Adjunct professor Sebastian Keita of Olivet Business School and Professor Jacob Chatterjee, Esq. shared their experience about holding online classes on Applied Business Research and Finance respectively over the summer, amid the pandemic.
Applied Business Research is one of Keita’s specialties, and in fact, the first class Keita has ever given at Olivet. Keita said, “Applied Business Research is the opportunity to make students think, be critical, and have fun. Many professors forget that research is supposed to be enjoyable. I hope to transfer those sentiments to my students.”
As for the class on Finance, Chatterjee, who is also the Dean of the business school, tried to take an alternative approach to teach the subject most students find challenging.
“Traditionally, finance is not a popular subject. My own experience has led me to believe that the subject’s technicalities are less important than the big picture offered by the professor. Understanding the core concepts of accounting and financial statement analysis, principles of finance, investments, corporate finance, and business evaluations is important but what is more important is developing quantitative and problem-solving skills that will help students see the complex financial decisions through a local, regional, and global lens and help them learn to appreciate and resolve them,” Chatterjee said.
Overall, Dean Chatterjee reflected that the Summer Quarter was a success. “I am delighted that we have been able to keep the classes running smoothly during this troubled time. It shows our resolve as a college community to make our students better prepared to cope with adversity,” he said.
