In Elmhurst’s Center for Business and Economics, you will have extraordinary opportunities to test your ideas and yourself in the world outside the classroom. Making connections to businesses and corporations—and especially to the men and women in the working world who serve as mentors and advisers—is a large part of what the CBE is all about.
Field experiences provide concentrated on-the-job training and course credit during January term. For a co-op experience, students may do multiple internships in the same company or with different companies, paralleling what they are learning in their courses.
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CBE Mentoring Program
A knowledgeable guide can play a vital role in helping students navigate the business world. The CBE Mentoring Program brings small groups of juniors and seniors into regular contact with area executives who introduce students to the business world as they experience it. Each student group meets informally with its mentor, usually someone in their major area, at least six times during the academic year to discuss business-related topics such as workplace politics, business ethics, resume preparation, or what to expect in a first job. Students often have the opportunity to tour their mentor’s workplace and meet others in the office.
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CBE Entrepreneurship Program
The CBE’s Entrepreneurship Program promotes interest in entrepreneurship on the Elmhurst campus through a variety of initiatives, opportunities, and experiences. An emphasis on technology runs throughout the program. Entrepreneurship programs include:
- An extensive library collection of the latest information on entrepreneurship, including multimedia, electronic, books, and journals
- Internships specifically designed for the most promising young entrepreneurs
- National Entrepreneurship Conferences
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International Education Opportunities
Nearly every company today is touched by global business issues, making an international perspective ever more important. To gain that crucial perspective, Elmhurst students may work or study abroad to observe first-hand how business is conducted. In doing so, they get a better sense of the many ties that bind business and industry together around the world.
Programs in Costa Rica, Morocco, Turkey, Russia, South America, Europe, and the Pacific Rim broaden the scope of an Elmhurst business education. Students meet with local and American businesspeople to observe and experience the cultural complexities of working in another country – everything from dealing with a foreign currency to studying the Turkish version of "marketing."
Students may go abroad for a summer, a January Term, a week-long short course, or a full term.
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American Marketing Association
Students learn the latest developments in marketing by participating in Elmhurst’s campus chapter of the American Marketing Association. The Elmhurst AMA has hosted an Entrepreneurship Conference for several years, drawing over 150 students, faculty, alumni, and area businesspeople. John Goeken, the founder of MCI, was the keynote speaker at a recent conference. Elmhurst’s AMA has been honored by the national organization with the following national awards: Top 8 Chapter in the United States, Top 16 Case Study Competition, and Top 5 Website.
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The Financial Smarts Program
The CBE has instituted a series of workshops for credit that help prepare Elmhurst College students of any major for the many key financial decisions they make in college and will have to make in the future. The workshops are staffed by specialists in specific areas of finance. Fall seminars are generally geared to freshmen and sophomores and include budgeting, financial aid, and credit cards. Spring topics are designed for juniors and seniors and cover employee benefits, life insurance, taxes, and investments.
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Hardin Institute for Market Research
The Hardin Institute for Market Research provides interdisciplinary opportunities for students and faculty to take courses and develop projects in market research. Each year at least one student is named a David K. Hardin Fellow. Fellows receive merit scholarships and stipends, and spend the year working with Market Facts, Inc., whose international scope and location in Chicago provide ample opportunities to see "the big picture" in market research. This opportunity was established through a generous gift from David K. Hardin, the late chairman of Market Facts, Inc.
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Logistics & Supply Chain Research Institute
The goal of Elmhurst’s Logistics & Supply Chain Research Institute is to enhance understanding and push the edge of knowledge in the field. To that end, the institute conducts research on relevant logistics and supply chain management concerns, interests, and problems. Specifically, the institute’s research aims to:
- Develop teaching theory and application and allow students to enter the work force with "leading edge" knowledge
- Increase the value of knowledge to the logistics profession provided by academe
- Involve students to enhance their knowledge and skills beyond the classroom
- Focus on the application of information technology for better decision-making skills in the supply chain
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Small Business Institute
Students who want to plunge right into the world of problem solving for business will appreciate Elmhurst’s Small Business Institute (SBI). Teams of Elmhurst students consult with local small businesses to develop solutions to real business challenges. Working with faculty advisers, students learn "their" business inside and out, developing solutions the business can implement. It’s a "win-win" situation: students apply what they’ve learned to real-life situations, while the businesses gain valuable advice.
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