Meet Gilles Bousquet, the UW-Madison dean with a passion for educating globally competent citizens.

By Sharyn Alden

In the world of academic and professional training, Gilles Bousquet is a trendsetter. His vision for expanded, collaborative international programs at UW-Madison is spreading around and beyond campus.

And when it comes to business, Bousquet’s mantra goes something like this: The university is committed to reaching out and serving companies by educating globally competent citizens.

For many young people, the desire to learn more about the world around them begins in college. For Bousquet, who was born in Algeria, the seeds of international learning were planted as a young boy.

Early exposure to a variety of cultures instilled in him a curiosity about the world — a curiosity that has not abated. During the seven years he lived in Algeria, he learned the importance of diverse cultural connections.

His father, of French and Corsican descent, worked for the French railroad. But Bousquet gives his mother, an insurance agent of Italian ancestry, credit for developing his “business side.”

Bousquet has long been an advocate for international collaboration in business, science and technology, and UW-Madison has benefited from his unique life experiences.

Raised and educated in France after his family left Algeria, Bousquet earned a doctorate at the Université de Provence in 1983. He came to UW-Madison in 1982 as an exchange lecturer in French. Bousquet, who speaks four languages and who, as a young man, held an internship at Shell, says, “When I arrived, I saw the possibilities of exposing an even greater number of students to the international community.”

At UW-Madison, Bousquet taught graduate and undergraduate classes in language, culture, business and literature in the Department of French and Italian. He became particularly interested in international collaboration in the areas of technology transfer, high-tech business and biotechnology.

Bousquet co-founded the Capstone Professional French Masters Program, a professional degree track for students who want to incorporate French into their careers outside of the academy. In 2001, he was also instrumental in establishing the Center for Interdisciplinary French Studies at UW-Madison. Before becoming dean in 2002, he served as chair of the Department of French and Italian, and as director of the Center for European Studies within the university’s International Institute.

Expanding international internships

Bousquet recently sat down to talk about his eagerness to increase global awareness on campus and of UW-Madison’s unique international studies programs. The sounds of students filtered through the windows of his Bascom Hill office.

To Bousquet, becoming globally competent — learning a foreign language and taking area and international studies courses — is critically important. But global competence isn’t something learned only in class. “You also have to expose young people to the world,” Bousquet says, adding that an international academic experience, such as study abroad or an international internship, was a key component. “Through our work with the Department of Public Instruction, we have made the case that if you integrate international teaching early, you can inspire young minds to do great things,” he says.

At UW-Madison, more language courses are now available than when Bousquet first came on campus. The university offers instruction in more than 60 languages, including less commonly taught languages, putting UW-Madison head and shoulders above most American universities. Its Language Institute, an initiative of the College of Letters and Science with International Studies support, builds on UW-Madison’s tradition of excellence in language study. “A course in business French was in place when I came here, but now we have many language courses geared toward the business community,” says Bousquet.

Bousquet has long been a strategic thinker when it comes to advancing global programs. A core element toward furthering the idea of thinking globally has been the expansion of international academic internships. Several years ago, Bousquet connected with the School of Business to establish an internship program in France. This summer, a new partnership with the School of Business, the College of Engineering, and the Institute for Cross-College Biology Education resulted in a program that sent students overseas to work at international companies in Asia and Europe.

“The UW has been at the forefront in this worldwide collaboration that involves U.S.-based companies and their subsidiaries abroad,” he says.

The program, open to all UW-Madison undergraduates, involves regular faculty check-ins while the student is working abroad. According to Bousquet, the program helps broaden the students’ world views. Currently, the program has seven exchange interns, including one at Promega’s branch office in the Netherlands and several in Japan. Internships at Toshiba and Japan Railway were facilitated by Japanese executives who are UW-Madison alumni.

Bousquet would like to see the intern pilot program grow. “The more internships, the better,” he notes. “It is in the best interests of the university, the state and the international arena to have an even larger number of students working in a cross- cultural environment.”

Fostering cross-cultural teams

Central to Bousquet’s vision is ensuring that the university serves as a conduit or change agent for international training across all the professional schools. The Center for Global Health, inaugurated in December 2005 and a partnership among the Division of International Studies and UW-Madison’s four health sciences schools, is another collaboration that promotes interdisciplinary and global education.

“We as a university have to respond to the needs of our students so they are successful globally,” Bousquet says.  The Center for Global Health has instituted a graduate level certificate in international health. Another example of connecting health and international studies has been an advanced undergraduate course on global AIDS. “The student and faculty feedback about this course has been tremendous,” reports Bousquet.

“When you graduate from the university and have had courses like this one that expand your global competence, the result is a win-win for everyone.”

Reaching out to businesses

Another important initiative that offers international learning is the International Institute, a joint effort of International Studies and the College of Letters and Science. Now celebrating its 10th anniversary, the institute, especially its Center for World Affairs and the Global Economy (WAGE), specializes in outreach programs to business and government, including executive briefings and talks.

Bousquet is confident that there is a wealth of new opportunities on the horizon that will benefit students, the business community and the university.

“We have the resources here, in terms of expertise and knowledge, and international connections, not to mention a keen interest in partnering with business,” he says. Adding to the university’s resources is a large pool of alumni from around the world. Currently, about 3,500 students from 99 countries are studying at UW-Madison, while another 18,000 are international alumni. Bousquet’s International Advisory Board includes nearly 20 UW-Madison alumni with international business ties. “These are excellent resources for creating business partnerships,” he says.

Bousquet pointed out that, despite UW-Madison’s extensive and growing resources in international studies, the university doesn’t have all the answers. “We want to know better what business needs for their workforce and how we can help,” he says. To Bousquet, communication is crucial. “Our No. 1 goal in internationalizing the campus is global competence,” he says. “After all, we’re in the business of producing employees and preparing students for the future.”

For more information visit the International Studies Web site.

With an increasingly globalized economy and the challenges of living in a post-9/11 world, international study has never been more worthy of attention and support, Bousquet emphasizes. “In a more volatile post-9/11 environment, we all have to work harder to connect with one another. We’re not going to solve problems unilaterally.”

Visit our archives to read articles from previous issues of the UW Business Wire.

Funding International Studies Programs: A Message from Dean Bousquet

I am delighted to announce that eight of the university’s area and international studies programs have been awarded a combined total of nearly $4 million per year during the next four years in federal Title VI grants under the National Resource Centers (NRC) program and the Foreign Language Area Studies (FLAS) program, administered by the U.S. Department of Education.



Congratulations to the African Studies Program; Center for Russia, East Europe and Central Asia; Center for East Asian Studies; Center for European Studies; Global Studies; Latin American, Caribbean and Iberian Studies Program; Center for South Asia; and Center for Southeast Asian Studies. The awards testify to the resourcefulness, perseverance and excellence of the centers’ staff and faculty.


It is unusual and especially prestigious to have so many NRCs at one campus, given the highly competitive, peer-reviewed nature of the Title VI competition. These new awards reflect our continuing leadership role nationally in area and international studies programs. We are a model of excellence to which the state, nation and the world can look to for inspiration and guidance.

The new funding will enable us to continue to offer a wide range of activities that provide depth and breadth in research and training across the UW-Madison campus, that prepare our students for the demands of a global economy, and that reach out to K-16 teachers, government and business leaders, and the general public in the best traditions of the Wisconsin Idea. Our eight NRCs, along with other member programs of the International Institute and several campus units affiliated with the Division of International Studies, represent a formidable knowledge base. 



Ten years ago, the International Institute was founded as a joint initiative with the College of Letters and Science. I can think of no better way to celebrate the Institute’s anniversary than with this good news. My office is pledged to support our NRCs and the institute as a whole and guarantee continued excellence in teaching, research and outreach. I look forward to working with you to ensure future success.



-- Gilles Bousquet

Dean of International Studies

Director, International Institute

The mission of the Division of International Studies is to catalyze UW-Madison efforts to educate globally competent professionals and citizens through cutting-edge teaching and research, and outreach to partners on campus, around the state and the world.