The unique International Immersion Program embedded in the MBA pathway, is a unique opportunity for the students of Westford University College to learn beyond borders. The trip to India during the two-week study block is a fascinating journey of self-discovery. Unlike anything you have ever seen before; exploring three cities in a country of the vast cultural mosaic of 1.3 Billion people.”
tour begins with students from various parts of the globe converging in Kochi-the southern city of India and from day one the program is designed with a series of learning opportunities that include:
Celebrating Diversity
On an average any Cohort size would vary between 40-50 representing students from 15-25 different nationalities. Students from different cultures and customs yet communicating in a common language with a common purpose celebrate the diversity.
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Professional Networking
The cultural diversity extends to the professional networking opportunities for students from various work industries and with rich experience and expertise across work domains. Two weeks of bonding and learning opens doors for career enhancements as well.
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Ethnic Day Celebration
The first week of the fascinating program culminates with ethnic day celebrations where students from vibrant cultures celebrate their diversities. The costumes, the languages, the forms of art and cuisine and every possible divergent thoughts and performances converge on a stage filled with musical extravaganza.
Expert Talk
Business leaders and CEOs are hosted on campus to interact and exchange ideas with our students. Renowned personalities who were hosted include the Business Magnate, Writer and Philanthropist, Kochouseph Thomas, Chairman and CEO of V-Guard Industries Ltd and a chain of amusement parks, Wonderla.
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Kochi-Muziris Biennale- International Exhibition
The Kochi-Muziris-Bienale is the largest contemporary art festival in Asia that is hosted in Kochi every year. To include this event in the immersion program is an enchanting learning experience for our students. Indian and international artists exhibit masterpieces of art across a variety of mediums including film, installation, painting, sculpture, new media and performance art. Through the celebration of contemporary art from around the world, the Kochi-Muziris Biennale seeks to invoke the historic cosmopolitan legacy of the modern metropolis of Kochi and its mythical predecessor, the ancient port of Muziris. Apart from the exhibition of contemporary art, the Biennale offers a series of talks, seminars, screenings, music, workshops and educational activities for the student’s to explore.
Volunteering Experience
WeCares is signature CSR initiative of Westford Education Group where we encourage our students and staff to involve themselves in philanthropic and volunteering endeavours. One of the WeCares project was planned in the backdrop of a devastating flood that hit Kerala (a southern state in India) in 2018 which took away 400 lives and over a million people were housed in about 3500 relief camps. The Westford team with a group of passionate MBA students planned the day at the school volunteering to conduct various games and morale boosting sessions for the flood-affected 200 odd children at the school. Some of the children had voices of their homes destroyed completely and others were yet to recover from the trauma of being forced to live in relief camps while many had even lost their valuable belongings and their loved ones.
Some of our MBA students brought gifts and school stationaries for the children. We allocated teams of our MBA students to engage groups of the school children in both indoor and outdoor fun filled activities. We identified the talent and skills in our team to impart the right skills and learning to the children. We distributed school bags and organized lunch for all the children and teachers and other members of the staff in the school. Our efforts may only have made a drop-in-the-ocean difference to those children who went through traumatic experiences. However, the learning, experience and the joy of bringing back some smiles on those beautiful and innocent faces made an ocean of difference to our MBA students and the entire Westford team.
Boot Camp in Munnar
The 3-day trip to Munnar is a serene retreat to one of the most scenic hill stations in the country. The experience is filled with tranquility. The application of academic lessons learnt in the classrooms in Kochi is now set in motion on the move in boot camps set in Munnar. Four teams compete and enjoy the fun filled leadership games and activities that are designed to raise the bar with experiential learning.
Trekking in Kolukkumalai
The trekking to Kolukkumalai is yet another retreat to explore the self and peep into the world of possibilities. The trekking is a blended mix of traveling on tough jeep rides and exciting traverse on foot. In 2019, the International Yoga Day was celebrated on this peak with 47 students from 20 different nationalities searching for inner glory at the peak of Kolukkumalai over 7000 feet above sea level.
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Tea Plantation – Factory Visit
Couple of Tea Plantation Factory visits are organized to discover and learn the processes involved in manufacturing tea in a series of conventional and modern technologies employed. One of the visits is also to the World’s highest organic tea plantation factory. The students explore, learn and shop their favorite beverage.
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Experiential Learning: Leadership and Team Building
One of the stand out program during the Munnar Trip is the workshop on Leadership and Team Building through experiential learning. This workshop is engaging and is facilitated by expert trainers using internationally acclaimed MTa learning kit that is engaging with powerful tactile and experiential learning outcomes.
