15.05.2023

Visit of students from the University of North Alabama to THN Business Faculty

Every new friend is said to be a new adventure which marks the start of more memories. This is exactly what we experienced on Monday 15 May 2023 when we hosted 31 American vistors, including 4 professors from the University of North Alabama at the Business Faculty here at Technische Hochschule Nürnberg Georg Simon Ohm.

The arrival of all the students from Alabama was highly anticipated in the International Business program and everyone was excited to meet them. The group were very friendly and outgoing and conversation soon started to flow. After a short introduction, we toured the campus in three small groups which allowed us to interact well. It was highly insightful as we exchanged views on culture and life in general. It was also fun to make new friends, discover similarities and exchange personal perspectives! The weather was great and therefore we were able to spend some time at the small beach on the “Wöhrder See” and we had a beautiful walk along the campus area. The students from Alabama got to visit the faculty of architecture, business administration, mechanical engineering, and the library. It was amazing to see their genuine interest in life on our campus in Nuremberg and to have them tell us about their college experiences in the US.

After a collective lunch at the Mensa, we headed to the business faculty for a welcome talk by Prof. Helen Rogers, Head of IB Bachelor and Prof. Birgit Eitel, Head of IBT. This was followed by our regular  “Intercultural Communication” lecture by Ms. Megan Nash. The lecture allowed the students from Alabama to mingle with the rest of our IB students and get an overview of the topics that we usually cover in this course. We were pleasantly surprised by the atmosphere within the lecture room because the open-minded environment made a cultural exchange easy, and it raised further interest in getting to know the lives and experiences of the American students. Finally, the visit ended after the lecture but since we got along so well with the students from Alabama, some of us decided to meet up later in the evening for drinks in a bar. It was the perfect ending to the day, as we got to talk to each other in a more informal setting.

Overall, it was an enriching exchange of new memories and interesting facts about the United States, especially Alabama. We are all very thankful for this experience and hope to see some of the students again in case of a potential partnership between both universities.

Amelie Neubauer, 2^nd Semester International Business Student