Members of the graduating class of the Elon Business Dual Degree program were recognized in a ceremony in front of faculty, staff and family.
The Martha and Spencer Love School of Business recognized the Elon Business Dual Degree Class of 2018 in a program held May 19 in the Ernest A. Koury Sr. Business Center.
Fourteen students graduated from the rigorous program with two bachelor’s degrees – one from Elon University and one from either ESB Business School in Reutlingen, Germany; NEOMA Business School in Reims, France; Universidad Pontificia Comillas – ICADE in Madrid, Spain; or Universita Cattolica Del Sacro Cuore in Piacenza, Italy.
As part of the four-year business dual-degree program, students spent their first two years studying at their home institution and their last two years studying abroad at the partner institution. While abroad, they deepened their international business experience by completing a full-time, semester-long, work experience and creating a research portfolio.
“I am exceptionally proud of these graduates’ accomplishments,” said Associate Professor Mark Kurt, who serves as director of the dual-degree program. “Living, working and studying abroad for two years isn’t an easy thing to do, especially when most of your peers are not pursuing this path. It takes forward thinking, sacrifice and a commitment to international business education. I believe these graduates will make meaningful impacts both in business and in their communities.”
Business Dual Degree Class of 2018
ESB Business School
Jonas Hauser
Reason for participating: “I felt like studying abroad would be a great way to round out my time in Germany, teaching me different perspectives, exposing me to a different culture, and teaching me many other skills.”
Internship: Risk Management Department of Porsche Financial Services in Atlanta
Thesis: Empirical Test of Weak-Form Market Efficiency Using Popular Technical Trading Rules (Mentor: Jon Bae)
Post-graduation plans: Complete an internship in investment banking in Frankfurt this summer, and then plan to work full-time for a few years before doing a master’s or MBA program abroad
Timon Merk
Reason for participating: “The unique integration of a deep study abroad experience and work experience at home and abroad in the studies, which provides a certain competitive edge over other business graduates.”
Internship: Porsche Financial Services, Inc. in Atlanta
Thesis: “The gender dynamics in venture capital funding decisions in the U.S.” (Mentor: Kate Upton)
Post-graduation plans: Msc. in Finance at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland
Helena Zaeh
Reason for participating: “This program offered a very good international business education in two completely different countries and school systems.”
Internship: Hurricane Junior Golf Tour in Atlanta
Thesis: “Not all Sponsorships are Created Equal: Towards Further Understanding Fan Resistance towards Sport Sponsorship” (Mentor: Nawar Chaker)
Post-graduation plans: Volunteering at the European championship for track and field in Berlin and then pursuing a master’s degree in sport management
Sam Geha
Reason for participating: “I knew entering college that I wanted to study business, learn German, and have the chance to study abroad for a semester in the country.”
Internship: Business unit controlling intern for Bosch in Stuttgart, Germany
Thesis: “Trumponomics: The Economic Implications of the Presidency of Donald Trump”
Post-graduation plans: Internship at the Institute of Economic Affairs in London. In Fall 2019, would like to pursue a master’s degree in Economics from the London School of Economics
Dante Hart
NEOMA Business School
Mathilde Martin
Reason for participating: “I wanted to immerse myself in a new culture, become bilingual while studying in a promising field, international business.”
Internship: Brand partnerships representative for an electronic music label in Chicago
Thesis: “Who Brands the World? Girls!” (Mentor: Jennifer Zinchuk)
Post-graduation plans: Attend a master’s program at a music management graduate school in Paris
Foucault Pellegrin
Internship: International Management Solutions, Chicago
Thesis: “Blockchain in accounting and finance” (mentor: Catherine Chiang)
Post-graduation plans: Continue interning at International Management Solutions and then start a master’s in finance program at Sciences Po Paris
Basile Terrier
Reason for participating: “I love to travel and thought it would be nice to combine travel and studies together.”
Internship: DHL eCommerce in Miami, Florida
Thesis: “Entrepreneurial failure: reasons, lessons learned and the case for re-purposing failed start-up ideas” (Mentor: Elena Kennedy)
Post-graduation plans: Pursuing employment in France
William Colligan
Reason for participating: “The opportunity to live and work in Europe for two years was too good to pass up. I wanted to meet new people from all over the world and collaborate with them in school and in French, of course.”
Internship: Business analyst with Yves Rocher, a French cosmetic company.
Thesis: “The Great Recession; a comparative study between the Fed’s and the ECB’s monetary policy responses to the financial crisis”
Post-graduation plans: Spend one last summer as division head at Camp Belknap in New Hampshire. In September, join FactSet Research Systems as a clients solutions associate in Boston.
Universidad Pontificia Comillas – ICADE
Carmen Balleste Izuzquiza
Reason for participating: “I thought it was key to learn about the importance of globalization in these modern days. What better way than living it first hand?”
Internship: Lloyds Bank in New York
Thesis: “The recruitment process in the IBEX 35 (Spanish stock market)” (Mentor: Montserrat Pantoja)
Post-graduation plans: Go back to Spain for the summer and start a job in September either in Madrid, Barcelona or London
Dylan Zanker
Reason for participating: “Madrid was an amazing opportunity to learn European business, Spanish, and Spanish culture. Six months wasn’t enough; I wanted two years to explore Europe and make long lasting friends.”
Internship: Trump Tower, in Buenos Aires, Argentina
Thesis: “How to market a luxury brand, a case study in Punta Del Este, Uruguay”
Post-graduation plans: Will launch a new fintech company with an initial coin offering
Universita Cattolica Del Sacro Cuore
Giorgio Comaschi
Reason for participating: “To attend a non-traditional college program and to have a differentiated educational background.”
Internship: Development and finance intern at HMSHost in Bethesda, Maryland
Thesis: “Analysis and criticisms of Piacenza Expo Spa”
Luca Vallavanti
Reason for participating: “Opportunity for academic, professional and personal development.”
Internship: DHL eCommerce Americas, Weston, Florida
Thesis: “OLT Offshore LNG Toscana e l’LNG Supply Chain”
Samuele Vallone
Reason for participating: “Experience new places and cultures.”
Internship: DHL, Weston, Florida
Thesis: “Confesercenti Piacenza e valorizzazione del territorio”