Students get a taste of the Big Apple!

24/03/2010

Business enjoyed a whistle-stop tour of the Big Apple!

Sixteen students studying A Level Business and BTEC National Certificate Business at the Haywards Heath campus embarked on a fact-finding mission to New York this month, aiming to expand their knowledge of international business studies. The lucky group, who were accompanied on the trip by Course Co-ordinator for Business, Selene Edwards, and Curriculum Area Leader for Business and Diploma Development, Valerie Kennedy, jetted off on 3 March for the whirlwind trip, managing to cram a week's worth of tourist attractions into just four days!

Whilst there, the group managed to get a good taste of business activity in the Big Apple, as they visited various New York based businesses, and enjoyed a tour of the Financial District - including the world famous Wall Street. Even their sightseeing focused on examining the local economy. During their visit to the Statue of Liberty, students looked at how to increase tourist spending during their visits; when looking at the Empire State Building, they also looked at how the building is being adapted to be more environmentally friendly; a trip to Macy's was turned into a marketing and merchandising tour and a visit to the 'Sony Wonder Lab' allowed the students to look at technological innovation. The whistle-stop tour also saw the group take in a New York Knicks game during their flying visit, before they returned home on 7 March.

Speaking after their return, organiser Selene Edwards is confident that the trip will become a regular fixture in the Business Studies calendar, saying "The students got a lot from the trip, and were able to relate many of the theories that they have learnt in the classroom to real-life business that they visited. Through taking a fun and exciting trip to an amazing city like New York the students were able to take their own experiences as consumers and use these to develop their understanding."