Cambridge, UK: Strategy and International Management

This two-week program explores organizational strategy, principles of management, and international business from within a vibrant hub of innovation and research at the heart of Cambridge, England.  

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Overview

Featuring interactive lectures by Wharton faculty, as well as guest speakers from the UK, this two-week program acquaints students with core concepts of management and international business. In addition, the course invites students to apply strategy and international management frameworks to relevant, contemporary business problems.   

Throughout the program, students will be asked to prepare university-level business cases that introduce a company’s management challenges and invite students to propose solutions.  

Case analysis is a key component of job selection processes for many elite companies, as well as an important method of instruction and assessment in most business schools around the world. Participants will gain a sense of how to approach case analysis and how to learn about general business theories by dissecting specific real-world cases.  

Wharton Strategy and International Management students will:  

  • Attend lectures and presentations from Wharton faculty, with guest speakers from the Wharton alumni network and from international and UK-based companies  
  • Learn to analyze industries and overcome challenges using real-world business cases 
  • Apply strategy and international management frameworks to contemporary businesses to solve problems 
  • Work in teams with talented, high-energy peers on business cases and simulations 
  • Compete in a final day case competition evaluated by a panel of judges 
  • Explore local culture and businesses in the UK, with an emphasis on Cambridge's Silicon Fen  

Details

Academic classes are held Monday-Friday in Cambridge University classrooms. Extracurricular and social activities are available in the evenings and on weekends.  

While days vary in format, a typical day might include: 

  • 9:00-10:30am – Lecture by the academic director 
  • 10:30-10:45am – Mid-morning break 
  • 10:45-12:00pm –Guest speaker 
  • 12:00-1:00pm – Lunch 
  • 1:00-2:30 – Simulation, competition, or other small group activity
  • 2:30-3:00pm – afternoon break
  • 3:00-4:30 – Communication workshop or (optional) admissions or career workshop 

Topics featured in sessions include: 

  • Creating value 
  • Analyzing industries
  • Deciding on organizational scope
  • Assessing international expansion
  • Motivating workers
  • Curating corporate culture
  • Evaluating environmental, social, and governance risks and opportunities 

In the evenings, students will have a number of extracurricular and social activities to choose from, as well as opportunities to explore the art, history, and culture of Cambridge. Students can also opt to work on projects with their group and/or relax at the dorm.  

Please note, some days may not follow this schedule as there could be a site visit off campus or a simulation in lieu of lecture/recitation schedule.  

Eligibility

High school students currently enrolled in grades 9-11 eager to gain valuable knowledge of management and international business. Demonstrated understanding of economics or business is highly preferred, though not required. International applicants are welcome.  

Admission  

Admission to Strategy and International Management is selective. Selections are based on a record of academic excellence and a genuine interest in the program content. The program will bring together approximately eighty students from across the globe. Interested students are strongly encouraged to submit an application by the priority deadline.  

Please note that participation in this program does not guarantee admission into Penn. 

Instructional Team

Program Leader: Sara Jane McCaffrey  

Sara Jane McCaffrey is a Senior Fellow and Lecturer in Management at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. Sara Jane’s research interests include workforce skills, responses to globalization, the development of ethical markets, and corporate responsibility. Her publications include articles in Business & Politics, Business & Society, and Socio-Economic Review. In 2019, she received a Wharton Teaching Excellence Award for outstanding performance.  

Sara Jane holds a bachelor’s degree in foreign service from Georgetown University and a Ph.D. in political science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.  

 

Dates

  • Jul 5 - Jul 18, 2025

Location

Cambridge, UK

Application Deadlines

Priority deadline:

 

January 29, 2025

 

Final deadline:

 

April 2, 2025

Additional Info

Application Deadlines

Summer 2022 applications are now closed

Contact

For more information, please contact whartonyouth@wharton.upenn.edu or call +1.516.414.5555.


“In Cambridge, we dove deeper into several political, economic, and business topics related to the UK, the EU, and beyond. We visited local businesses, which helped reinforce the business frameworks we learned in class, such as Porter's Five Forces, VRIO analysis, and CAGE analysis. My classmates were hard workers, eager to learn in class and work on our final project, but  also knew how to have fun at activities like soccer and Shakespeare in the Park.” – Rafael L., New York, USA