{"id":12633,"date":"2022-03-01T15:00:43","date_gmt":"2022-03-01T23:00:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/business.wsu.edu\/edividend\/?p=12633"},"modified":"2026-02-19T13:56:37","modified_gmt":"2026-02-19T21:56:37","slug":"alumni-melanie-wood","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/business.wsu.edu\/edividend\/2022\/03\/01\/alumni-melanie-wood\/","title":{"rendered":"MBA Study Abroad: \u201cIt Shapes How You See the World\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\"Melanie
Melanie Wood visited Nokia\u2019s corporate headquarters during a 2019 study abroad to Finland and Estonia.
(Photos courtesy of Melanie Wood.)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Melanie Wood<\/a> has heartfelt advice for other MBA students at Washington State University.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDo the study abroad; you\u2019ll never regret it,\u201d says Wood (\u201921 MBA). \u201cYou\u2019ll carry the experience with you forever. It shapes who you are and how you see the world.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wood took part in an international field study to Finland and Estonia with fellow MBA students and faculty in 2019. The trip included visits to Nokia\u2019s corporate headquarters in Helsinki and Rovio Entertainment, developer of the video game Angry Birds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The weeklong trip deepened Wood\u2019s appreciation for the tech industry\u2019s global nature\u2014an asset in her job at Microsoft. She also keeps in touch with students she met on the trip.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cStudy abroad is quite different than being on a vacation,\u201d says Wood, a senior Surface specialist at Microsoft. \u201cIf I\u2019m in Finland on my own, I\u2019m probably not going to tour Nokia\u2019s headquarters and learn how the telecommunications company does business. And I wouldn\u2019t be with a cohort of other business professionals.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wood earned her MBA last year. But she recently re-enrolled at WSU as a nondegree seeking student so she could take part in this summer\u2019s MBA trip to Prague. \u201cThat\u2019s how much I value the study abroad experience,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Melanie
Wood at Rovio Entertainment, developer of the video game Angry Birds.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Appreciation for Other Cultures<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The Carson College of Business offers international field studies<\/a> through its online MBA and executive MBA programs<\/a>. The elective trips allow students to interact with business people from other cultures and experience international markets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAfter a hiatus earlier in the COVID-19 pandemic, we\u2019re pleased to again offer an MBA study abroad trip,\u201d says Cheryl Oliver<\/a>, the college\u2019s associate dean for professional programs. \u201cStudents often tell us that study abroad was among the most valuable experiences during their MBA studies.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Besides the learning and networking, the trips are designed to develop students\u2019 appreciation and respect for other cultures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cEven if MBA graduates never work directly on a business expansion overseas, the study abroad experiences prepare them to work in an increasingly diverse US workforce,\u201d Oliver says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Leveraging International Experiences<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Wood spent four months as an exchange student in Finland during her undergraduate years, so she was eager to see the country again. During the MBA study abroad, she took the same overnight ferry trip to Estonia that she had as a young adult.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI traveled back to both countries as a seasoned adult with an established career,\u201d Wood says. \u201cIt was amazing to see the same places through a different lens.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wood extended her time in Finland to visit Microsoft\u2019s Helsinki office\u2014an experience she recommends for any MBA student who works at a multinational company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At Microsoft, Wood\u2019s sales territory for the company\u2019s Surface hardware covers state governments in nine western states. But she still leverages her international experience in day-to-day interactions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On a recent call, she sent a direct message to a Microsoft employee in Finland, letting the individual know she had visited the country. Effective networking relies on those personal connections, she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Making the World a Smaller Place<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Wood used Microsoft\u2019s annual tuition reimbursement to help defray the cost of her MBA. She spread the program over 3 1\/2 years to balance her studies with work and parenting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt was empowering to choose school for me. I didn\u2019t resent the late nights when I was staying up to finish reading a chapter or complete a project,\u201d she says. \u201cIt was a privilege to invest in myself.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The knowledge Wood gained during her MBA has enhanced her work performance. \u201cNot all of it was book smarts,\u201d she adds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Working on long-term group projects strengthened her communication and teamwork skills. And the study abroad trip renewed her interest in other cultures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cEveryone should experience being a foreigner in another country,\u201d Wood says. \u201cIt gives you a lot of empathy for foreigners in the United States and the path they travel to get here. It makes the world a smaller place.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

\n\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\tLearn more about the MBA international field study\t\t\t<\/a>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Melanie Wood<\/a> has heartfelt advice for other MBA students at Washington State University. \u201cDo the study abroad; you\u2019ll never regret it,\u201d says Wood. \u201cYou\u2019ll carry the experience with you forever. It shapes who you are and how you see the world.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":[634],"featured_media":18180,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[429,425,606],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/business.wsu.edu\/edividend\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12633"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/business.wsu.edu\/edividend\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/business.wsu.edu\/edividend\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/business.wsu.edu\/edividend\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/634"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/business.wsu.edu\/edividend\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12633"}],"version-history":[{"count":14,"href":"https:\/\/business.wsu.edu\/edividend\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12633\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18713,"href":"https:\/\/business.wsu.edu\/edividend\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12633\/revisions\/18713"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/business.wsu.edu\/edividend\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/18180"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/business.wsu.edu\/edividend\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12633"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/business.wsu.edu\/edividend\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12633"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/business.wsu.edu\/edividend\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12633"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/business.wsu.edu\/edividend\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/author?post=12633"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}