A Programme to Expose Students to Senior Executives in the World of Accounting: An InnovativeLearning Method

Abstract

This paper deals with one well-tested means of providing inspiration through acarefully planned International Study Tour (IST) that has, at its core, site visits to world classglobal organisations. During these visits, students are addressed by senior personnel of thoseorganisations. The esprit de corps inculcated by the intense and exciting nature of the IST andthe high quality of the host organisations combines to produce a highly productive educationaloutcome. In this analysis of an important learning method, we analyse the feedback of ISTparticipants to evaluate the learning benefits of participating in an IST, and provide acomprehensive template of how to operate such a programme. Our findings suggest that the ISTprovides students with a global and life experience that has no equal in the classroom. Throughthis paper, we aim to inspire other academics to implement a similar programme at theiruniversities.