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Bridging the global gap: How the master of agribusiness program at Kansas State University makes worldwide connections
by Luke Mueller
Since 1998, hundreds of students from around the world have come to Kansas State University to learn more about the global agribusiness industry and complete their Master’s of Agribusiness. These students, however, only step foot on the Manhattan campus two weeks per year during their two and a half years of study.
The master of agribusiness (MAB) is an interactive distance program whose students are working-professionals that typically range in age from 25 to 55 and work in every sector of the agriculture industry. The students are required to have at least two years of professional experience to enter the program. MAB students have full-time jobs, so the ability to do course work at a distance and earn a fully accredited and internationally recognized master’s degree is a benefit for them.
MAB students and alumni are located in 35 U.S. states and more than 20 different countries abroad including Argentina, Brazil, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, China, Colombia, Ecuador, France, Ghana, Grenada, Italy, the Ivory Coast, Kenya, Malaysia, Mexico, Morocco, Nigeria, Senegal, Singapore, Uruguay and Venezuela. Instructors are also from around the world with the Comparative Food and Agriculture Systems course using instructors from Russia, France, Thailand, New Zealand, Uruguay, India and Uganda. Having students and instructors located all over the world, the MAB program stresses great communication and finding ways to better connect with people globally.
The program is completed via distance learning, but students are also required to spend two weeks on the Kansas State campus during the first and second year of the program. These on-campus sessions allow students to meet classmates and faculty, interact with industry leaders, give group project presentations and receive technology training.
While on campus, students usually bring their laptops and are shown the technology they will be using throughout the program. One individual who makes sure students are up to speed with this process is Scott Finkeldei, assistant director of Axio Learning.
“We make sure their computers can do everything the MAB program needs them to do, like sign into Axio, stream video and participate in Wimba sessions,” Finkeldei said. “We also give them a K-State Online, Axio’s K-State instance, orientation. They learn about the Gradebook, File Dropbox, Message Board, Wimba and other Axio features used in the MAB program.”
Wimba is a communication tool that many MAB instructors use regularly. It is an online meeting room where students and instructors can talk, share spreadsheets, write and even have real-time video interaction. This tool is used for lectures, weekly recitation sessions and even theses defense presentations. In addition, the Groups feature is enabled making Wimba available at all times for maximum student collaboration.
MAB theses presentations are archived so other students and faculty members can view it at their convenience. This is a powerful tool that allows other students to see their peer’s research, and how it was presented.
For the remote defense of theses, the student’s PowerPoint slide presentation is uploaded to Wimba. The student uses VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) audio to present their defense. During their defense, MAB alumni and students, as well as faculty members who are also in the Wimba classroom, can ask the student questions using audio in real time.
Lynnette Brummett, MAB program coordinator, handles the day-to-day activities as well as assists with the Seminar Agricultural Economics Analysis course taught by Allen Featherstone, MAB program director and professor.
Brummett’s favorite part of the program is the connection everyone shares. She said she values the opportunity to get to know the students and develop a relationship with them.
“I like being able to make contact and get to know the student through the recruiting process, to when they first walk on this campus and throughout the two and a half years they are in the program.” Brummett also enjoys seeing current as well as former students communicating with each other and faculty.
“We see how they utilize the program and share events such as a job promotion or the birth of a child. We know this program is not the number one priority in their life because they have other obligations like family, work, church, etc., but since communication is such an important aspect of this program, we encourage our current students, alumni and faculty to stay connected with each other.” One way that Brummett helps current students and MAB graduates stay connected is the MAB community course in Axio. This course contains information such as:
* The “Syllabus Newsletter”, which is published three times a year. The newsletter covers events, presentations, scholarships, alumni spotlights and student/alumni news.
* Lectures, presentations, information and videos from industry leaders
* Contact Information for all MAB cohorts
* Student thesis defenses
* Archived student theses
Another way the MAB program emphasizes connecting with one another is the weekly recitation component of courses. Faculty, with input from class members, decide on a time to meet using Wimba, which allows students to interact with each other and the instructor to gain insight on the course. For computer applications that are not supported by Wimba, such as Excel and streaming video, faculty can use the Share My Screen feature, which gives a live stream of their desktop. This provides an enhanced learning tool for faculty to use during their weekly chat sessions. With the archived MP4 feature Wimba provides, students can download and review the session if they had to miss it or want to recap the information discussed.
Perhaps the most unique course offered in the MAB program is Comparative Food and Agricultural Systems (AGEC 710). The course is taught by Featherstone and instructors from partner universities in the U.S. and around the world. It gives students an in-depth view of the global food and agribusiness industry from people who have experienced it firsthand. The original goal of the course was to give students an inside view of international agriculture taught by those with a broad knowledge regarding specific regions. Professors from France, Russia, Uruguay, New Zealand, Uganda, India, and Thailand teach about the European Union, Russia and the Former Soviet Union, the Mercosur member-countries, Oceania, sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, and East Asia. The award-winning course emphasizes the global aspect of the program.
Featherstone talked about how the MAB program built this course globally.
“We saw a need to enhance the understanding of the global food and agriculture industry of our students. While attending conferences, contacts we made with other universities and we brought a few individuals to our campus to talk about how we could accomplish this. Through these discussions, the course was developed. After the course had been taught a couple of times, we received funding from the United States Department of Agriculture to add additional regions to more completely provide a global picture of the food and agriculture industry.”
He also mentioned the diverse information students receive about other types of food.
“You learn about rice, fruit, vegetables and even cocoa production. These are things you don’t typically think about in Kansas. It gives you a broad understanding of what’s going on globally.”
Each international professor in the course provides lectures, readings and an assignment for his or her module. Live weekly Wimba sessions are led by the international professors where students can ask questions and interact directly with faculty around the globe. The opportunity to engage with the instructors creates an interactive learning environment as well as establishes international connections.
This course is not the only way MAB students get to learn and communicate with other cultures across the globe. There are biannual international trips offered to provide a chance to see agricultural industries in other countries firsthand. Previous destinations have included South America, Russia, Southeast Asia, Australia and New Zealand
So how do students from all over the world find out about the MAB program? Brummett said there are a variety of ways that prospective students hear about their program.
“The Internet is the number one way they find out about us, which is good for a global program. But now that we’ve been around for a few years, word of mouth is helping out. It’s not just alumni spreading the word, but faculty from other universities and members of our professional industry advisory board. We also do marketing campaigns, go to conferences and trade shows and speak with industry representatives.”
If you are a fan of the game show “Jeopardy!” you may have also heard about the MAB program. The Oct. 13, 2008 show featured the question: “”If you’re a slick, pressed-overalls Manhattan M.A.B., you have a master of agribusiness degree from here, K-State for short.”
Another reason the MAB program has been able to expand and be entrepreneurial is the support of the K-State faculty.
“I’m not sure how many other universities in the agricultural economics realm could get a critical mass to make this happen,” Featherstone said. “The business school has been helpful to make this work by teaching two courses for us.”
Featherstone also explained why faculty can appreciate the technology used to communicate as much as the students.
“I like the luxury of being able to teach my class from anywhere in the world. I travel some, so whether I’m in China, Argentina or Australia, I have the ability to upload my lectures from my laptop and I don’t have to worry about being in a specific place to teach.”
For more information on the MAB program visit mab.ksu.edu
Student success in Morocco
One example of how the Master of Agribusiness program (MAB) reaches many around the world is Oussama Alaoui of Rabat, Morocco. Alaoui had a business administration degree in finance and international business and worked for Tradigrain Inc., an international grain and sugar trading business. He started as an export execution administrator, and then moved to the wheat trade desk before taking on a position of marketing executive at their headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland. He realized he needed to learn more about the technical side of agribusiness.
Tradigrain, Inc. sent Alaoui to the American Institute of Baking (AIB) in Manhattan, Kan. for training. AIB works with grain science and trade organizations to maintain safety of the food supply chain. It performs audits, inspections and technical services. While in Manhattan, he learned about the MAB program. The program was the exact opportunity for higher education Alaoui was looking for.
The flexibility and convenience of the MAB program allowed Alaoui to continue working while completing his degree. He is now the co-owner and managing director of A&M Intercommodity in Rabat, Morocco.
The combination of his professional and educational experiences has resulted in Alaoui being appointed as the official trade consultant for the Australian Government Trade Commission (Austrade) in Morocco, and he has also been selected by the Council for Australian-Arab Relations (CARR) to represent Morocco in Australia.
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