Undergraduate Business

Fall 2007 DISTINGUISH Programs:

  • Marketing Strategy Seminar:  Research in Product Design
  • Research in Team Process

Spotlight on Student-Faculty Research:  Impact of Tourism on Southeast Asia

Professor Don Rahtz and marketing student Lena Lee '07 conducted research aimed at determining the impact of tourism and foreign direct investment on the Southeast Asian economies.  Read on . . .

Spotlight on Student-Faculty Research:  Decision-Making of "Smart" Fund Managers

Professors Scott Gibson and Gjergji Cici teamed up with finance major Laura Kittel to determine whether mutual fund managers follow the investment decisions of "smart" fund managers.  Read on . . .

DISTINGUISH IPS Program

What is Distinguish?

Distinguish is our approach to specialized research and study in the William & Mary Undergraduate Business Program.  Participants in a Distinguish program are given opportunities to enrich their Individual Program of Study (IPS) with experiences that compliment their goals.  Students will be selected for each Distinguish program based on their IPS, personal interests, and application materials.  Distinguish allows students to identify themselves as individuals, and as business professionals with much to offer.

What Distinguish programs do we have?

Student-Faculty Research

Collaborate with Faculty

Students and faculty in the Undergraduate Business Program may submit proposals to receive student funding for collaborative research. 

  • Collaboration means the student has substantial involvement with some aspects of the research project (e.g., literature search, research design discussions, experimental design and execution, data collection). 
  • Sponsors of proposals may request funding up to $4,000 for each student-faculty project. Funding is used only for the student's appropriate expenditures such as travel to conferences, conference registrations, data acquisition, and salaries.  All proposals must include a budget.
  • Proposals will be reviewed by a Selection Committee as they are received until the annual funding is exhausted.

Topical Seminars

In recent years, we've offered topical seminars in entrepreneurship , consulting , leadership, and portfolio management.  Students have worked with top professionals to study and experience different disciplines and business perspectives.  Students created their own business plans, consulted professionals on cases, and managed the mock launch of a product.  These seminars bring together a student's business education and encourage critical thinking.

Sample Distinguish Programs

Consulting: Strategic Analysis

The 20 students selected for this program participated in a 3 credit course in Spring 2006, led by Professors Jonathan Palmer and Ron Sims.  The course taught students the skills of strategic analysis within the particular context of the consulting process.  Students participated in a case competition sponsored by Navigant Consulting and attended an intensive one-day retreat as part of the course.  Through case and field studies, simulations, in-class exercises, and readings from the current literature, students developed a consultant’s perspective in solving problems.  

Prejudice & Conflict Resolution

The student selected for this program received funding to attend an international conference on prejudice and conflict resolution in Salt Lake City, Utah from December 1-4, 2005.  The conference explored the topics of individual, group, and social prejudices.  Participants took part in small discussions groups, viewed films, and attended panel discussions featuring prominent researchers.  In Spring 2006, the participants were given the opportunity to register for an independent study (for credit).