2022 Best Undergraduate Professors: Olivia Miljanic, University of Houston C.T. Bauer College of Business

Olivia Miljanic
University of Houston C.T. Bauer College of Business 

“Her innovative teaching methods reach over 2,000 students annually. During COVID when the university went virtual, she did not miss a beat bringing in virtual presenters for students across both BUSI 1301 and INTB 3355 courses. One example was the head of a large natural gas company in the US who talked to students about his experience helping shift the industry into a more sustainable energy source. Even pre-pandemic, she was one of the first instructors in our college to use the internet to video conference internationally with an instructor and students at another university. She has also taken undergraduate students on a faculty-led learning abroad to Europe.” – Frank Kelley, Associate Dean for Undergraduate Business Programs

Olivia Miljanic, 42, is Instructional Assistant Professor at the University of Houston C.T. Bauer College of Business’ Department of Management & Leadership.

Miljanic is also the full-time MBA faculty director as well as director of Global Studies, a role in which she has overseen the undergraduate curriculum for international business, has worked with undergraduate students on globalization related research, and has led learning abroad programs throughout Europe and Latin America.

In 2020, she received the C.T. Bauer College of Business Wayne and Kathryn E. Payne Excellence Award.

Her primary research interests are global industrial relations and the scholarship of teaching and learning. Prior to joining the University of Houston, Miljanic taught and conducted research in Latin America, Europe, and Southeast Asia.

BACKGROUND

At current institution since what year? 2010

Education:

  • Ph.D. in Political Science (Comparative Political Economy, Latin American Politics, Methods) from the University of California, Berkeley (2010)
  • A.B. in Public and International Affairs from Princeton University (2002)

List of Undergraduate courses you teach: Global Environment of Business (undergraduate core course for business majors), Global Engagement & Research (undergraduate research seminar)

TELL US ABOUT LIFE AS A BUSINESS SCHOOL PROFESSOR

I knew I wanted to be a business school professor when… I knew I wanted to be a teacher ever since I was a little girl and my favorite game was playing teacher with my dolls as my students. As a 10-year-old, over the course of one year I lived through two double transitions, political and economic, in two different parts of the world, Eastern Europe and South America. At the time I did not have the theoretical and empirical tools to make sense of these changes, but I was puzzled by the differences between what I had been taught and the reality I was experiencing. I started on a lifelong path of looking for answers and, later on, facilitating my students’ own exploratory journeys.

What are you currently researching and what is the most significant discovery you’ve made from it? The challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic led to various innovations in the business classroom, some of which proved to be really valuable beyond the pandemic period. One of my most exciting findings relates to how virtual learning abroad programs can be crafted in a way that facilitates the mastery of global competencies for a wide variety of students who are unable to participate in traditional learning abroad programs.

If I weren’t a business school professor, I’d be… A diplomat.

What do you think makes you stand out as a professor? Passion, warmth, and versatility.

One word that describes my first time teaching: Adventure.

Here’s what I wish someone would’ve told me about being a business school professor: That it is the best job in the world.

Professor I most admire and why: Dr. Richard Scamell, for his infinite patience, empathy, and care for generations of students.

TEACHING BUSINESS SCHOOL STUDENTS

What do you enjoy most about teaching business students? Watching my students grow and learning from them.

What is most challenging? Finding teaching methods that are effective in large classes of students with a wide array of learning styles, backgrounds, interests, and abilities; this also represents a tremendous opportunity and one of my biggest blessings.

In one word, describe your favorite type of student: Gritty.

In one word, describe your least favorite type of student: Entitled.

When it comes to grading, I think students would describe me as… A fair grader.

LIFE OUTSIDE THE CLASSROOM

What are your hobbies? Travel planning and traveling, languages, dancing.

How will you spend your summer? Teaching summer school, visiting family in Romania, exploring Greece with my kids, leading our Executive MBA International Business Residency in Brazil, finishing up a research project, hiking the Inca Trail in Peru with my childhood friend, and onboarding our new cohort of Full-Time MBA students.

Favorite place(s) to vacation: West Texas, Colorado, Pacific Northwest, Mexico, Italy, Brazil, Nepal, New Zealand

Favorite book(s): A Hundred Years of Solitude (Gabriel Garcia Marquez), The Master and Margarita (Mikhail Bulgakov), The Most Beloved of Earthlings (Marin Preda), 1Q84 (Haruki Murakami)

What is currently your favorite movie and/or show and what is it about the film or program that you enjoy so much? Mad Men – the historical references, the sociological analysis, the mid-century modern aesthetics, the literary journey, and Don’s mentorship of Peggy.

What is your favorite type of music or artist(s) and why? Blues, for the depth of emotion.

THOUGHTS AND REFLECTIONS

If I had my way, the business school of the future would have much more of this… Spaces that promote interaction and engagement between faculty and students.

In my opinion, companies and organizations today need to do a better job at… Valuing their human resources.

I’m grateful for… My kids – and that includes both my students and my biological kids. I learn so much from them and I am humbled every day.

DON’T MISS: THE ENTIRE 2022 ROSTER OF THE 50 BEST UNDERGRAD PROFESSORS

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