Professional relationships and agreements are often affected by interaction in social settings, such as business meals, receptions and parties, company tours, and the like. However, the rules for appropriate interaction in these settings differ widely from culture to culture and are rarely apparent to the non-native speaker. This component introduces participants to some of the social and cultural norms affecting the use of English for social interaction in U.S. business settings. Finally, participants compare norms of interaction in their culture with those of the U.S. and learn strategies and techniques for discovering what the rules of interaction are in an unfamiliar culture or setting. Course Presentation and Guided Study Sessions Time is built into each day of the course to allow clients to review, with the aid of an instructor, their videotaped presentations, to work individually or in small groups to prepare specific assignments for the course or their job, or to pursue study related to Wharton Executive Education courses.
Clients have access to multimedia resources.
Once per week, invited lecturers from the Wharton School of Business and the Philadelphia business community speak to clients on topics of current interest. Lectures allow clients to build their listening comprehension and to practice speaking skills with experts from a variety of business disciplines. Language instructors help clients prepare in advance for the event and provide clients with feedback on the interaction afterwards. Our staff conducts a detailed, individualized language and needs assessment with each client prior to the program. As part of the application process, clients complete a brief questionnaire regarding their professional and personal uses of English, their goals for the course, and the areas of language they most wish to focus on.