During the months of May and June, the Texas Advertising department, in partnership with API, Academic Programs International, offered UT students the opportunity to study and travel throughout Spain.
Among the advertising faculty, Dr. Minette Drumwright was chosen to teach International Advertising (ADV 334) to 24 undergraduate students representing the following majors: Advertising, Public Relations, Corporate Communications, Radio Television Film and Italian. Five Advertising graduate students also attended the course. Gracieli Scremin, Advertising Ph.D. student, was the teaching assistant.
Seville, city of flamenco, bullfights, and rich Spanish tradition served as the course hub for 3 weeks. Although the majority of class time was spent in Seville, students were able to travel the country on weekends. Cadiz, Granada, Tarifa, Cordoba, even Portugal and Morocco were some of the destinations students were able to experience during their Maymester abroad. The class also visited Spain's capital, Madrid at the beginning and end of the course.
Inside the classroom, students studied international brands and cross-border marketing strategies. They read relevant case studies and discussed solutions to global business and communication challenges.
Outside the classroom, Dr. Drumwright and the students took full advantage of their location by visiting several advertising agencies and PR firms in Seville, Madrid. DDB Madrid, and Bassat Ogilvy were a couple of agencies on the students' itinerary. They also toured the offices of ABC, a newspaper located in Seville that covers Andalusia, the southern region of Spain. In their offices, Spanish professionals shared insight on the advertising business in Spain as well as their views toward cross-cultural advertising or globalization.
Maria Casteneda, historian and API counselor and guide, provided the class with invaluable cultural experiences that offered a foundation for understanding Spain as a country. During outdoor excursions and round table discussions, she and Dr. Drumwright helped the students discover cultural and political implications that affect Spanish advertising.
Dr. Drumwright was recently re-selected to teach International Advertising in Seville during the 2005 Maymester. She finds significance in the emergence of cross-cultural advertising and expresses the importance of understanding the practice.
"Transcending national and political boundaries to advertise products and services across borders is a fascinating phenomenon. It is complex and demanding, and it is a reality with which American Advertising students must be prepared to contend. European advertising is the best in the world at crossing borders effectively, and there is no better place to study global advertising than Europe. Spain, which consistently ranks among the top four countries in the world in advertising creativity awards, provides an especially exciting context for the course," she says.
Students looking to extend their learning experiences overseas will, once again, have the invaluable opportunity to combine culture and class; an opportunity they will not soon forget. Professor Drumwright will teach International Advertising in Seville, Spain, as a part of Maymester 2005 from May 28-June 26. Registration will be through the Connexus Office in FAC 1 during the Spring 2005 registration period in October. For more information about the course, contact Professor Drumwright (mdrum@mail.utexas.edu; 471-2367).
9/2/2004