Global Business Institute: London - Summer

This course will explore human knowledge of the solar system and of the night sky, as well as the growth of astronomy as a science. The development of astronomy in England has been influenced by many factors and represents a rich microcosm of the evolution of astronomy in the western world. British contributions to astronomy will be used to exemplify the progress and achievements of this field of science.
Throughout history astronomy has been intertwined with both time-keeping and navigation and we will explore these connections in and around London. The passage of time is manifested through the motions of the sun which we will investigate when we visit sundials throughout London. More elaborate structures, like Stonehenge (which we will discuss and visit), can be used to mark the passage of time on greater scales. The importance of astronomy to time-keeping also made it invaluable to navigation. When we visit the National Maritime Museum we will examine and discuss the instruments in their Astronomical and Navigational Collection to elucidate the link between astronomy and navigation. This link between the two areas meant that the interests of astronomers intersected with the interests of the government which led to the development of the Royal Observatory at Greenwich which we will also visit and explore. Lastly, when we visit Westminster Abbey we will see that the importance of the work of astronomers was so valued that the scientists themselves were esteemed.
 

This is a part-time internship (20 hours per week). In addition, you will attend weekly discussion-led sessions that include educational support and mentoring in a classroom environment, develop personal and professional skills, and learn to contextualize your internship experience socially and culturally. You will receive 3 credits for this course.
Please note internships are available for students who have successfully completed three semesters of coursework at Pitt or a transfer university as a degree-seeking student. 

This course fulfills a finance major elective for Pitt Business students. 
This course will examine the structure and principal operations of the international financial economy. It will examine operations and their impact in terms of trade, the trading of financial assets and capital movements. It will also assess risk management techniques used by governments, corporations and other entities operating internationally and the global regulatory challenges posed by these developments. The course covers topics such as the historical development of money and capital markets, the role of major central banks, the maintenance of price stability, the control of interest rates, the management of monetary policy and the management of global systemic risk.

This International Marketing course will help you develop an understanding of the scope and challenges of marketing in the international context. The course examines how the global dimensions technology, research, capital investment and production impact marketing, distribution and communication networks. The breadth of this course will provide insights into the increasingly interdependent global economic and physical environment and its impact on international marketing. Globalisation has led to increasing interdependence. Connecting the dots has thus become essential to the survival and success of businesses, even those not operating in the international arena. By examining these linkages, the students will gain an understanding of how companies develop strategic plans that are competitive to survive and succeed in these global markets. The unique localised content provided by the CAPA centres will present further regional insights into the key issues surrounding marketing from an international perspective.

The 1990s and 2000s saw the British film industry undergo a number of dramatic changes. From an all-time low at the end of 1980s, during the early 1990s British cinema entered a period of confidence and success that was mirrored by a major structural and financial reorganization. The course will chart the development of British film during the period 1994-2010 through the critical study of key films, and will examine the way that these films both emerge from and transform the earlier British cinema tradition. Readings will focus on the critical reception of the films and the manner in which they have been absorbed into the canon. There will also be particular focus on the political and social context of the films.

For a portrayal of the variety and depth of human emotions, Shakespeare has never been equaled. In this course, a selection of plays will be studied in depth, with equal focus on the genres of comedy, history and tragedy. Through visits to Shakespearean plays in performance, to the Globe theatre workshop, and through guest speakers, the plays will be examined not only textually but also as living plays that tell us as much about modern identity as the development of the early modern identity. Students will examine the notion of Shakespeare as 'timeless' to understand how vitally he moves from the concerns of his day to ours. This course requires an addition $70 fee to cover the cost of theatre tickets while in London.  You will pay this via credit card upon arrival.

This course will look at some key theories of popular culture, and include case studies of selected examples from the British Isles since 1945. Popular culture versus subcultures will be examined. The main aim will be to enable students to think independently about this topic. The course will include study visits to galleries, museums and other sites as an important learning experience. This course aims to draw in the students' previous educational and life experiences of culture and history, including oral cultures, popular and ethnic cultures and social and religious movements. It will compare British and American experiences of popular culture, the differences, similarities and cross-influences.

This course will introduce creative writing in relation to the city and the particular challenges of writing about place. Students will examine how various subjects such as the river, urban spaces, solitude, ethnicity, particular boroughs, and characters (both fictional and real) function in London narratives; develop an understanding of the role of memory and experience in literary psycho-geographical accounts of the metropolis; utilize their observations of London to practice creative writing; and investigate the potential of place within the narrative of various genres.

This course investigates the aims and principles of developmental psychology as a scientific discipline, and describes the methods used to obtain knowledge about children and their development. Issues such as children's early attachments, the development of the self, the emergence of consciousness, and the role of play are examined, with an emphasis on the role of education and child care practices and policies in the UK in shaping children's development.

This interdisciplinary course focuses on the modern development of one of the world's most significant global cities in comparative context. It examines London's changing identity as a world city, with a particular emphasis on comparing the city's imperial, postcolonial, and transatlantic connections and the ways in which past and present, local and global intertwine in the capital.