Students and local residents who are interested in teaching English in Asia are welcome to attend this information session! The session begins with information on teaching in China and South Korea through various opportunities, including the Teach and Learn in Korea (TaLK) and English Program in Korea (EPiK) programs, and continues with the official Japan Exchange & Teaching (JET) Program information kit and alumni panel. Stop by for a short time or stay for the entire session - we will answer your questions and help you decide which option is right for you and how to get started!

Meet with Pitt Alumni and China Business Expert Lois Dougan Tretiak!

Lois Dougan Tretiak has more than 30 years experience working on China business issues and direct involvement in China. A graduate of the University of Pittsburgh, Ms. Tretiak is currently the Senior Advisor on China for the Economist Group. She also served as the Economist Group’s Chief Representative in Beijing and Shanghai, advising businesses on Chinese investment strategies.

Over the past two decades, China’s economy has enjoyed remarkable economic growth, and the Chinese economy is currently the second largest in the world — behind that of the United States. Some observers believe that China’s economy will overtake the United States by 2030, if not before. Yet recent reports indicate that China’s growth rate is slowing, with market analysts and economists predicting an annual growth rate as low as 7.5 percent — China’s lowest since 1990.

The struggle between Russia and Great Britain over Central Asia in the nineteenth century was the original "great game." But in the past quarter century, a new "great game" has emerged, pitting America against a newly aggressive Russia and a resource-hungry China, all struggling for influence over one of the volatile areas in the world. In Great Games, Local Rules, Alexander Cooley, one of America's most respected Central Asia experts, explores the dynamics of the new competition over the region since 9/11.

The theme for the 2012 conference is "Modernity and Cultural Development: the Changing China in a Globalized and Digitized World"