Professor Niall Hayes, LUMS Associate Dean for Undergraduate Studies, welcomed the IPBS Chair, Professor Hugh Courtney of the D'Amore-McKim School of Business Northeastern University in Boston and other guests to Lancaster for the three-day event.

Attendees included representatives from universities in the USA, Mexico, Brazil, France, Spain, Ireland, Germany and Italy.  Lancaster is the only UK university member of the IPBS. 

The Deans and the Study Programme Directors of the partner schools met at the event to discuss the further development of the IPBS network, including issues such as common curricula and marking equivalence, internship practices and language training.

The IPBS is a consortium that, for almost thirty years, has delivered a unique double degree.  Students enrol at one of the partner institutions and spend the first two years of their studies there, before moving to a second partner institution in another country for a further two years.  Candidates work towards achieving two degrees that are awarded by the two institutions, as well as completing work internships in each country.  By studying and working in two countries, students are challenged academically and culturally, as well as linguistically, as work placements and study all take place in the language of their hosting country.  The outcome of the degree which, at Lancaster, is called the BBA (Hons) in International Business Management is a graduate with high-level business numerical ability alongside evolved skills in discursive subjects, significant work experience and at least two European languages of operational fluency. 

LUMS’s Magnus George, who helped to organise the event, said: “LUMS was a founding member of the IPBS dual degree and the BBA in International Business Management is a very special degree that produces future managers with very highly-valued skills that equip them for stellar international careers.  These meetings are valuable in allowing staff from across the partnership to share experience and both coordinate and develop their curricula.”

Irena Gaul, general secretary of the IPBS, said: “The entire IPBS group had a great time at LUMS.

"We had very productive and enjoyable discussions on a successful future of the study programme within the strong IPBS network."