The purpose of the Jeffrey A. Altman Program in International Studies & Business is to provide a select group of undergraduate students with a unique international experience by imparting to them both theoretical and practical knowledge of global economies in tandem with deep cultural and linguistic competency training. The dual-degree program will lead to a Bachelor of Science in Management in a business discipline and a Bachelor of Arts in a liberal arts discipline. The “Altman Core”—a series of semester-long, unique, cohort-based classes—serves to provide common academic experiences to our scholars as they matriculate through this rigorous program. Altman Scholars benefit from the guidance and mentoring by Tulane’s faculty and staff (both from the Altman team proper and from other departments on campus) as they develop a thoughtful understanding of complex global issues, as well as the role that these issues play in international business environments. Other highlights of the program include intensive non-English language instruction (current choices are Spanish, French, German, Chinese, Italian, Portuguese, and Japanese), a fully-funded cohort-based Rising Sophomore program abroad, and an entire year abroad studying in their target language during their Junior year.
Altman Program Learning Outcomes
Upon graduation, students in the Altman Program should be able to do the following:
1. Demonstrate an expansive worldview, cultural humility, cross-cultural awareness, and the ability to communicate and collaborate across lines of difference
2. Develop tools to recognize and address structural inequities and be able to participate in ethical forms of community engagement in local, national, and global contexts
3. Demonstrate broad knowledge of global affairs as well as specialized knowledge of region(s) of the world where they study abroad
4. Develop a multi-faceted base of business knowledge that will allow for data analysis, decision making, and solution formulation within organizations
5. Utilize deep and nuanced knowledge gained in liberal arts curriculum to think critically about the role of business and other organizations in addressing real world problems.
6. Demonstrate a high level of proficiency in a non-English language and the ability to operate within that language in non-US quotidian, academic, and business settings
7. Articulate professional/post-graduation goals and apply their academic knowledge and skills to future academic, civic, and/or professional endeavors
Altman Program Statement of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion
The Altman Program is committed to being an equitable, diverse, and inclusive community where everyone is able to thrive. The Altman Program seeks to empower students to communicate across lines of difference, to become culturally sensitive, and to recognize and address structural inequities that exist locally and globally. We commit ourselves to forms of academic and community engagement that are equitable and anti-oppressive, and we will work actively with campus partners to provide opportunities for our scholars to engage in anti-racist learning.
