VISS students soak up business, education and life lessons in the USA

VISS students in the USA

Students from Victoria International School of Sharjah (VISS) received a business studies lesson of a lifetime from companies including Google and Intel during a recent trip to Los Angeles and San Francisco.

Sixteen senior school students, who were accompanied by their Business Studies teachers, were given a first-hand insight into a range of US industries, from home-grown coffee houses to multinational corporations.

“It was truly a wonderful experience and a fantastic opportunity for our students to experience a new culture in new surroundings,” said Sajid Hussain, Head of Business and Enterprise at VISS. “Both students and staff participated in a thoroughly engaging and interactive programme that provided life-long lessons.”

The group visited Silicon Valley where they were taken on an interactive tour of Intel headquarters, home to the world’s largest and highest valued semiconductor chip maker, followed by a competitive workshop. Students were also inspired by a tour of the Google headquarters, including the Android building.

As well as multinational corporations, the students enjoyed tours of various home-grown, start-up industries which have found impressive, international success. They were taken on carefully tailored and informative tours of the production processes at The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf company headquarters and California Pizza Kitchen.

Students were especially impressed to see how smaller businesses can grow to become international chains, establishing stores and restaurants in countries across the world, including the UAE.
“My business highlight of the trip would definitely have to be our tour at the Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf,” said Phillip Kraeter, a VISS Grade 12 student. “It was very informative and taught me a lot, not only about coffee, but also about how a business operates in real life at a very high standard.”

Scheduled tours of the prestigious Stanford University and the LA Times newspaper headquarters were highlights for many of the students. During the tour, they witnessed a fully automated process with 80 newspapers being produced per second.

In between the major business tours and visits each day, the VISS students enjoyed soaking up the American culture, with trips to famous landmarks and areas including Hollywood, Universal Studios, Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz Prison, Fisherman’s Wharf and the Staples Centre, where they watched an NBA basketball match.

Business Studies is an important part of the curriculum at VISS as a practical subject, employing an analytical, evaluative and investigative approach that gives students a more in-depth look into how businesses work.

Dean Pyrah, Head of Secondary at VISS saw the trip as an opportunity to educate students beyond the four walls of the classroom.

“The opportunity for our students to visit some of the world’s largest and most successful companies and travel to the United States was a fantastic experience that will stay with them for the rest of their lives,” he said. “The VISS Business Studies students have rounded off a fantastic year of practical, hands on experiential learning.”