At TUM School of Management, we believe that diversity drives innovation. More than a third of our students have an international background. We currently collaborate with 125 partner universities around the world, enabling student and academic exchanges in a variety of formats. However, we aim higher. We spoke to our International Affairs & Alliances team, Prof. Dr. Thomas Hutzschenreuter and Jamie Snow, about the internationalization strategy, current successes and future goals.

Visiting Australia, China, New Zealand, Singapore, and Thailand, Prof. Hutzschenreuter and Ms. Snow have literally traveled a long way in the last half year. They have visited universities across Asia and Oceania to deepen the School’s relationships with current partners and lay the foundations for new ones. "The key is to get to know each other personally and engage in open conversation to enable powerful collaboration," explains Prof. Hutzschenreuter.

Traveling with a purpose

The TUM School of Management wants to strategically expand and diversify its network of institutional partners and form alliances around the globe. Internationalization is one of the primary focuses of the School’s strategic plan 2021-2026, because it opens up many opportunities for the community and often leads to enhanced education, research, and innovation. "If we ask ourselves: How can we, as a university, contribute to a better understanding between people from different cultures - internationalization is the answer," says Prof. Hutzschenreuter.

With international partnerships, we can work and hope to counteract hardening political tendencies. We can create a space for communication and build opportunities for our students and academic staff to gain an understanding for different ways of doing and being through their own international experiences. "Around 80 percent of our students work in an international environment after graduation," says Jamie Snow. With international programs, we can prepare our students for the globalizing business world.

Our latest achievements

Since 2020, TUM School of Management has

• added 14 new exchange programs to its portfolio, including 4 outside of Europe,
• built double degree programs in the Master in Management and Innovation with the University of Queensland and the University of Calgary,
• developed a joint international program on energy transitions with the University of Texas at Austin,
• initiated an  entrepreneurship and family business-focused internship exchange program with ESADE, and
• created a doctoral exchange program with the Politecnico di Milano.

We are working to develop innovative global education programs that will enhance relevant and future-looking knowledge and skillsets for our student community.

On a global state of mind

International experiences make a difference to students' education - be it personal or academic: "When people travel to a place, they learn cultural nuances that they might not understand without actually being there. Such differences could include ways of working, teaching methods and content, and values. Experiencing another culture enables us to think more holistically about our ownbeliefs, values, and ways of doing. Living abroad, we not only learn a lot about a particular culture, but also a lot about ourselves. We acquire new skills. And that's exactly what is needed to be a leader in a globalized world," explains Jamie Snow.

New year, new destinations

The path has been paved for the TUM School of Management to become a global brand. But we are still working toward this goal. "Internationalization is a long-term endeavor, requiring endurance rather than speed," says Prof. Hutzschenreuter. The aim is to gradually bond with partners in different regions of the world. In the upcoming year, Professor Hutzschenreuter and his team are eager to forge new connections, focusing on the United States and Latin America, regions where TUM School of Management´s recognition is poised to grow beyond its well-established presence in Europe.