Switzerland is a green country that strives to be ecofriendly by enabling its society to recycle easily at low prices. Among the various PET (polyethylene terephthalate) products, only beverage containers are considered suitable for recycling, the degree of spoilage to other products containers such as vinegar bottles, oil bottles, shampoo bottles, and so on is too high. Switzerland has in total over 30’000 collection points with over 50’000 containers for collection. These collection points can be found in shopping centers, offices, schools, private establishments so on and so forth. A great part of this service is that there are over 7’500 collection points offered to the general public.  It has been proven that by recycling PET we can save up to 50% of our energy, and currently Switzerland has a successful PET return rate of 81%. The Swiss have developed a clever strategy of devoting 0.018 CHF from the sale of every PET beverage to cover the cost of its recycling. This financial participation goes to the PET Recycling Switzerland (PRS) Association to cover the cost of collecting PET containers, transporting them, sorting them and publicizing the most user friendly way of recycling this material.

EU Switzerland is proud to announce that we have further joined this green movement from the beginning of January 2012. Both Swiss campuses are fully equipped with PET recycling bins that are picked up on a regular basis and EU students have proved to be a great support and are making a conscious effort to think green and recycle with the material and servicers at hand.

Words of wisdom from your Montreux academic coordinator.

Ever notice how putting a positive twist on a presentation, speech, conversation, or proposition makes your chances of success more plausible? As a student, part of your education goes beyond the textbook and classroom into how you approach different challenges, daily tasks, new trials and tribulations. Start out with a positive introduction, not excuses, be it in front of your fellow classmates or simply if it is a request to a service provider. “I’m so sorry, I was really rushed and a bit swamped by x, y, or z,” will rarely capture your audience.  Nobody wants to hear excuses or about the multitude of setbacks you may have inevitably experienced in order to arrive where you are at present unless it’s said in jest or with very cheeky British humor; what we want to hear about are accomplishments, revelations, solutions and endeavors that you have already or plan on applying in order to reach your goal.

If you were stranded somewhere, let’s say the plains of Kansas with a flat tire or in a snow storm in the Alps of Switzerland, who would you like to be by your side? I doubt you would answer a don’t-er, as this may lead to hours of exasperated sighs and defeatist explanations that lead anywhere but to a reasonable solution. University is a dress-rehearsal for the big show of professional life, and what sometimes slips by under the school radar will be a blaring red light in the job environment.

Let’s all strive to be doers in the face of adversity, frustration or simple everyday life situations!

President Dr. Craen and Mr. Hillbrink

On January 23^rd,  Mr. Robin Hilbrink, European University alumnus, returned to the Montreux campus to meet with the Thesis Coordinator in order to put the finishing touches on his upcoming defense, which will be held this Saturday January 28^th.  The President of European University, Dr. Dirk Craen, spent some time with Mr. Hillbrink during his visit to the Montreux campus.

Mr. Hillbrink pursued a Sports Management major and dual-degree at Nichols College outside of Boston and was recently featured in the latest edition of the EU Today. Upon successful completion of his thesis, he will be awarded two degrees from both institutions. Meanwhile, he is enjoying spending time with former classmates who have chosen to pursue the MBA in Montreux, and practicing for his thesis defense.

European University is pleased to announce that our President, Dr. Dirk Craen, will be attending the Decennial Expert Workshop & Leaders Symposium From Corporate Responsibility to Sustainable Business: Taking Stock & The Next Ten Years. You may find more information about this event here. The Decennial Event will be taking place from January 31st to February 1st, 2012.

The workshop event will focus on the last decade of evolution in knowledge development and learning, both in business schools and in companies, and will showcase current and future innovations for teaching and implementing sustainability. Companies attending the event are WWF International, Unilever, IBM, Intel Europe, Heineken International, or Johnson & Johnson, amongst others. The symposium will explore the macro trends influencing the shift towards sustainable business, capability challenges for global companies, and the implications for business schools.

European University’s focus on corporate social responsibility is reflected both in our BA, MBA and Executive MBA programs and courses as well as specific initiatives such as the Burkina Faso CSR project which has been put in place for the women of the Yirwal village. Dr. Dirk Craen will be attending the EABIS event as President of European University. Dr. Craen is UNESCO Chair in International Relations, Business Administration and Entrepreneurship.

Chillon Castle at Montreux, Switzerland

Recently, the OECD Better Life Initiative has announced the countries that better balance work and life, according to the Better Life Index created for that purpose. The index is designed to let you compare key factors like education, housing, environment and so on, that contribute to well-being in OECD countries. Because there is more to life than GDP numbers and economic statistics, the index is an interactive tool that allows individuals to see how countries perform according to the importance that they personally give to the 11 topics that create a better life.

Switzerland belongs to the glorious club of countries that obtain a better balance between work and life, together with Denmark, Norway, the Netherlands, Finland, Belgium, Sweden, Germany, Portugal, France, Slovenia and Estonia. So what makes Switzerland different and better? For starters, this country performs better in overall well-being, given its Better Life Index. And while money cannot buy happiness, higher living standards do relate to it! Average household earnings in Switzerland is 27542 USD, more than the OECD average; and nearly 79% of people from ages 15 to 64 have a paid job. No wonder 77% of people in Switzerland said they were satisfied with their life!

Having a good education is an important requisite for that: Switzerland is a high-performing country in terms of the quality of its educational system, according to the latest PISA student-assessment programme, again higher than the OECD average. European University has campuses in Geneva and Montreux, two of the most exciting and sophisticated cities in Switzerland. Don’t wait for other people to tell you about it: live the better life now!

You may find more information about European University Switzerland campuses here.

On Friday December 9^th the Swiss campuses of Geneva and Montreux got together for an amicable football match and braved the cold and rain for the love of sport. The much anticipated game got underway with President Dirk Craen keeping time and jumping in as referee when needed; needless to say the rivalry of the two teams was certainly clear on the pitch, but less so on the sidelines.

Both campuses train regularly on their respective campuses and this was the first time that the two teams were able to get together for such an event. Many thanks to the president of the student board in Geneva, Vladislav Kovalev and Montreux team captain Mohammed Bastaki for their efforts in pulling together the logistics to make this occasion a reality.  The two teams are aiming for a once to twice-per-semester chance to face one another in their favorite game.  Geneva largely dominated the game and emerged victors, despite an early lead by Montreux. The final score of 2-6 will be a new benchmark to improve upon in 2012!

Supporters on the sidelines with President Dirk Craen

Our two fantastic teams!

If the dark winter evenings are getting you down and you crave a break away from some final pre-holidays studying, European University’s students will have the chance to experience Geneva’s International Christmas Tree & Lights Festival (Le Festival Arbres & Lumières) with its grand-scale light installations throughout the city, that breaths new life through these winter days into decorated trees around the city.

In previous years, Parisian artist Yann Kersalé designed an installation in which turquoise, green and blue light were projected onto the trees of Rousseau Island, while Marc Aurel created a triangle of five-metre (16ft) high, mirrored walls around three Italian poplars in the Mon Repos park.

Many other original ideas promise a city full of intriguing Yuletide surprises. It is one of the highlights of the winter calendar in Geneva, and we hope European University students relish this special event!

On December 10th the European University Switzerland campuses came together and joined in festive celebration. The Swiss campuses celebrated the holiday season just beyond Montreux at the Château Maison Blanche in Yvorne surrounded by the local vineyards under a magnificent full moon. In the company of Yvorne’s mayor, Philippe Gex, between the warm and charming halls of the chateau, there was a local wine tasting followed by a gourmet and original buffet.

Along with staff, professors, and students from both EU Business School Switerland campuses, President Dirk Craen and wife Martine kicked off the soirée showing off their timeless dance moves to the tunes of Elvis Presley.  While students and professors have studied and lectured all semester long figuring out market saturation, and how to interpret contingency tables, there was no mystery involved when it came to their knowledge and skills of the kinetic arts! A wonderful and well deserve break to all!

Mr. Luc Craen and several students from the Montreux and Geneva campuses

Margaux De Heer, Professor Robin Reid, Professor Ursula Spleiss-Greene, Fidan Berisha, Judith Donker, and Laura Debaère.

Students Asil Bilgehan, Leticia Pereira Hajiyev and husband.

As part of its committment to corporate social responsibility (CSR) policies, European University continues to be a proud supporter and donator to the Yirwal community project in Burkina Faso.

New mills constructed in the village earlier this year and sponsored by European University have allowed women to be financially independent and manage their own budget. An instructor has recently visited the village to teach them how to make soap from shea seeds, which they will also be able to sell at the market. New orders have been coming in and the women at the Yirwal community are very pleased with the progress.

European University is committed to promoting CSR worldwide and most importantly, stresses the precedence of CSR to its business studies and management students. Both its BBA and MBA programs in Communications & Public Relations include a course on Ethics in Business, which is concerned with issues related to the CSR framework. They provide knowledge and insight that positively contribute to improved performance and professional success, while preparing the student for CSR challenges and opportunities they will face during their careers.

You may find pictures of the progress Burkina Faso progress.

European University Geneva is proud to announce that Mr. Yves de Préville, professor of Finance, has published a book, “Finance d’Entreprise Clés en Main”, which was released by the prestigious publishing house Presses Polytechniques et Universitaires Romandes. The book is an accessible guide to finance management efficiency and it is a practical book on business finance, designed to help managers understand where and how their company creates value. European University is very pleased to congratulate Professor Yves de Préville on his recently published book.

European University, with is international campuses in Geneva, Montreux, Barcelona and Munich, amongst other locations, is committed to offering innovative business programs at the Bachelor’s (BBA), Business Foundation, Master’s (MBA) and Doctorate (DBA) levels. As a global teaching institution, European University offers an MBA in Global Banking & Finance with courses relating to the financial organization, operations and problems of the economy at large while stressing issues of financial management in business firms and financial institutions. It emphasizes the analytical foundations of the discipline and provides the student with the tools for dealing with important practical issues. This program prepares graduates for management positions in the fields of corporate finance, investment management and other managerial and financial fields, including management consulting jobs and corporate finance positions in other industries.

You may find more information about Professor Yves de Préville book on this video and about European University business studies and MBA programs here.