Out of the Classroom and in to Southeast Asia

As part of her IPS, Sarah Louie participated in William & Mary's Global Business Immersion with Prof. Don Rahtz. How did she apply what she learned in the classroom to help women in Southeast Asia?

Business Abroad

Because I was an athlete, I never found the time to study abroad.  This program afforded me the opportunity to do all the studying here in the States and then apply what I learned while I was in Southeast Asia.  The lessons in international business that I learned in the classroom were so helpful when we were meeting with the businesses abroad. 

Prior to the trip, I spent much of the semester working on a strategic marketing communications plan for the Cambodian Garment Industry.  While we were in Cambodia, we got to present to the Senior Minister of Commerce and later that day we visited a garment factory.  As we were walking the "path" of a garment, from raw materials to finished product, another student turned to me and said, "Sarah, these are the people that we're helping."  At that moment, all the work that I had put into my project was worth it.  To see the women working in the fantastic conditions that they have been afforded in Cambodia, made me so happy for the work that I had done and I really hope that the communications plan we developed will come to fruition.

Favorite Meeting

Being interested in advertising and communications, my favorite meeting was definitely with GMM Grammy in Bangkok, Thailand.  They are a huge media company that boasts about 70% of Thai entertainment industry.  While we were there, we got to tour different segments of their company, including the recording studios for all of their radio stations and sets for several of their television shows.  I even got the opportunity to plug the Mason School of Business on Thai radio!

Highlights

The highlight of this trip was definitely visiting Phuket, Thailand.  After two weeks of travel and meetings, it was fantastic to get out of the city. We kayaked through the Phang Nga Bay, explored the hidden lagoons and got to experience the pristine and untouched wildlife.  We spent three days kayaking and camping, and ended the trip with our final night at the Paradise Resort in Koh Yao Noi. It was definitely a paradise I never wanted to leave!

Future Plans

This was quite possibly the best experience I've had at William & Mary.  Getting the opportunity to go abroad and experience other cultures is priceless, especially from a business perspective. As far as my future, this program definitely opened up the opportunity of global marketing and communications for me. This class also gave me the skills to analyze foreign environments in ways that I had never imagined before, and I hope to utilize these skills later on in my career.