University Of New Brunswick: Opening New Window Of Opportunities For International Students

Devashis Mitra
Devashis Mitra, Dean, University Of New Brunswick
Located in Fredericton, the capital of New Brunswick, the University of New Brunswick (UNB) has been leading discovery and innovation, ever since it was established in 1785. Reputed as Canada's oldest Englishspeaking university, UNB is known for its strong tradition of teaching innovation and was named Canada's most entrepreneurial university by Startup Canada in 2014. Established in 1951, the Faculty of Management of UNB has the oldest BBA and MBA programs in the province of New Brunswick. Envisioned to be known as the experiential business school of Canada, the Faculty of Management of UNB offers unique project based experiential courses in all years of the BBA program, as well as experiential learning across its graduate programs. It also has the largest student enrollment among business schools in the province and offers the largest selection of concentrations as well as honors in its BBA. UNBs Faculty of Management is accredited by AACSB International, placing it among the top 6 percent of business schools worldwide.

Offering Unique Experiential Courses

As one of Canada's leading universities, UNB is usually ranked among the top ten comprehensive universities in the country and has over 96,000 alumni around the world. "Our business students routinely get Co-op job positions with businesses across the country. Graduates of our finance programs are employed in senior positions across Toronto, Calgary, New York, London, and other major financial centers. In addition to offering Co-op options, their programs include required project-based courses in all years of their business programs. The MBA program also offers unique experiential course opportunities. In the Student Consulting course, students work with live businesses to study a problem and provide an action plan. Students in the New Venture and Entrepreneurship course work with entrepreneurs and inventors to create business plans", shares Devashis Mitra, Dean of the Faculty of Management and Professor of Finance and Entrepreneurship.

The Faculty of Management of UNB offers Canada's first Master in Quantitative Investment Management (MQIM) program and this niche program prepares students for high-quality careers in quantitative investing. With a robust portfolio of industry partnerships that help champion its programs and mentor students to help with their career strategies, the Faculty of Management provides networking opportunities and internship/career opportunities. Involved with teaching many of our courses and providing mentorship to students to help with their career strategies, some of these industry partners include Vestcor, New Brunswick Innovation Foundation, Planet Hatch, Ignite Fredericton, CPA Atlantic, CPHR-New Brunswick, CFA Institute, Ocean Capital, Fredericton Chamber of Commerce, Malley Industries.

The Faculty of Management offers a strong breadth and depth of knowledge in all the functional areas of business including accounting, business communications, finance, HRM, marketing and management science. The programs combine a strong mix of foundational courses grounding students in theoretical constructs with rigorous applied experiential courses. Therefore, the students of the Faculty of Management get to learn business theories and apply their knowledge in a real-world setting.

"UNB's Faculty of Management is Accredited by AACSB International, Placing it among The top 6 percent of Business schools Worldwide"

We routinely send students to a variety of international competitions to further enhance their experiential learning including the CFA Ethics Challenge, Chicago Quantitative Alliance Challenge, Rotman Investment Competition, Venture Capital Investment Challenge, and so on, shares Devashis. One of the unique features of UNB's Faculty of Management is that it bestows students with project-based experiential opportunities across a spectrum of investment analysis and decision making with the Student Investment Fund, Venture Assessment/Fraser Student Venture Fund, and Master in Quantitative Investment Management (MQIM) program. The Student Investment Fund is a sixcredit hour course available to students in the BBA, MBA and MQIM programs. Students gain expertise in managing publicly-traded securities and are trained to use industryrelevant software including Bloomberg certification.

The Venture Assessment/Fraser Student Venture Fund is another six-credit hour course that enables students to gain experience by investing in private equity as they work as venture capitalists investing in real start-ups. In addition to working with the New Brunswick Innovation Foundation (NBIF) to select startups for investment, students invest in early-stage startups with the UNBs Fraser Student Venture Fund. The Master in Quantitative Investment Management (MQIM) program is an intense, specialized program, where students gain quantitative investment management skills and are qualified to work as managers of hedge funds using sophisticated quantitative coding techniques, says Devashis.

Providing Well-Rounded Support To International Students

Committed to tackling society's great challenges headon and creating positive change, UNB is inspiring and educating people to become problem solvers and leaders in the world. By undertaking research that addresses social and scientific challenges, UNB is engaged with its partners to build a more just, sustainable, and inclusive world. UNB's International Student Advisory Office as well as its Global Learning and Engagement Office provide support to international students. Our program offices employ staff and student assistants who communicate with international students planning to attend UNB to welcome them, advise them on housing and what to expect when they arrive in Fredericton. Our international students have told us that the business community is welcoming and supportive. As a result, our students are readily able to find employment in Canada if they choose, as well as in their home country if they choose to return, concludes Devashis.

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