American University of Sharjah (AUS) School of Business and Management (SBM) organized a study tour to New York City recently. The nine-day program provided students the opportunity to visit companies in New York City to learn from these international organizations and observe businesses in a global setting. The students were able to relate what they learn in their courses in the School of Business and Management to real-world examples.

Touring around New York, the group visited key sites including the Statue of Liberty, Rockefeller Center, the Empire State Building, the 9/11 Memorial, Times Square, Fifth Avenue, Freedom Towers, the World Trade Center and more.

During the city tour, the students visited New York University's main campus and toured its state-of-the-art library, academic buildings, student center and residential buildings. They also visited the United Nations headquarters where they learned about the history of the UN and its activities and causes. 

Other destinations included the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) with demonstrations of how a sale or purchase is done on the new electronic system and how it differs from the previous bookkeeping system. Furthermore, students engaged in conversation with brokers and experts on the floor discussing the current financial condition and the upcoming series of trends in the financial industry. This was followed by walking tour around the Financial District and with a brief overview of the organizations operating there. 

The Federal Reserve Bank was next on the list of attractions and the tour focused on how the bank differs from commercial banks and the role it plays in the global economic and financial place. Students also had the opportunity to visit the Gold Vault where different countries have deposited their gold reserves. They also learned about how the gold is measured and exchanged between the different countries. 

Participating students included Anam Tariq, Shafi Al Ameri, Lujain Nawab, Pamela Jermani, Umer Ghani, Hadeel Al Dhubaibi, Sara Al Ameri, Ali Al Gergawi, Ammara Merchant and Salman Merchant from SBM, and Aly Mustafa Abdelsalam, a student in the College of Engineering student.

Accompanying the students were SBM Assistant Professor Erich Eischen and Kristine Castelltrot , as well as Dean's Business Team members Juma Abu Al Shuwareb, Iman Al Shawab and Anam Merchant.