This case study contributes to the higher education curriculum development literature by showing how a faculty-led short-term study abroad experience can become the catalyst for student research and offer students an international perspective. The authors analyze students' reflections and provide data collected over the years of taking undergraduate business and economics majors on a study abroad course to China to learn about the country's political, social, and economic dynamics. The paper argues that a faculty-led study abroad program provides a unique platform that helps students find appropriate research topics, gather quantitative and qualitative data, and develop meaningful relationships among observed phenomena. We find that the whole experience of involving students in research through a faculty-led international course enhances the students' understanding of research, broadens their intellectual horizons, and enhances their interest in, and facility to, understand international issues. Recommendations from the authors' experiences with curriculum development through a faculty-led study abroad course are offered to show how the undergraduate research experience can be enhanced.