The Internet is Connecting Business, Education, and the World





As the internet continues to grow, in a sense, the world is getting much smaller. Nowadays, thousands of miles can seem insignificant thanks to email, video conferencing, instant messaging, and numerous other forms of instant communication. Thanks to this technological phenomenon, people are able to interact with one another regardless of distance making the worlds of business and education even more globally focused.

With numerous countries highly versed in computer technology, businesses have been able to go international much quicker today in comparison to 15 years ago. Imagine having to set up an office in India without the internet...possible, but tough to do.

Now take a look at education; previously, distance learning was done via "snail mail" where VHS tapes or cassettes were sent to students who would learn from these old forms of media and then "snail mail" their assignments back to the institution...again, a tough situation. Fortunately, with the internet stretching across the world, online computer students can now take classes from almost anywhere in the world. Through email, video conferencing, forums, chat rooms, and many other different forms of communication, today's information technology student can enroll and graduate from an online computer school as long as they have a computer.

Clearly, with the examples above, the internet has had a great impact on both business and education separately from one another. However, the internet has also positively affected business and education at the same time. Thanks to online communication, business students around the world are able to communicate with one another and learn on a global landscape. In addition, to learning from one another, business students are now able to compete against one another.

Every year, the University of San Francisco's School of Business and Management's Entrepreneurship department holds an International Business Plan Competition. This annual event is truly unique in that it is the most "internationally friendly" business plan competition in the United States. Business students from all over the world submit their business plans to USF in hopes of being invited to compete against many other teams from different areas of the globe.

The 2004 USF International Business Plan Competition boasted teams all the way from the UK, China, and India. Many other tier I business schools from the United States also showed up in San Francisco for the chance to win $10,000 in seed money as well as be exposed to multiple venture capitalists from Silicon Valley with potential interests in investing.

Every year, this competition gets bigger and bigger. A lot of this is due to the hard work and dedication of the Entrepreneurship department at USF, but a big portion of the thanks should also go to the internet. Through computer technology, the world has gotten smaller...in a good way...allowing business and education to exist and expand globally.

2004 Winners
  • 1st: Micro MRI - Wharton Business School
  • 2nd: Thru-Skin Technologies - University of Georgia
  • Finalist: Alpha V - University of North Carolina
  • Finalist: LoDrag, Inc. - University of Texas at Austin
  • Finalist: OrganoDevice Technologies - University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign & Purdue University
  • Finalist: Ripula - University of Chicago Graduate School of Business


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