Summer classes—for some, they are a necessary evil, a hurdle to jump in order to graduate on time. For others, they allow students to remain on campus and avoid thankless summer jobs.

For 10 UK College of Engineering students in the BS/MBA program, taking summer classes meant a tour of six cities in four European countries over a six-week period. How’s that for a “What I Did Last Summer” essay?

Through the BS/MBA program, engineering students add a one-year Master of Business Administration degree to their bachelor’s degree in engineering, allowing them to augment their technical background with fundamental business principles and best practices. “Before pursuing this program, I had never realized the extent to which engineers must deal with the business drivers of their industry” said Ben Hodson (BSEE, ’10), whose near-daily blog entries chronicled the group’s jaunt from city to city.

For the first five weeks, the 10 students participated in the Manchester Business School’s European Summer Study Program along with 40 other students from around the world. The class began their studies in Manchester, England; then traveled to Prague in the Czech Republic; Barcelona, Spain; Grenoble, France; Paris, France; London, England; then, finally, back to Manchester where they parted with the international students before spending a week in London. Dr. William Maloney, Professor of Construction Engineering and Project Management in the Department of Civil Engineering, joined the group for the final week of their trip. He believes the study-abroad experience is a crucial component of the BS/MBA program. “It gives them a different perspective and allows them to see how things are done differently. It also requires them to understand history as much more than dates and places; they have to make connections and learn the contextual factors surrounding historical events and their impact on international relations and business.”

As one would expect, the students appreciated visiting iconic landmarks firsthand. Parliament, Wembley Stadium, Big Ben and the Cavern Club—“birthplace of the Beatles”—were a few of the physical monuments visited by the group. In addition, serendipitous timing allowed them to witness fireworks at the Eiffel Tower in honor of Bastille Day, the Tour de France and, while in London, they toured facilities which will be used in the 2012 Olympics. Carson Edwards (BSEE, ’12) said, “Everything we saw and did in Europe helped us gain a better understanding and appreciation for their culture. In some ways, studying in Europe is harder than in the U.S. because you’re constantly tempted by the incredible sights!”

Lest anyone think the students spent all their time sightseeing, frequent lectures, tours (such as the Rolls Royce jet engine plant) and case studies crowded the daily schedule. Students were placed in cross-functional teams of six and required to write a 7,000 word paper while also studying for a final exam. “Studying in Europe was both similar and dissimilar to studying in the U.S.” said Ben. “Lectures, exams and projects are just like those in America, but living in the countries you study and experiencing the micro-level economy helped me better understand things on the macro-level.”

Macro-level economics dominated discussion in the classroom and in the news as both Europe and the United States battled to overcome economic instability—Europe with the failing economies in Greece, Spain and Portugal and the U.S. with the debt ceiling crisis. The students couldn’t have been in a better place to get a global perspective on economic instability at home and abroad. “The debt ceiling story dominated headlines with speculators and pundits arguing over the potential impacts of a U.S. default,” Carson recalled.

Now that the students have returned to the U.S., they have resumed classes, begun internships and started their careers. Ben recently began a two-year Operations Advanced Development Program with Schneider Electric in Lexington, where his roles will rotate between manufacturing engineer, quality engineer and production supervisor. Carson plans to finish the final year of his electrical engineering degree and perhaps one day own his own engineering firm. “Starting out with an MBA in hand, I’ll feel more confident interacting with people at all levels of the company and I’ll have a better understanding of the underlying operations of the company beyond just engineering.”

Summer classes—for some, they are a necessary evil, a hurdle to jump in order to graduate on time. For others, they allow students to remain on campus and avoid thankless summer jobs.

For 10 UK College of Engineering students in the BS/MBA program, taking summer classes meant a tour of six cities in four European countries over a six-week period. How’s that for a “What I Did Last Summer” essay?

Through the BS/MBA program, engineering students add a one-year Master of Business Administration degree to their bachelor’s degree in engineering, allowing them to augment their technical background with fundamental business principles and best practices. “Before pursuing this program, I had never realized the extent to which engineers must deal with the business drivers of their industry” said Ben Hodson (BSEE, ’10), whose near-daily blog entries chronicled the group’s jaunt from city to city.

For the first five weeks, the 10 students participated in the Manchester Business School’s European Summer Study Program along with 40 other students from around the world. The class began their studies in Manchester, England; then traveled to Prague in the Czech Republic; Barcelona, Spain; Grenoble, France; Paris, France; London, England; then, finally, back to Manchester where they parted with the international students before spending a week in London. Dr. William Maloney, Professor of Construction Engineering and Project Management in the Department of Civil Engineering, joined the group for the final week of their trip. He believes the study-abroad experience is a crucial component of the BS/MBA program. “It gives them a different perspective and allows them to see how things are done differently. It also requires them to understand history as much more than dates and places; they have to make connections and learn the contextual factors surrounding historical events and their impact on international relations and business.”

As one would expect, the students appreciated visiting iconic landmarks firsthand. Parliament, Wembley Stadium, Big Ben and the Cavern Club—“birthplace of the Beatles”—were a few of the physical monuments visited by the group. In addition, serendipitous timing allowed them to witness fireworks at the Eiffel Tower in honor of Bastille Day, the Tour de France and, while in London, they toured facilities which will be used in the 2012 Olympics. Carson Edwards (BSEE, ’12) said, “Everything we saw and did in Europe helped us gain a better understanding and appreciation for their culture. In some ways, studying in Europe is harder than in the U.S. because you’re constantly tempted by the incredible sights!”

Lest anyone think the students spent all their time sightseeing, frequent lectures, tours (such as the Rolls Royce jet engine plant) and case studies crowded the daily schedule. Students were placed in cross-functional teams of six and required to write a 7,000 word paper while also studying for a final exam. “Studying in Europe was both similar and dissimilar to studying in the U.S.” said Ben. “Lectures, exams and projects are just like those in America, but living in the countries you study and experiencing the micro-level economy helped me better understand things on the macro-level.”

Macro-level economics dominated discussion in the classroom and in the news as both Europe and the United States battled to overcome economic instability—Europe with the failing economies in Greece, Spain and Portugal and the U.S. with the debt ceiling crisis. The students couldn’t have been in a better place to get a global perspective on economic instability at home and abroad. “The debt ceiling story dominated headlines with speculators and pundits arguing over the potential impacts of a U.S. default,” Carson recalled.

Now that the students have returned to the U.S., they have resumed classes, begun internships and started their careers. Ben recently began a two-year Operations Advanced Development Program with Schneider Electric in Lexington, where his roles will rotate between manufacturing engineer, quality engineer and production supervisor. Carson plans to finish the final year of his electrical engineering degree and perhaps one day own his own engineering firm. “Starting out with an MBA in hand, I’ll feel more confident interacting with people at all levels of the company and I’ll have a better understanding of the underlying operations of the company beyond just engineering.”