Have you ever thought about making that one big life changing decision? A decision that will change the way you perceive things, allow you to discover your insights, meet people from different parts of the world, understand different cultures and most of all teach you the right skill set on ‘how’ make the right decisions and manage people effectively. If you want to take the next step in your career, an MBA is probably the best stepping stone for you.

I graduated in European Studies and now I’m in the fastest growing country in the world. Why? Personally I do believe each MBA candidate is not necessarily conditioned by previous education background, but rather strong individual motivation, clear career objectives and conviction that I am the manager of my life and the program is a workshop to obtain all crucial skills to become a highly qualified manager of a top company.

Having been brought up in a business family, my parents and brother always involved me in their projects. Since I was a little girl, I always accompanied my father which gave me the opportunity to observe the key factors of being a successful manager. At later stage my brother involved me into our international business. I have travelled around Europe and US to attend exhibitions and trade fairs and then went on to negotiate deals and enter business contracts with our partners. Obviously all these are priceless experiences that can be gained only by practice, however practice should be supported by proper knowledge and this is one of the reasons why I have decided to do an MBA.

Building a solid network is extremely important and a major part of the MBA program. Participation in events and extracurricular activities is a must and time management is extremely crucial in this program. As my school says ‘MBA is all about networking’ and I could not agree more.

Based on discussions with many people from different industries, I decided to reach out to the fastest growing economy in the world. It is my very first time of mine in China, therefore I wanted to live in cosmopolitan city that still maintains traditionalism and this is what Hong Kong has to offer.

The city blends East and West, business and leisure, old and new, and I believe that you get the best of both worlds in Hong Kong.

Personally I feel that the Hong Kong vibe is very similar to that of New York. This city never sleeps and the air just feels a lot more energetic!

I am extremely satisfied with the world class facilities of the Chinese University of Hong Kong. The MBA program dates back to 1966 and was the first MBA School to be set up in Hong Kong. It has the largest base of alumni and experience in providing all necessary services that MBA students require. One good example is Career Management Center. It is an internal organization that is dedicated to help in managing our careers. Before the official launch of the program, the career center organized a three day seminar oriented on general topic of career. In addition, the career center is always ready to arrange individual meetings to discuss and give valuable advice.

The MBA program at CUHK offers four concentrations: Finance, Marketing, Entrepreneurship and China Business. Apart from core courses students must attend electives courses which provide more insight of particular concentration. I have chosen China Business as I am interested in doing business in Asia. Elective courses regard all the important subjects to get to know how to do business in China. There is also one special course which includes a one week trip to Shanghai and Suzhou. During the stay we will visit companies, attend seminar and work on a projects assigned to each group.

The school motivates us to focus on our personal interests, apart from just attending the lectures and study. Students get together to form different clubs such as the Finance, Entrepreneurship, Marketing and China Business clubs according to available concentration.

Membership is another chance of getting to know your classmates better and each club strives to invite speakers related to the scope.

I am the Vice President of Events in the Entrepreneurship club. In coming days there will be the first event held, where the speaker is the young successful founder of aNobii.

As we all know student’s life does not end up only at school. My classmates are fantastic and interesting people, and we are getting closer by exploring Hong Kong’s night life, having dinner or organizing trips to different cities around Hong Kong.

It has been already more than two months since the MBA adventure has begun. Times runs extremely fast and I attempt to make the most out of it. I would like to do internship in the summer term and consider three months of exchange program.

Most importantly, I would like to develop my business, as I am a wine distributor. The local market seems to have great potential but is extremely competitive at the same time. It is important to make the right decisions at the right time in any business. A well established MBA program can train you on how to evaluate situations effectively and capitalize on the opportunities available.