To attain the International Bachelor’s in Information Management (IBIM), students from Bentley/Tilburg study two years at their home institution; one and one-half years at Tilburg; and a half year at Deusto. IBIM is an academic/cultural innovation; no similar program exists. Its international focus exposes students to foreign culture, language, geography, academic, and legal frameworks. Students gain Dutch/Spanish-language skills, which are supported at all sites. Students are prepared to design/manage international IT systems and internationalize/manage IT.

Cooperative Partner Progress: During the 2008-2009 academic year, partners met to: 1) refine the curriculum; 2) arrange administration of finals for students in transit; 3) refine grading conversions; 4) develop grade/transcript sharing/transfer plans; 5) plan for student academic, cultural, health, and living conditions; 6) address grant management issues; 7) provide pre-travel orientation sessions for students at Tilburg and Bentley; 7) develop recruiting plans; 8) develop a joint, interactive student Web page; 9) provide faculty presentations; and 10) develop joint faculty research.

Refining the curriculum, working on grade conversion, scheduling finals, and other aspects continue to prove challenging due to: 1) the program’s requirement to study abroad for two years; 2) curriculum requirements; 3) limits on course offerings; 4) prerequisites; 5) students of varied academic preparedness; 6) varying calendars; 7) credit calculation being handled differently at each institution; and 8) the extensive number of courses required for the dual degree.

Bentley Progress: Extensive cooperation for the first student cadre resulted in: 1) IBIM academic/administrative/travel student handbooks; 2) IBIM-specific academic standards/student assessments; 3) Web site updates; 4) housing plans; 5) preparing students for travel (orientation, passports, visas, residence permits, and medical reports); 6) academic advising; and 7) parent meetings. Bentley began preparing to receive the first Tilburg cadre in Fall 2009; they will be offered the full array of Bentley services.

Bentley Recruitment, 2nd cadre: Activities will include: 1) hosting Bentley open houses; 2) sending targeted emails to students who visited the IBIM table at open houses; 3) development of a brochure reflecting program changes; 4) creation of a slide show; 5) development of two mailings to prospective students; 6) dissemination of email blast messages; 7) promotion of the program on the Bentley Web site and in publications; and 8) vetting applicants by reviewing essays, transcripts, and interviews.

The recruitment and admissions process resulted in an incoming 2009-2010 freshman class of nine. Factors influencing the yield included Bentley’s rejection of students whose academic performance in high school was inadequate for the rigor of the IBIM and the fact that some students withdrew their applications. Reasons for withdrawal included a decision to attend a different college; financial concerns; IBIM conflicts with varsity athletics/honors program. The original plan called for four Bentley cohorts of six students each, totaling 24. Re-evaluation of the program, based on timing constraints, led us to restructure and plan for two cohorts of Bentley students totaling 24. At this stage, the program has 17 students.

ONLINE REFERENCE: 

International Bachelors in Information Management
   http://www.bentley.edu/ibim/index.cfm  

Nader Asgary
Project Director
U.S. Lead

Bentley University
175 Forest St.
Waltham, MA 02452
Tel: 781-891-2784
Fax: 781-891-2819

View Personal Web Site

Mary Ann Robbert
Project Co-Director
U.S. Lead

Bentley University
175 Forest St.
Waltham, MA 02452
Tel: 781-891-2175

Willem-Jan van den Heuvel
European Lead

Universiteit van Tilburg
NL-5000 LE
Warandelaan 2
Tilburg
Netherlands
Tel: +31 13 4662767

Rebeca Cortazar
European Partner

Universidad de Deusto
PO Box 1 48080
Bilbao ES-48080
Spain
Tel: +34 94 4139000