Shanghai Impact Asian EMBA graduates Louise Ji and Michael Wang are putting American business concepts to practice.
The graduation reception in the E.H. Hereford University Center in May was much like others around campus that day, but with a twist. These Executive MBA graduates and their families were greeted in Chinese, not English.
Another difference: None of the students had ever been to UT Arlington. Many had never visited the United States. All had attended UTA’s EMBA classes at one of three Chinese universities, but they wanted to be in Texas for commencement.
Sharry Du ’14, a business owner in Shanghai, figures the Texas ceremony was just one more way to expand the valuable relationships she developed while a student.
“We have spent a year and a half making friends, not only in Shanghai but in all the UTA programming in Chinese cities,” says Du, who attended commencement and is one of 55 Chinese students who earned the coveted UTA degree last spring. “We have close contact, and through things like WhatsApp we keep in touch with each other. It can extend our relationships.”
Breaking Ground Abroad
Strong personal relationships, an essential part of doing business in Asia, have grown exponentially between the University and China since 2002, when the College of Business began its Asian EMBA program. The move put UTA at the top of the food chain for EMBA degrees in China. It was one of the first programs of its kind in the country and is now the largest international EMBA there, with partnerships at the University of Science and Technology Beijing, Tongji University Shanghai, and Xi’an Jiaotong University.

Far Reaching
Xi’an Jiaotong University is one of three Chinese partners for the Asian EMBA.
It is also the only EMBA program approved by the Ministry of Education to partner with three Chinese universities. Chinese MOE approval is an essential accreditation for schools that educate employees of state-owned enterprises (SOEs).
That accreditation launched a second opportunity in 2003—the chance for SOE employees to experience a 12-month, residential EMBA in Arlington. Today the in-country and in-Texas Asian EMBA programs have graduated more than 2,000 businessmen and women. Many own or have recently started companies; others have moved to the top ranks of SOEs.
Both programs give students much more than business acumen. They’re vehicles for cultural exchanges that reverberate far beyond individual students, says Michael Wang ’08, who worked for state-owned Anshan Steel when he was selected for the Arlington program in 2007. “Education here changed my mind,” he says of living in Texas for a year. “But not only the education, the American culture. The American dream influenced me a lot.”
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