The HKUST Business School has joined with some of the world’s top international institutions to offer a portfolio of dual-degree master’s programs. We talked to two graduates who completed their rewarding HKUST-to-Yale learning journey.
Students who want to become future global leaders now have the opportunity to enrol in a unique dual-degree master’s program, thanks to a collaboration between some of the world’s top business schools.
The Dual-Degree Master’s Program (M2M) is a collaboration between five schools. The network - including the HKUST Business School in Hong Kong, the Yale School of Management (SOM) in the US, HEC Paris in France, FGV EAESP in Brazil, and UBC’s Sauder School of Business in Canada - offers a portfolio of M2M programs. These programs are designed to develop the skills and outlook needed to take on a global role. At this stage, the HKUST Business School has partnered with three of these institutions, Yale, HEC Paris and FGV EAESP, to offer students five options for dual degrees.
At HKUST, the dual degrees options offered are the MSc in International Management program (HKUST-Yale/FGV and HEC-HKUST) and the MSc in Global Operations program (HKUST-Yale/FGV).
Study at two leading business schools
These programs are designed to give students the opportunity to study at two leading business schools in two countries, and to graduate with two master’s degrees. Graduates of these programs will be alumni of two globally prestigious business schools, and will benefit from the career services and networks offered by both institutions.
These advantages were a huge draw for Paul BASHIR, who participated in the International Management program. He started the program at HKUST and finished at Yale. Bashir is now working for Deloitte Consulting in the Government & Public Services practice in the US.
“I had been working for Deloitte in Austria for 18 months. I worked in the M&A practice after my undergraduate studies,” Bashir said. “During my time at Deloitte, I realized that I wanted to move from finance work into strategy consulting. I also decided to move from profit-centric work to mission-driven work.”
The program seemed like the perfect fit for Bashir to achieve his goals. As he was part of the first cohort of students applying to the program, he felt it would be a risk, as there were no alumni to share their experiences. But the program seemed like it would be a good fit for him to achieve his career goals, especially as it was the result of a marriage between two distinguished business schools.
Bashir decided to enrol and his gamble paid off. He praised the variety of the courses on offer. The program encouraged his personal development, and opened his eyes to a whole new world of experiences and learning, he said.
“I attended a Visual Storytelling class at the Yale School of Drama, which had nothing to do with my career, but provided me with valuable new perspectives. You could attend lunch talks every day. They were given by different people from different industries and areas who talked about a broad variety of topics,” he said.
The daily talks covered everything from a Yale professor talking about the latest research on black holes, to CEOs from Fortune 500 companies sharing their perspectives on the future of our society, and to a founder providing his experience about building infrastructure networks in poor countries.
The student body was another huge plus for Bashir. “You could get together with a core group of international students who had all done a year at a school, in different places around the world,” he said. As a result, Bashir says his personal global network is vast. He knows someone in every country that he can go and work in, he said.
Bashir’s sentiments are echoed by Sophie WU. She also started her first year at HKUST and continued her studies at Yale, but with a different field - MSc in Global Operations.
Global Exposure
“M2M has definitely helped me. In terms of location, I think having two top-ranking universities in two financial hubs is a great choice. One is in the APAC market, and the other one is in the US. Also, the alumni network is very strong, and that enables me to reach out to a broad community,” Wu said.
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Paul BASHIR - Consultant at Deloitte US |
Sophie WU - Analyst at Citigroup HK |
Wu had previously spent all her life in China, where she studied for her bachelor’s degree. She felt it was important to gain global exposure while studying for her master’s degree.
“I want a career in banking and finance, and I felt that Hong Kong was the ideal place for me to start my career. I realized that if I was to start my career there, I needed to go to that market,” she said.
Wu’s participation in M2M allowed her to take part in a summer internship in Hong Kong, and that eventually led to an offer of a full-time role at Citigroup Hong Kong.
Wu said the M2M program gave her an extraordinary learning path and noted that it doesn’t let students rest on their laurels. “It’s different from other universities, because it wants the students to think big,” Wu said.
The diverse learning experiences of both Sophie and Paul have not only equipped them with a global mindset, but also to land a job in a city that they like. Our growing number of M2M students will continue to provide the much-needed talent for a globalized economy.
Visit M2M.global for the most curent list of offering:
https://m2m.global/