Undergraduate Student Experience

• 28 undergraduate student clubs and organizations give students many ways to network and enhance their business skills.
• Business Community student housing gives Foster School students the opportunity to participate in social, academic enrichment, and career-development events.
• Business Undergraduates in Leadership Development Program (BUILD) helps students enhance their leadership skills. BUILD focuses on four areas of leadership development: professionalism, self-discovery, skill development, and community and culture.
• The Foster Undergraduate Mentoring Program connects current students with alumni and other professionals to gain both career guidance and personal development.
• Foster Opportunities for All UW Students: Prospective Foster students and non-business majors can engage in a variety of Foster community activities, organizations, and programs!

Internships give you the opportunity to apply the knowledge and skills you’ve learned in the classroom. Learn more about the internship resources Foster has to offer below.

• The EY Center for  Career Advancement helps students learn the skills needed to select and pursue the right career—from job-search coaching and resume building to talent development and interview techniques.
• Global business internships abroad or in Seattle (Global Business Center & Certificate of International Studies in Business) allow students to gain valuable skills while spending a summer working abroad or by interning alongside your coursework in Seattle.
• Summer Internship Program (Consulting & Business Development Center) has interns work with three companies and provide, on average, 130 hours of consulting services over a ten-week period to each firm.

Classes and programs with consulting components pair students with actual businesses to solve real-world issues. Students gain experience in working with time constraints on deliverables, industry research analysis, and business communications—including delivering formal presentations. All skills are immediately transferable to the working world.

Students can get involved with consulting through a number of channels:

• Academic courses:
  • MGMT 430, a required capstone course challenges teams of student to develop and present a viable solution to a Seattle-based business on a current strategy issue through the Strategy Development Case Competition.
  • Business Consulting Courses (Undergraduate Program Office) teach students the skills needed to become consultants and partner student teams with domestic and international clients to work on real-world business projects.
  • Strategic Consulting & Multicultural Marketing MKTG/MGMT 445 (Consulting & Business Development Center) gives teams of students the opportunity to work with businesses from under-served communities as part of a marketing/management class offered winter quarter.

The Consulting and Business Development Center is a learning laboratory that gives students real-world consulting experience they can use to jumpstart their careers and grow businesses in under-served communities.

• Consulting Program in Accounting (Consulting & Business Development Center) works in partnership with the student organization, Beta Alpha Psi to have students students work with small businesses to determine their financial performance and health.
• Also see the competitions section below for information about the Consulting Challenge and Strategy Development Case Competition.

• Student organizations:
  • Check out the student consulting organizations at Foster for more consulting opportunities.

Make the World Your Classroom with Foster’s Global Business Center!

At the Global Business Center (GBC), we believe global experiences aren’t just a bonus but a must-have for today’s business leaders. Whether you’re looking to earn credit abroad, solve real-world challenges, or build your global leadership skills, GBC has something for you!

Study Abroad: Business Is Global

Explore how business is done around the world through Foster’s Study Abroad programs! With flexible short-term and long-term options, you can take your UW studies abroad without delaying graduation. Whether you choose a business-focused program or any of UW’s incredible global offerings, there are funding opportunities available which include GBC Study Abroad Scholarships for Foster majors and automatic consideration for UW Study Abroad Office Scholarships. You can also utilize your UW Financial Aid package for almost every single study abroad program.

Global Case Competitions: Put your classroom learning to the test

Step into the world of international business strategy with the Russell Investments International Case Competition (RIICC) each Fall Quarter on-campus. It’s the perfect entry point for students new to case competitions.

For those who thrive in a case competition setting, apply to represent Foster at national and international competitions. This is an unforgettable way to take your skills to the next level and expand your global network.

Leadership with a Global Lens

Grow as a global business leader through these exciting on-campus opportunities:

• Hovind Global Leaders (HGL): A year-long cohort experience designed to develop inclusive, globally-minded leaders.
• Foster Global Ambassadors (FGA): Connect with Foster Inbound Exchange students and showcase the best of UW and Seattle through fun events.
• RIICC Volunteers: Help run one of Foster’s premier global events and gain behind-the-scenes experience.

CISB: Your Passport to a Global Business Career

For students who dream of working abroad or in globally-focused roles, the Certificate of International Studies in Business (CISB) is your launchpad. Think of it as Foster’s international business major…only better! CISB goes beyond coursework to give you the global mindset, language skills, and hands-on experience that today’s employers are looking for. The program includes:

• International business coursework
• Foreign language study
• Regional specialization
• Study abroad in your second language
• Global work experience
• Weekly seminars and an engaged alumni network

It’s more than a certificate; it’s a community and a global career accelerator.

Stay in the Loop

Don’t miss out! Sign up for the GBC Undergraduate Newsletter to stay up-to-date on all these programs and more.

The Arthur W. Buerk Center for Entrepreneurship promotes entrepreneurship to students across the University of Washington campus and beyond. Our students become leaders who challenge the status quo and change the way business is done.

• Creating a Company (ENTRE 472/473) gives students the ability to start and operate a business as part of the entrepreneurship curriculum.
• Lavin Entrepreneurship Program combines hands-on learning and curriculum to give undergraduate students the experience, skills and know-how to succeed in their future business ventures. Open to all UW undergraduates.
• Jones + Foster Accelerator helps early-stage, student-led companies get off the ground.
• Also see competitions below for information about the Health Innovation Challenge, Environmental Innovation Challenge and Dempsey Startup Competition.

Case Competitions

A case competition is an event in which teams of students have the opportunity to analyze real-life business problems and make recommendations to a panel of corporate executives and business leaders. Analyzing the same case, each team competes against the others to present the most feasible, comprehensive, and creative solutions.

By participating in a case competition you will:

• Become a better future business professionals through the direct experience of analyzing and making recommendations on real-life strategic issues.
• Obtain the experience of formally presenting to business managers, answering questions under pressure and receiving feedback about your team’s ideas in relationship with real world expectations.
• Develop practical analytical skills by performing outside research on the case or business idea.
• Build your resume with applicable business skills.
• Practice leadership skills in a team environment.
• Network with company representatives who may be impressed with you and request your resume.

Case competitions organized by the Foster School of Business:

• Strategy Development Case Competition (Undergraduate Programs Office) is a required Foster capstone course that is part of Management (MGMT) 430. Students work on forward-looking, customized cases centered on a current strategic issue a Seattle-area company is trying to solve.
• Consulting Challenge (Consulting & Business Development Center) matches teams of students with businesses from a local underserved community in the Seattle area. The student teams are given a week to analyze the companies’ financial and operating performance and develop a one-year growth plan that includes steps to improve the viability of the business.
• Russell Investments International Case Competition – RIICC (Global Business Center) is an annual extracurricular case competition in which teams of UW Undergraduate students apply their knowledge and skills to a real-life international business problem. This competition is open to all UW students and takes place in Fall Quarter. There is even a special track just for first year students.
• Off-Campus Global Case Competition Opportunities (Global Business Center) – The Global Business Center sends teams of undergraduate business students to represent UW Foster at global business case competitions both nationally and internationally. These are fully funded extracurricular experiences where students take a few days away from their regular coursework to meet and compete with business students from around the world. Sign up for the GBC Undergraduate Newsletter to stay in the loop about upcoming opportunities on- and off-campus.