During spring break, Fairfield Dolan undergraduate and graduate students participated in experiential learning opportunities through two immersion trips to Silicon Valley, CA and to Aix-en-Provence, France. The inaugural trip to Silicon Valley was part of the Fairfield StartUp Program and the Dolan School’s "Technology Ventures" class. The trip’s primary goal was to connect students with companies and alumni and to provide real-world exposure to topics discussed in the course. Students visited multiple businesses including Apple, Google, NVIDIA, Salesforce, and Zoom. Fairfield StartUp Program Director Chris Huntley, PhD, said “The students asked thoughtful questions of everyone we met, including company founders with fresh exits, startup coaches with amazing stories, professional investors with company portfolios, and even C-level executives.” 

“The Fairfield StartUp trip to Silicon Valley and the Dolan MS in Management Global Immersion Trip to France are examples of how our faculty provide rich experiential learning opportunities for our students that extend beyond the classroom,” said Dean Zhan Li, DBA.

The MS in Management (MSM)’s Global Immersion Experience highlights key cultural differences between France and the U.S. During the trip students focused on topics including starting a new business, employment laws and practices, sustainability, innovation, workforce management, government oversight and regulatory issues, as well as economic policies. “This is Fairfield Dolan’s first graduate global immersion experience,” shared MSM Program Director Lisa Stafford.

Cooper Stearns MSM’23 who attended the trip, said, “It was amazing to view [France] through the eyes of an international businessperson. Thank you to Fairfield University for this amazing opportunity. I’m excited to use wonderful experiences such as this in my professional career."