International Students Learn about Ural’s Business Models

11:09, July 18, 2019

Short-term summer program of the Graduate School of Economics and Management is finishing at UrFU

Almost finished is the summer school “Doing Business in Russia: Diversity of International Business Models” organized by the staff of the Master’s program “International Management” of Ural Federal University.

Students from European partner universities learned about the diversity of business models specific for the unique nature of Ekaterinburg and the Urals. The program of the school, which is held for the sixth time, included interactive lectures, company visits, problem solving, communication with international professors and techno-tour to INNOPROM-2019.

During the seven modules of the school, the students learned about the aspects of business-running in Russia. For example, in one of the lectures they were told about managing big music projects like Ural Music Night and The Old New Rock. An important part of the program for the students was to develop their own start-up projects, which will then be reviewed by the corporate partners. The school managers say that its main purpose is to get the students acquainted with the real business practices.  

This time, the traditional school of the Graduate School of Economics and Management realized its cooperation with SAP SE. The students competed in creation of an educational platform for those graduating from a Bachelor’s program and entering a Master’s program, which will help them to make a grounded decision about their academic and professional future. The development was guided by Yuri Kupriyanov, manager of SAP University Alliance in Russia and CIS jointly with the team of SAP Ural.

‘The students were faced with a new type of work for the first time: it was not so much about thinking and analyzing, but rather being able to start working right away. The work in international teams allowed us to take into account the experience of students from several countries. It turns out that the problems are similar: everyone needs practical knowledge and maximum opportunities to try and employ this knowledge and skills in the Master’s program,’ says Ludmila Ruzhanskaya, head of the summer school and the “International Management” Master’s program.

The partners of the summer school were such companies as SAP CIS, Ural Airlines, Rostelecom, SKB-Kontur and Decathlon. The school is held in English and designed for senior undergraduate and graduate students, as well as graduates interested in running business in Russia. The program is focused on studying the Russian business environment with a stress on business models in various economic realms. It allows the students to develop their own successful business model for the Russian market.