Preparing Global Leaders
February 26, 2020
UNC Development Office
Global Pharmacy Scholars at Keio University in Tokyo, Japan, focus on clinical pharmacy and pharmaceutical science research while learning about a universal health care system and gaining knowledge on herbal medication treatment.
UNC-Chapel Hill offers an array of programs, internships and educational opportunities that prepare students for life in an interconnected world, help them succeed in a global economy and encourage them to address complex issues. Here are a few ways Carolina prepares students to become global leaders.
Global rotations
The UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy is developing the next generation of global leaders in pharmacy through the Global Pharmacy Scholars (GPS) program, launched with a gift from Dhiren Thakker and his wife, Kailas. Thakker was former interim dean from 2017 to 2019.
During their fourth year of study, students in the GPS program spend one month on rotation in Australia, Honduras, Ethiopia, England, India, Japan, Malawi, Moldova or Zambia. The program positions students as global leaders who can thrive and adapt across diverse settings and patient populations while introducing them to health care systems in countries around the world.
“I gained more from my international rotation than I have from any of my other rotations,” noted Liza Schimmelfing ’20, who spent a month in Chisinau, Moldova, learning about herbal medications and pharmacognosy. “I developed personal and professional relationships as well as a wealth of knowledge about pharmacy practice around the world.”
The GPS program is a springboard to creating innovative solutions for existing global health care issues and informing pharmacy practice in the U.S.
“Giving our students a global experience remains a passion of mine. It is my hope that their experience will open their hearts to worldwide health care challenges and their minds to learning from the rich diversity of people and cultures around the globe” shares Dhiren Thakker, former interim dean of the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy.
All over the GLOBE
Global Learning Opportunities in Business Education (GLOBE) is a flagship international exchange program that provides a unique and enriching experience for select undergraduate students at UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School.
GLOBE is an exchange collaboration among three premier universities: Copenhagen Business School, the Chinese University of Hong Kong and UNC Kenan-Flagler. Eighteen students from each university are chosen during their sophomore years through highly competitive application processes at their home institutions. These talented individuals come together as a cohort in Chapel Hill during the fall of their junior year for the first of three semesters living and learning on three continents.
Spending a semester at each university allows the GLOBE students to work closely with classmates from different backgrounds while experiencing an integrated business curriculum taught by faculty and business leaders from around the world. GLOBE students in each cohort gain valuable skills that help them adapt, succeed and remain resilient in unfamiliar circumstances. It is no wonder the 750-plus GLOBE program alumni have been sought out by employers around the globe for over 15 years.
“The GLOBE program gave me a life-changing opportunity to live, study, work and make friends in countries where I did not speak the language or understand the culture,” shared Yusheng Zhang ’19, an alumnus of the program. “As a direct result of GLOBE, I have taken a more entrepreneurial approach to my career and have taken part in exciting collaborations between the public and private sectors globally.”
The Carolina community significantly benefits, too. GLOBE brings 36 students from Denmark and Hong Kong to Chapel Hill each year. Carolina students and faculty gain a global experience at home by engaging and interacting with the incoming exchange students in the classroom and around campus.
“Before even going abroad, GLOBE has already allowed me to build such strong relationships with unique people from all over the world,” said GLOBE scholar Livia Gobbi ’21. “The connections I make and lessons I learn abroad will further enhance my experience, too. I know I’ll look back on my time at Carolina and be happy I pushed myself to try new things and grow.”
Gaining mutual understanding
A new program in the UNC School of Law promotes and facilitates cooperation and collaboration among law students at Carolina and Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen in Germany.
Through the Tübingen-Chapel Hill Law Program, second-year Carolina Law students spend two weeks at Tübingen University Faculty of Law, participating in research workshops and taking courses alongside German students. Carolina Law faculty also teach classes and accompany students on legal-related excursions. During the spring semester, students and faculty from Tübingen visit their counterparts in Chapel Hill. Students from both universities gain mutual understanding and awareness of each other’s legal systems and cultures.
For students interested in extending their legal experience, internships are available in Frankfurt and Stuttgart at international law firms. Last summer, Carolina Law students Anna Huffman and Carleigh Zeman took advantage. Anna worked for two weeks at international law firm White & Case in Frankfurt, and Carleigh stayed another month in Stuttgart for a paid internship with Gleiss Lutz.
“I knew when I applied to Carolina Law that I wanted to go into international law so this internship has been right up my alley,” noted Carleigh. “It has given me a lot of helpful experience and insight into international arbitral tribunals and how they operate.”
Carolina Law’s experiential learning programs enable law students and faculty the opportunity to engage in international partnerships and develop a global mindset.
Saying ‘yes’ to opportunities
If any single student has taken full advantage of the Morehead-Cain Discovery Fund, it’s Sarah Mackenzie ’20.
Discovery Fund grants enable Morehead-Cain Scholars to say “yes” to opportunities that will broaden their life experience and increase their self-awareness. Scholars can apply for grants of up to $8,000 over the course of their four years at Carolina.
Sarah, an international student from Alberta, Canada, pursuing a double major in public policy and global studies and a minor in Arabic, has said “yes” seven times throughout her studies at Carolina.
“I have been fortunate to use the various resources that the Morehead-Cain Foundation and the University offer to travel and engage in issues that I care about in the United States and abroad,” she shared.
In her first year at Carolina, Sarah and a fellow scholar spent a week in Bosnia-Herzegovina learning about the war tourism industry. Sarah spent the summer before her sophomore year in Johannesburg, South Africa, working to support and grow housing markets for the Centre for Affordable Housing Finance in Africa, a think-tank run by UNC Morehead-Cain alumna Kecia Rust ’90.
Most recently, Sarah spent the fall semester of her junior year studying Arabic in the CET Jordan language program — “definitely one of the most challenging things I’ve done,” she noted. While in Amman, Jordan, she also used the Discovery Fund to attend classes in Arabic at a women’s only self-defense and boxing studio.
Sarah accessed the Discovery Fund for several domestic programs, as well, including: a summer fellowship with the Immigrant Justice Corps in New York City, New York; a conference in New Orleans, Louisiana; a research visit to the Equal Justice Initiative in Montgomery, Alabama; and training courses at the Racial Equity Institute in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
Sarah said she is grateful for the scholarships from the Morehead-Cain Foundation, especially as she considers a career in law, working in criminal justice and social protection.
“My career goals have grown directly out of my summer experiences supported by the Discovery Fund. I’ve gotten to see first-hand what a career in any of these fields look like, and that has been an amazing experience.”