Article written by Grace Kearns
For Suresh Sundaram, assistant professor of marketing at the University of Delaware, studying abroad as an undergraduate student was a dream come true.
“Being an international student, it was an eye-opening experience for me that significantly transformed my perspective of my future career direction,” said Sundaram, who earned a bachelor’s degree in instrumentation engineering from the University of Bangalore and a doctorate in business administration from the University of Houston. “It was the experience of studying at the University of Houston that led me to pursue a career in academia in the United States.”
Throughout his career, the Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics assistant professor went on to make this dream come true for more than 300 of his own students.
A dedicated believer in global education, Sundaram has exposed his students to the international business market on 23 different excursions to Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Hong Kong and Barcelona. As a faculty director, Sundaram sees himself as an “innovator” committed to expanding the study abroad tradition through international work experiences, micro-internship opportunities, asynchronous learning models and graduate-level courses.
With the support of Global Academic Ventures, Sundaram has also developed an inventive study abroad model that offers both full-time internship experience and full-time academic learning. The model provides students with immersive classroom instruction for the first eight weeks while dedicating the program’s second half to full-time professional experience. At the end of the program, students return to campus with 15 credit hours, professional development skills, career insight and a well-rounded global education.
This year, Sundaram was named the Faculty Director of the Year, an award presented annually by the Center for Global Programs and Services (CGPS) that honors a staff member who goes above and beyond planning and leading an exceptional study abroad program. While the pandemic travel restrictions paused the long-standing tradition at the University, the award was reintroduced in spring 2024 and given to faculty recipients from the past three years. Bill Deering and Ismat Shah were named the 2022 and 2023 recipients, respectively.
“Suresh embodies the energy and entrepreneurial spirit of study abroad directors,” said Matt Drexler, director of study abroad at UD. “Suresh is always looking for a way to improve, a way to get more students, a way to reduce costs, and a way to add one more program to our plates.”
Nicole Kurnan, a recent UD graduate, participated in Sundaram’s most recent program to Sydney, Australia. During this four-week experience, the international relations student gained valuable professional experience through a micro-internship coordinated by Sundaram.
“Suresh really cares about each student and goes above and beyond to create the best experience possible for each of us,” Kurnan said. “His honesty, support and love for learning and traveling were infectious during the trip and even afterward.”
This year, Sundaram was named the Faculty Director of the Year, an award presented annually by the Center for Global Programs and Services (CGPS) that honors a staff member who goes above and beyond planning and leading an exceptional study abroad program. While the pandemic travel restrictions paused the long-standing tradition at the University, the award was reintroduced in spring 2024 and given to faculty recipients from the past three years. Bill Deering and Ismat Shah were named the 2022 and 2023 recipients, respectively.
“Suresh embodies the energy and entrepreneurial spirit of study abroad directors,” said Matt Drexler, director of study abroad at UD. “Suresh is always looking for a way to improve, a way to get more students, a way to reduce costs, and a way to add one more program to our plates.”
Nicole Kurnan, a recent UD graduate, participated in Sundaram’s most recent program to Sydney, Australia. During this four-week experience, the international relations student gained valuable professional experience through a micro-internship coordinated by Sundaram.
“Suresh really cares about each student and goes above and beyond to create the best experience possible for each of us,” Kurnan said. “His honesty, support and love for learning and traveling were infectious during the trip and even afterward.”
Kurnan said Sundaram hosted group dinners to bring the Lerner students together while abroad. During their final evening in Sydney, Kurnan used this time to “pick his brain” about her career path — a conversation that had a lasting impact on her post-graduate plans.
Like Kurnan, Lerner graduate Cameron Ladana participated in a micro-internship that supported her professional goals. But what stood out to Ladana during the experience was Suresh’s support beyond the classroom and outside of the office.
“Suresh tries his best to make sure you have all the information about the location, but then you can choose what to do with it,” Ladana said. “He wants everyone to have a good time but he still constantly checks in on us. If we ever come to him for anything, we know he will be there.”
Sundaram continues to look for ways to improve his students’ study abroad experience for his students. Most recently, he has proposed a hybrid study abroad program, which will be announced soon. Through this model, Sundaram hopes to increase interest in summer programs and extend study abroad programs to graduate business students. Sundaram’s vision for this program includes an asynchronous online course paired with day-to-day interactions with senior business leaders in Europe.