More than 470 students from the Global Network for Advanced Management will participate in two installments of Global Network Week in the coming weeks, with courses taking place March 3-7 and March 17-21 at 12 member schools around the world.

The weeklong mini courses provide an opportunity for students to pursue intensive study with their colleagues from Global Network schools, learning from top faculty and meeting local business leaders during company visits. Each participating school focuses on a specific topic or theme, leveraging their particular academic strengths and regional expertise in topics including behavioral economics, innovation, and sustainability.

One program, titled “Doing Business in China,” links together two leading Chinese universities: School of Business, Renmin University of China in Beijing and Fudan University School of Management in Shanghai. Students will explore corporate finance and governance strategies, intellectual property rights, and how social media has impacted how businesses market their products in China. Students will also learn how corporations with a global reach, such as luxury automaker Mercedes-Benz and PC company Lenovo, have expanded their operations into China.

“For all foreign students visiting Renmin and China for the first time, I hope that this experience will change their entire perspective on China, the culture, its people, and society,” says Lysa Wang, executive coordinator of admissions for the international MBA program at Renmin. “Speaking with the locals and students will teach them how to socialize professionally outside of their comfort zone.”

Global Network Week has expanded quickly since its inception. The program first launched in March 2013 with about 200 students traveling among five schools, and expanded to seven schools in October. This is the first time that two network weeks have been held in the same month. Additional Global Network Weeks are planned for the second half of this year and the first half of 2015.

Andrés Ibáñez, director of international affairs at Pontificia Universidad Católica in Chile, says that the format of the weeks intrigued Pontificia, which is hosting its first mini course this month, called “Innovative Business Models in Latin America.” Students there will study several cases, including one involving the LATAM Airlines Group, now one of the largest airlines in Latin America. Following the review, students will meet with executives involved in the airline merger. That interaction is what makes the weeklong course unique, Ibáñez says.

“Compared to traditional study tours, Global Network Week students are able to really interact with other students from all over the world,” Ibáñez says. “The host country focuses on a very specific topic with a team of great professors.”

Technion-Israel Institute of Technology’s “Start-up Nation” course focuses on the country’s entrepreneurial ethos and high-tech sector. Miriam Erez, vice dean of the MBA program at Technion, says the weeks provide valuable cross-cultural intelligence for future business leaders.

“A key factor in the education of the next generation of managers is to expose them to the global work environment by getting together with other MBA students from around the world, sharing ideas with them, learning from them, and taking advantage of the diverse global network,” Erez says.

The Yale School of Management is hosting courses during both weeks: on March 3-7, Yale faculty will teach “Behavioral Economics, Finance, and Marketing”; on March 17-21, they’ll lead a new course called “Alternative Investments,” looking beyond equities at investments like real estate, private equity, and commodities.

David Bach, senior associate dean for executive MBA and global programs at Yale SOM, says that the behavioral course reflects increasing collaboration across disciplines at the school. “It’s wonderful to see faculty from finance, economics, marketing, and management come together and explore how new insights from psychology help us to better understand how organizations work and how they compete,” he says.

Global Network Week is also an opportunity for alumni to connect. At several schools, the week will include a reception for visiting students, alumni of the host school, and local alumni from other Global Network Schools.

Read more about the topics for Global Network Week. 

Follow Global Network Week and participate in the conversation on social media outlets including Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, using the hashtag #GNW2014. Visit the Yale SOM Tumblr for photos and updates from around the network.