![]() |
HKUST MBA |
INTERNATIONAL PROGRAM
Read First-hand MBA Exchange Stories
Read First-hand MBA Exchange Stories
Our full-time MBA students have returned from their overseas exchange. Learn more about Alex’s life at Berkeley Haas, Laurent’s experience at CEIBS and Luxi’s stay at LBS below.
Alexander Ip - Exchange to Berkeley Haas
There is a vibrant and growing HKUST Alumni community, which welcomed me even as a current student. The community allowed me to stay connected to Hong Kong among the many events and happenings available in the Bay Area.
The opportunity provided by HKUST’s exchange program supplemented an already-intensive program at HKUST with an experience tailored to my specific MBA goals, where I could further explore my interests at another top business school.
Laurent Ye - Exchange to CEIBS
The opportunity provided by HKUST’s exchange program supplemented an already-intensive program at HKUST with an experience tailored to my specific MBA goals, where I could further explore my interests at another top business school.
Laurent Ye - Exchange to CEIBS
What came next was my favorite part: a retrospection about the intensive experience we had just gone through, coupled with a session during which everyone would give and receive feedback (or “gifts” as Prof. Chris Doran likes to call it) to his or her teammates. At the beginning of my HKUST MBA, the “Experiential Learning Program” was one of my biggest enjoyments, thus this course was a natural next step. I would recommend it to anyone, as it allowed me to learn about myself and see leadership and teamwork through a different lens.
The other one-week course I had the opportunity to take at CEIBS was “Ningbo Module: Family Business and Succession”. The student population of this course differed slightly from the previous one: most were from CEIBS and came from a family business background. Although I do not expect to inherit any business, I did enjoy the learning. What was special in China was that due to its history, most family businesses were at their first generational transition so this was the big topic of the day; it gave me a good idea of what to think of if one day I decide to start my own business.
As I write this article, many fond memories surface from my exchange. Although I only met a limited number of classmates, I was able to build solid relationships as we went through these intense times together.
As for my MBA journey itself, the only description that comes to mind is that it was “on steroids”. From juggling a 14-credit semester with an internship to marrying exchange and work, the intensive workload did teach me an invaluable lesson: remove what is superficial and focus only on what is critical.
Finding that kind of balance requires a lot of self-introspection, but people’s confused expression when I introduced myself as a “student from HKUST, exchanging at CEIBS, and working in Singapore” was simply priceless and made it worth all the effort!
Luxi Wang – Exchange to London Business School
The other one-week course I had the opportunity to take at CEIBS was “Ningbo Module: Family Business and Succession”. The student population of this course differed slightly from the previous one: most were from CEIBS and came from a family business background. Although I do not expect to inherit any business, I did enjoy the learning. What was special in China was that due to its history, most family businesses were at their first generational transition so this was the big topic of the day; it gave me a good idea of what to think of if one day I decide to start my own business.
As I write this article, many fond memories surface from my exchange. Although I only met a limited number of classmates, I was able to build solid relationships as we went through these intense times together.
As for my MBA journey itself, the only description that comes to mind is that it was “on steroids”. From juggling a 14-credit semester with an internship to marrying exchange and work, the intensive workload did teach me an invaluable lesson: remove what is superficial and focus only on what is critical.
Finding that kind of balance requires a lot of self-introspection, but people’s confused expression when I introduced myself as a “student from HKUST, exchanging at CEIBS, and working in Singapore” was simply priceless and made it worth all the effort!
Luxi Wang – Exchange to London Business School
Outside class, LBS also has a variety of active student clubs, which exchange students are welcome to join. Many of us made fast friends at the LBS weekly social event “Sundowner” hosted by the student clubs every Thursday night.
We also have a WhatsApp group for all exchange students, which we used to organize occasional hiking and sightseeing activities in London. It was so nice to explore the city with many other exchange students simply to chat and have fun together.
I must say that the working and communication styles in Europe are quite different from those in Asia or North America. It was amazing that the MBA program could provide this opportunity for us to personally experience these differences before the conclusion of our student journey.
We also have a WhatsApp group for all exchange students, which we used to organize occasional hiking and sightseeing activities in London. It was so nice to explore the city with many other exchange students simply to chat and have fun together.
I must say that the working and communication styles in Europe are quite different from those in Asia or North America. It was amazing that the MBA program could provide this opportunity for us to personally experience these differences before the conclusion of our student journey.