Since its creation at The Ohio State University Max M. Fisher College of Business in 2012, the Ohio Export Internship Program (OEIP) has helped prepare graduate and undergraduate students for careers linked to international trade.

Now, nearly a decade after it began, the academic component of the program has been honored with a 2021 Advancing International Trade Award from NASBITE International, a leading organization supporting training and education in the field of global trade. The award recognizes Ohio’s advocacy for global trade and global business education and its efforts to develop and promote international trade across the state. 

“We’re honored to have been chosen by NASBITE for this award,” said Joyce Steffan, senior director of Fisher’s Office of Global Business. “If the past year has taught us anything, it’s that the world is more intertwined than ever before, especially in business. This program represents just one way Ohio State, Cleveland State University, Youngstown State University and the University of Dayton are preparing tomorrow’s global leaders for success.”

What began as a nine-person cohort at Fisher in 2012 has grown to include 55 students from across the state. In 2016, the program expanded for the first time to include a cohort from Youngstown State. Cleveland State joined in 2018, and in 2020, during the height of the pandemic, the University of Dayton became the fourth OEIP cohort. Each cohort also invites students from other Ohio universities and colleges to participate, expanding the program’s reach to 19 Ohio institutions.

OEIP provides students with a two-pronged approach to learning the fundamentals of exporting: an academic cohort featuring an export-focused course taught during spring semester; and an internship with a local or regional company in which students gain experience helping an organization explore or expand its exporting footprint.

“OEIP really began with the question of ‘What if? What if we built a program that was focused entirely on international trade, where tomorrow’s business leaders could get a global education and experience without having to leave the state,’” Steffan said. “When we launched it, it was a program that we felt embodied the land grant mission of Ohio State. Almost 10 years later, it’s still delivering on that mission — and we’ve scaled it.”

The program embodies the unique partnership potential that higher education and government agencies and the business community can provide. Small Business Development Center Export Directors work with students in the classroom at each academic institution, while the Ohio Development Services Agency has been an OEIP partner since the program’s inception. The organization sources internship opportunities and works with students and academic administrators on placement.  The program continues to create jobs for Ohio while advancing the global strategies and exports for our small to medium-sized Ohio companies.