International Business Courses

Semester 1

Finance & Accounting

• Skills: Bookkeeping, Financial Analysis, Risk Management

• Outcome: Engaging intro to finance/accounting within IB. Initial online tasks were challenging but essential.

Organization Behaviour / Organization Strategy & HRM

• Skills: Conflict Resolution, Organizational Culture, Communication

• Outcome: Enjoyable group project with effective collaboration. Gained insights into organizational dynamics and HR.

Ways of Thinking

• Skills: Creative Thinking, Critical Thinking, Reflective Thinking

• Outcome: Initially abstract but ultimately valuable. Promoted essential thinking skills despite early doubts about IB.

Ways of Working: Communication

• Skills: Advanced Vocabulary, Complex Sentences, Presentation

• Outcome: Crucial for mastering presentations. Emphasized effective communication through theory and practice.

Living in the World

• Skills: Cultural Sensitivity, Adaptability, Global Awareness

• Outcome: Engaging assignments fostered creativity and cultural awareness. Promoted adaptability.

Personal & Professional Development

• Skills: Proactive Thinking, Goal Setting, Time Management, Empathy, Self-Reflection

• Outcome: Valuable for growth. The "7 Habits" model was complex and less cohesive than expected.

Semester 2

Principles of Marketing

• Skills: Market Analysis, Consumer Behaviour, Advertising & Promotion

• Outcome: Hands-on experience with e-commerce website management. One of the most engaging subjects.

International Market Research

• Skills: Market Analysis, Data Collection & Analysis, Consumer Behaviour, Cultural Awareness

• Outcome: Effective introduction to advanced business research. Prepared well for international market projects.

Ways of Thinking

• Skills: Collaboration, Teamwork, Idea Generation, Critical Thinking

• Outcome: Similar to the first semester, the course felt too vague.

Ways of Working: Communication

• Skills: Advanced Vocabulary, Writing, Presentation

• Outcome: Further improved English language skills, with a focus on presentations and writing.

Ways of Working: Digital Citizen

• Skills: Collaboration, Teamwork, Planning, Communication

• Outcome: Developed useful Excel skills. Glad to have this practical subject.

Business Process Management

• Skills: Process Mapping, Process Analysis

• Outcome: Valuable insights into process analysis and improvement. Though challenging to find companies independently, it was a worthwhile learning experience.

Semester 3

Global Trends Lab

• Skills: Trend Analysis, Problem-Solving, Critical Thinking

• Outcome: Gained skills in researching and valuing trends. Did not enjoy the design thinking aspect.

Ethics and Social Responsibilities

• Skills: SDG Understanding, Critical Thinking, Environmental Awareness, Sustainability Problem-Solving

• Outcome: Learned extensively about SDGs and their significance in the business world. Found the course highly relevant and interesting.

Capita Selecta

• Skills: Essay Writing, Argumentation, SDG Understanding, Knowledge Application

• Outcome: Mastered essay writing and text analysis. Improved in identifying and correcting mistakes.

Semester 4

Work Placement in Tübingen, Germany

• Skills: Personal Growth, Cross-Cultural Competence, Professionalism, Adaptability, Research, Global Awareness, German Language

• Outcome: Applied theoretical knowledge in a real-world setting. Gained valuable workforce experience and noted the disparity between academic learning and practical application.

Semester 5

Family Business

• Skills: Understanding Family Business Dynamics, Practical Application, Storytelling, Data Analysis (SPSS)

• Outcome: Gained insights into the unique differences between family and non-family businesses. Found the subject enlightening.

Introduction to Sustainability

• Skills: Environmental Awareness, Financial Management, Collaboration, Strategic Thinking

• Outcome: "The Blue Connection" game effectively illustrated sustainability's importance in business.

Sales Training

• Skills: Intercultural Communication, Sales Pitching, Conversation, Cultural Sensitivity

• Outcome: Learned to deliver effective pitches and sell products to unaware customers.

Change Management

• Skills: Analytical Skills, Presentation, Teamwork

• Outcome: Through case studies, acquired skills in managing company changes. Found the subject very engaging.

Introduction to Global Marketing

• Skills: Global Awareness, Presentation, Strategic Thinking

• Outcome: Learned about diverse marketing practices across countries and their unique aspects.

Personal and Professional Development

• Skills: Environmental Sustainability, Project Management, Reflective Thinking, Goal Setting

• Outcome: Focused on ecological issues and learned to influence others regarding their carbon footprint.

Semester 6

Study Abroad in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

• Skills: Intercultural Competences, Social skills, Leadership, Change Management, E-commerce Security, Customer Behaviour

• Outcome: Gained insights into the wonderful country Vietnam. Got to know its interesting culture, always friendly people, and a taste of what business is like in such a fast developing country as Vietnam.

Semester 7

Persoonlijke Profilering Ruimte (PPR)

• Activities: Before coming to IB, I studied IT for one year at Windesheim. I completed my propedeuse, and learned a lot about several programming languages, and networking and security. I was allowed to use the ECT's from this study as my PPR.

• Skills: PHP, SQL, JavaScript, Networking, Security

• Outcome: These IT-Skills have proven to be incredibly usefull as 21st century skills. In all my internships and side jobs I have been able to apply what I learned at HBO-ICT.

ABR 2

• Skills: Conducting high-quality research, conducting interviews, academic writing

• Outcome: My ABR 2 project focused on the company Go North, a Dutch travel agency wanting to expand their operations to Scotland and Ireland. During this research, I learned a lot about both countries and what makes them the ideal travel destination for Go North's customer base.

Semester 8

Global Trade Dynamics

• Activities: For the company Keyspot, my project team and I created a detailed research. The start-up company has just started operations in Germany, and is looking to expand their brand awareness and customer base. Our research focused on identifying 1-2 expansion regions and 2-3 key customer industries.

• Skills: Conducting high-quality research, conducting interviews, academic writing

Data Analysis

• Activities: For the project of Global Trade Dynamics, I created a data analysis report. This report focused on assessing the quality of the data collection

• Skills: Data Analysis, Critical Thinking, Assessment

Trends & Development

• Activities: For this subject I created multiple trend selection analyses, for two different companies. The first one was for Keyspot, together with my project group. The second one was individual, about the company Go North.

• Skills: Trend Selection, Critical Thinking, Analysis Skills

Global Marketing Management

• Activities: For this subject Laureen, a classmate of mine, and I created an export plan for the company Ring. We analysed how they could go about expanding from the United States to the German market.

• Skills: Report Writing, Critical Thinking, Analysis Skills

Regenerative Business Design

• Activities: For this course, my project team and I created a prototype for the business park Makersfabriek. The prototype explored how the location could become the ideal business park of the future.

• Skills: Creative Thinking, Analitic Skills, Collaboration, Self-Reflection