“Move to higher platform by getting higher qualification!”

Luke Zhang is a student of the China Europe International Business School (CEIBS). He worked for seven years in China as a portfolio manager in charge of macro hedging at a private fund company prior to CEIBS.

What made you choose CEIBS despite your educational background from New Zealand?

I think there are four main factors that people look at in deciding to pursue an MBA. Firstly, there are people who want to get out of their comfort zone, or who face a bottleneck in their career. The second factor is to move to a higher platform by getting higher qualification. Third is to switch industry, especially those who were tech-oriented such as engineers and employees in the IT field. And the last group is people who want to start their own business after the MBA.

I am close to the second type of people. I knew China provides a promising prospect for the future. While the global economy is experiencing a recession, China stands a better chance of surviving. There will be many opportunities especially in the financial industry since the Chinese government is determined to turn Shanghai into one of the world’s financial hubs. Therefore, I chose to pursue an MBA in China. I consider CEIBS valuable in the diversity of people — faculty members, prominent professors, student body, and alumni — embedded the quality of “china depth and global breadth.”

What attributes should you have to be successful in doing an MBA? What do you wish you had known before you pursued your MBA education?

I wouldn’t use the word “success” since everyone defines success differently. Students in general, however, gain more from an MBA, if they are humble enough and willing to learn, be friendly and proactive to have more chances to make friends and interact with people, be open-minded in order to absorb information and knowledge from colleagues from different industry, and have clear goal.

I think I am quite happy with what I knew before pursuing an MBA. I do want to mention that, however, in order to learn and experience more from an MBA, it’s recommended that you have over five years of working experiences. One can reflect and integrate more from their previous experiences.

What is the most difficult part while you are studying?

Time management is the most difficult part for me.

There is an economic theory — impossible trinity means that we can only pick two out of three options. We applied this to MBA life, that we can only pick two among social activities, study and sleep.

What factors should future students consider when choosing an MBA program?

Prospective students should think about why they want to pursue an MBA degree. It should not because of just what others doing, but because you really need an MBA degree for your future career.

With regard to your work experiences, how helpful was it for your studies and life at the school?

My experience in the financial world makes the workload of an MBA program seem less heavy. I could spend more time to study soft skills such as organizational behavior, marketing and strategy as well as more time to network with others.

What is your long-term goal?

I want to start my own asset management company or play an entrepreneurial role in a company after graduation.

Interview by Bahk Eun-ji