One year ago when I decided to give up two offers from the US and UK, come to HK to study at MGPE, I was still quite uncertain about myself and what I want to become in life. I simply expected to take a break from the pure and narrow economics, yet it has exceeded any of my wildest imagination. My understanding about the global economy has been lifted to a higher level where previous thoughts are strengthened in a practical way and new ideas cultivated from a broader sense. I began to analyze the world affairs not only from economic (market-driven) side, but also from social, political and even ecological perspectives. Thanks to MGPE, I become a more tolerant and critical thinker, and that is what I believe education and civilization are really about. Graduated from MGPE, I am now fully aware of my interest in social innovation and sustainable development and life-long devotion in helping people. Be a distinguishing self but also stay an open mind — has become a motto. It is all MGPE. People here are so diversified; everyone has different background and exciting stories that are unique. I made great friends as well. We not only delivered great presentations and papers together; one after another, they opened new windows in my life. Values to discuss, books and websites to share, events and challenges to sign up together… they have indeed make my life more colourful. I have become this interesting and influencing person I am proud of. Really, I thank MGPE, the staff, professors and fellow students; this one-year experience has given me so much that I will never forget.
Upon graduating as an Economics student majoring in Economy and Trade, I was looking for more farsighted and strategic insights into the economy world besides all the technical knowledge. At that time, the MGPE program provided by CUHK caught my eyes. Besides, compared to mainland, Hong Kong is more matured in Finance and Economy and it looks at politics from more aspects so it would be a good place to study this subject. Therefore I came here and from the beginning of the study I started to find the interactions between politics and economy really fascinating. The program helped me better connect the dots between politics and economy in the global context. It not only encouraged me to figure out how significant the regional government and politicians would affect our world, but also led me to think more carefully at my work in the field of business consulting.
The MGPE program is comprehensive and broad, as it consists of different disciplines related to international issues. Through this program, which offers me a chance to learn knowledge I have never engaged in, I have grasped how to analyze an international event from diversified perspectives combined with politics, economics, finance and sociology.
Moreover, the program also provides us students opportunities to communicate with talents and professors from different fields. Discussion with those outstanding experts through academic conferences, lectures and even extra-curriculum activities is an amazing experience, enabling us to learn knowledge more thoroughly and interestingly, rather than the boring teaching model.
Lastly, classmates cannot be overlooked, as they are essential for the MGPE life. Our classmates all come from different countries with different background, and everyone have their unique experiences and specialties. Studying and having fun with them helps me comprehend different culture, work and other areas of life, and it is happy to make friends with them.
It was a fantastic journey to study in MGPE, where you could have discussions on political and economic issues with classmates from various cultural and educational backgrounds. Teachers of MGPE spared no effort to impart knowledge and methodologies from different perspectives which you might have never thought of to you.
It was an amazing journey to study in the MGPE program during 2019-2020, a very different and challenging academic year. The MGPE program has changed my way of thinking about the unpredictable things happening in the world. Every week we had different books or materials to read and we also discussed current affairs in various countries. Professors always welcomed different opinions and encouraged everyone to join the discussion actively. Moreover, the MGPE program has helped me to jump out of the framework of pure economics for it facilitated us to get in touch with various fields such as political science, international relations, sociology, and even urban planning. What impressed me most was the experience of giving a presentation on Sino-US trade war together with classmates from different cultural backgrounds and undergraduate backgrounds. We contributed our own strengths from the perspectives of international relations, trade policy, and international economics, and learned from each other in an effective way. There were many other similar experiences during this year which I will never forget. Here I have broadened my horizons, learned how to analyze issues from more perspectives, and gained precious friendship.
