Proficient foreign language skills offer competitive advantages and enable better relationships with international clients and partners. By speaking the language, business professionals gain a unique understanding of cultural and social nuances critical to their success in global markets. IU CIBER and the Institute for International Business recognize the importance of language study for students, and also the study of business concepts by language instructors through continuing development opportunities. Beyond the programs we offer, the CIBER network administers a broad portfolio of resources, workshops, conferences, and other programs to promote and strengthen the study of business language.

Our tutoring program provides a customized approach to assisting business graduate students in essential language skills and the knowledge necessary to study, intern, or work in a global environment. Tailored to each student’s goals, the program features IU foreign language instructors working one-on-one or in small groups with students. Tutoring is offered in French, Spanish, German, Italian, Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, and other languages (upon request). The application is disseminated through the MBA Program Office each semester, with the deadline to apply being the second Friday of the semester. Participants are required to pay in advance per semester for 12 hours of instruction. There are two tiers of tutoring available:

• Private instruction: $20 per hour
• Two-person group: $17 per hour (per person)

The Business Language Research and Teaching grants were established in 2010 by a consortium of 13 Centers for International Business Education and Research (CIBER) who pledged a portion of their Title VI funding from the US Department of Education to encourage faculty and graduate students in foreign language departments to add a business-language dimension to their teaching and research. During the 2018–2022 grant cycle, all 15 CIBERs have continued support of this important initiative with competitions scheduled in 2019 and 2021.

In 2021, three awards of $2,000 were awarded to research or teaching projects in foreign languages (excluding ESL and ASL). Recipients will present their research findings at the 2022 International Symposium on Language for Specific Purposes to be hosted by the University of Chicago. Recipients also receive a travel stipend of up to $500 to cover costs associated with presenting at this conference.

2021 Recipients

• Anja Banchoff, Joe Cunningham, and Astrid Weigert from Georgetown University for “Developing an Instructional Unit on The Start-Up Scene in Today’s German-Speaking World for an Advanced Business Culture Course”
• Yingling Bao from Indiana University and Yunwen Su from University of Utah for “Gift Giving Interactions and the Chinese Concept of Politeness”
• Teuta Ozcelik from Indiana University for “Let’s Talk Business in Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian!”

The CIBER network is pleased to serve as a sponsor of the International Symposium on Language for Specific Purposes. The biennial event provides an opportunity for educators, scholars, publishers, language policy makers, and leaders worldwide to discuss language education. The conference enhances US business competitiveness globally by linking the human capital and information needs of the US business community with the international education, language training, and research capacity of US universities.

Indiana University’s College of Arts and Sciences offers courses in more than 70 foreign languages, including some that aren’t taught at any other American university.