the United States, more than 75 percent of our WSU PhD students arrive in Pullman from other countries.

Our global scholars introduce diversity, culture, and a global perspective to everyone in the college community. Our Next Carson Coug undergraduate students benefit greatly by taking classes from our international teaching assistants and instructors. While challenging at times, it’s very important for the future corporate workforce to listen to and understand foreign accents. Top U.S. companies employ foreign nationals and regularly work with firms from around the world. Our doctoral students can also share corporate practices from their home countries with our undergraduates. Knowledge of certain cultural differences, in particular, can be a huge asset when negotiating and working with foreign companies. In fact, lack of cultural knowledge can lead to tension, embarrassment, and even loss of business.

Whether it’s one’s family, school, town, state, or country, humans tend to congregate toward a tribal mentality. A lack of interaction with other groups and cultures can lead to misperceptions about the other group. College can be a great place for young people to discover that, and I think that our Next Carson Cougs are privileged to get so much exposure to international educators. Their lives and careers will benefit greatly.

Chuck Munson,

PhD Program Director