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How Is COVID-19 Impacting International MBA Students?

Five international MBA students tell you what it's like studying abroad during the COVID-19 pandemic and why you should still value MBAs with on-campus learning

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Tue Dec 8 2020

BusinessBecause

4. Medha Agarwal, India

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I flew in, and had to delay by a few weeks as Hong Kong temporarily banned all flights from India. I found out I’d got a flight on the 7th September with two days notice to get my test results and say bye to everyone— everything changed so fast. I actually enjoyed my quarantine a lot since I was exhausted, it was good to relax after the long journey before starting such an intensive program.

COVID-19 has made things a bit difficult— originally my mom and sister were going to come to Hong Kong with me— instead it’s my first time staying away from my family.

But in terms of my studies, it’s not changed things that much and I didn’t do any online classes. We’re still getting face to face interactive lectures by professors. I always imagined doing my MBA in person, and HKU offers a great network to meet people, so I don’t want to miss a day.

I am super excited about spending this year with my cohort.


5. Nicole Yoo, South Korea d0b2701030a9048f8ccad0678a8e79b1c62c94e6.png

When I arrived in Hong Kong from Korea, the process was well streamlined, so I could get to the hotel within three hours of arriving. The coronavirus test process was easier and safer than I expected.

I took online classes until the middle of September, when HKU changed to the hybrid mode.

Online learning is famously flexible, especially for international students who had issues with flights and visas.

But, attending the classes in person allows me to interact with classmates and professors face-to-face, and makes me feel more responsible regarding meetings, assignments, and exams. I think it’s important to have a balance between both.

The switch to online has made me think about how to adapt and prepare for the smoothest transition into my future career. I was planning to attend forums and conferences on the Hong Kong luxury market, which have mostly been moved online due to COVID-19 restrictions.

With the online advantage, I am making my own network actively via social media to create a rich network of experienced professionals, and build a sense of community.

Student Reviews

The University of Hong Kong (HKU) - MBA Programmes HKU Business School

Student

Verified

23/02/2023

On Campus

Academic

Very good academic, caes course amazing, ccs are all amazing, professors are excellent, the architecture and infrastructure is splendid, people here are awesome, made some really nice friends, and teachers support us

Hatim

Verified

6/02/2023

On Campus

Diversified culture

I highly recommend The University of Hong Kong to students all around the world because of their diversified culture, teaching standards, and the people which make the learning experience better every day.

Student

Verified

6/10/2017

A place where you best understand local and international cultures

With plenty of experiences available, HKU provides a plenty of experience for me to explore our own and other countries culture. She has excellent teaching and research staffs in the Department of Ecology and Biodiversity. Time allocate to students are considered sufficient and staffs are ready to reach anytime. Besides academic, she has various subsidised programmes that allow students to explore. This credit should be given to GenEd (general education) Office to provide different interesting programmes. These ranged from guest speaker giving talks on China-Hong Kong relationship; Contemporary art in Asia; or holding mini forum on geopolitics. Most, if not all, of which are free of charge!

Student

Verified

1/10/2017

Life at HKU

Pursued the SHS degree at HKU, academic and clinical staff members were very devoted and passionate. The academic program is under constant reviews, staff members are open minded and willing to modify the program with regards to students' opinions. Career prospect is good. Uni life is fruitful, many different activities for students to choose. Great facilities supporting learning.

Student

Verified

29/09/2017

Student Life in HKU

As an Accounting and Finance year3 undergrad student in HKU, the university provides lots of opportunities for me to learn and explore my interests. You could join a wide variety of activities, like being an committee member of societies and joining hall activities. As for me, I chose to join the winter exchange programme, be a committee member, and did volunteering servic and had latrine construction and volunteer teaching in Ghana, Africa. I also organized lots of activities for societies and had lots of meetings with company representatives. As for school work, it is okay normally but definitely u got a lot busier during November and April. You got a lot more free time compared to CUHK and HKUST. And of course, this is considered as the most ‘international’ uni in HK in a way that I could make friends coming from different countries. Just wanna add, HKU has a good location for foodie as its near Central, Causeway Bay and Tsim Sha Tsui. For those who love night lifes dont miss this. I didnt speak of anything i dislike coz there isnt anything i dislike much, but if I do have to say, it is the hall life of many local students, such as having cheers at night and never sleeps that may disturb others.

Student

Verified

2/09/2020

Blended

Academics

I think it’s a great university that gives you a lot of opportunities in terms of academics as well as extracurricular activities. The education system is fairly westernized and the professors are good for the most part.

Student

Verified

3/11/2017

International, stratified and political

Adequate resources and very convenient campus with sufficient channels to expand your social and professional circle. Also politically active, and perhaps too biasedly so. Its law school is firmly established, with the longest history in Hong Kong. Practical and professional training, with a constant atmosphere of anxiety and competition that encourages a relatively focused and narrow vision of career outlook. Good range of extra curricular activities available.

Student

Verified

12/10/2017

Life in HKU

HKU provides students with lots of opportunities in multidisciplinary researches and experiences. This encourages students to widen their horizons and prepare for the future. The programme I attended organised both local and oversea field trips that allowed me to have the first hand experiences of relative aspects. It was very useful for my later career.

Student

Verified

6/10/2017

BSocSc

I am a graduate of the BSocSc programme several years ago. I appreciate that the programme provided a flexible choice of majors and minors. Even I was admitted into social sciences programme, I could explore various streams of studies in and out of the social sciences faculty, including global studies, human resources, politics, science and music. I did a double major in psychology and sociology. Among all learning experiences in lectures, tutorials, field trips…, I would say the internship experience was one of the most memorable part of my university life. The faculty offers a credit-bearing internship programme in which students can go to various NGOs to work on social issues, ranging from poverty, education to adjustment of ethnic minorities. Students can be placed locally or overseas, depending on placement quota, their personal preference and past experience. I went to a social service agency that serves adults who are intellectually challenged and have autism spectrum disorder. It was an eye-opening experience in observing how different professionals work together to provide training for those people and reflecting on how psychological knowledge could come into play. I was also able to gain some hands-on experience in leading an activity. There are more and more internship opportunities for university students. It is just another way to gain practical experience apart from applying for interns in government agencies or business companies, especially in organisations that would not openly recruit interns but only work with tertiary institutions. It should be noted that for some majors/courses, there are really a lot of people studying. When I was an undergraduate back then, we often expected a lecture with 100+ students and a tutorial with nearly 20 students. If you favour close student-teacher interaction in small classes, you may look into the enrolment of particular courses.