What is this travel/study class about? 

This is a 14-week, 3.0 credit travel-study elective at Ross that will strengthen your international business knowledge and experience.  The class will travel during the Spring Break. 

This year's course involves:

• Investigation of health care in a selected group of countries via lectures and case discussions during the first half-term. This involves learning about health care issues in a variety of emerging markets. Students will work on team projects that delve more deeply into specific institutions within these countries.  Guest speakers are invited.   
• Travel to the country over spring break to interview hospital leadership/staff and other stakeholders, in order to gather information about selected topics.
• Students complete the work on their team projects during the second half-term, which culminates with a final report and/or presentation. 

Who is eligible? 

MBA2 and Evening MBA students.  

What are the course’s prerequisites?

Students are expected to have completed most of their core courses.

How do I enroll in the class?

The course requires Permission of Instructor to enroll.    

Is there a limit in class size?

The class is capped at 25 students.

I have friends who are in other graduate programs here at UM and want to participate in this travel/study course. Can they apply?

At present, this course is limited to Ross MBA students.  This policy will be reviewed in the future.

Are there any language requirements?

Knowledge of Chinese or Spanish is a plus for some projects, but  NOT necessary for most of them. 

Travel will be from February 26 until March 6, 2011.

I have scheduling conflicts, and need to either arrive late for the in-country travel portion of the course, or leave early.  Is this allowed?  

No. An important component of this class is the group learning experience during the in-country travel. You need to commit to be present throughout the complete in-country program. 

When do we begin travel preparations? 

Travel preparations begin in Fall semester.  An Information Session for interested students will be held on November 2 at 5:30 in K1310. 

For enrolled students, there will be a meeting in early December.   Attendance for enrolled students is required.

What will the cost be?    

The Dean’s Office and the William Davidson Institute have partnered together to provide financial support for this course to help defray a portion of student costs.  

Students are required to submit a $500 non-refundable deposit check by 4pm on Monday November 8, 2010.   Checks are payable to the William Davidson Institute.

There will also be a second deposit NOT to exceed $500.  The amount will be announced late November or by the Logistics Meeting in early/mid December. 

Failure to pay deposit by 4pm November 8 will result in the result in the possibility that the space will be made available to the next student on the waitlist.  Failure to pay the second deposit by  (TBD)  will also result in losing your spot in the class AND the non-refundable deposit.   Please plan ahead.

What do the mandatory payments cover?

The cost covers:

        Air fare

        Housing

        Meals in country

        Ground transportation in-country (group airport transfers)

        Visa application fees + expediter fees

        Mandatory International Travel Health Insurance

        Gifts for in-country hosts and gratuities for drivers, etc.

FINANCIAL AID

Can I get Financial Aid or add to my Financial Aid package? 

Yes, financial aid will be available: 

U.S. citizen and permanent resident students may borrow federal or private loans to cover the additional program costs.  Please contact Diane Hunt dianhunt@umich.edu at the Office of Financial Aid for additional information. 

International students who have not already borrowed funds for the 2010-2011 academic year may submit the RSB-UMCU loan application.  International students who already have a 2010-2011 RSB-UMCU loan may borrow from any U.S. private lender, but must have a social security number or tax I.D. number, and a qualifying U.S. citizen or permanent resident co-signer to apply.  Please contact Diane Hunt dianhunt@umich.edu if you have questions. 

This is a Winter class, however student deposits/contributions are due in the Fall.  Can the Financial Aid Office disburse the funds early? 

Yes.  Students can borrow a short-term loan from the Ross School to cover the required deposits.  The short-term loan will automatically be repaid when your Winter financial aid disburses.  Only students with financial aid can do this.  Please contact Diane Hunt dianhunt@umich.edu if you have questions.

CONSULAR MATTERS 

What are the passport validity requirements?   

In general, passports should be valid at least six months beyond the expiry date of the requested visa. 

Please note that it may take up to 4 weeks to process a US passport renewal.

Students on non-US passports should check with their own Embassies and Consulates regarding how long it will take to renew your passports. 

Everyone should have his/her passport ready (meeting all the above requirements) by the December meeting.

Do I have to apply for my own visa?  

We will collectively apply for the visas. All passports and photos will be collected at the second week of January so we can apply for your visa in time. 

What are the visa requirements to those destinations? 

There are different rules re. visas depending on your citizenship.

For US passport holders, visas are only required to enter China and India.  For Non-US passport holders, please check the corresponding Embassy websites.

Embassy websites: 

     China:          http://www.china-embassy.org/eng/

     Honduras:   http://www.hondurasemb.org/   

     India:           http://www.indianembassy.org/

     Rwanda:      http://www.rwandaembassy.org/

Please note there may different Application Forms for US citizens and Non-US citizens.  Also note the specific photo requirements for each. 

HEALTH AND INSURANCE 

Are Immunizations included in the cost? 

Since any individual's need for immunizations for travel to any specific country is largely dependent upon his/her own health history and history of immunizations, students are responsible for all necessary immunizations and associated costs. The UM Health Services' Allergy, Immunization and Travel Health Clinic (734) 764-8304 or your own physician can provide the necessary information. 

For more information: visit

        UHS Travel Health Services:   http://www.uhs.umich.edu/services/travel/ 

        CDC Travel websites: 

     China:        http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/destinations/china.aspx

     Honduras:  http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/destinations/honduras.aspx

     India:          http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/destinations/india.aspx

     Rwanda:     http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/destinations/rwanda.aspx

The cost of immunizations is not included into the course budget. Your own health insurance may cover these.  We do need proof of immunizations submitted by early February.

Please plan ahead!  Start taking care of this as soon as you know you are enrolled in this class, preferably before the holiday break or early in January, because: 

• Some immunizations may take weeks to reach optimum effectiveness and some are given in series.
• Appointments at UHS are limited before peak travel times (December, before Spring Break, April and May).
• You may need time to get your immunization records, which you need in order for UHS staff to give you additional immunizations  

Do I need to get my own Travel Abroad Health Insurance? 

No, travel abroad health insurance will be purchased as a group from the University of Michigan University Health Service.

What is Travel Insurance and do I need to get it? 

Different from the travel health insurance, this covers lost/damaged luggage, trip cancellation/interruptions, transportation in the event of strikes, etc. This is typically obtained from the travel agent together with the airfare.