My interest in Finance began in my second semester of undergraduate studies. I entered Northeastern University with the intention to study mathematics, a subject I excelled at and enjoyed from a young age. However, I was dissatisfied its lack of real-life applications and was advised to transfer into Business Administration with a concentration in finance, which allowed me to apply the fundamental logic of mathematics to my interests in problem solving and communications, and I was  later inspired by my mentor at Ernst and Young, Wade, to pursue management as a career path. I would love the opportunity to study Enterprise Risk Management at Columbia University because, aside from being a stellar program, its level of specialization can lead me to a fulfilling professional career—one that allows me to solve problems hands-on, build teams, manage effectively, and fulfill my aptitudes for mathematics and detail.

I have taken multiple opportunities during my undergraduate studies to explore this interest, but the most influential were my work at State Street Corporation, my participation in the Northeastern University Chinese Student and Scholars Association, and my internship at Ernst & Young. At State Street, my team was responsible for first-line risk management. I gained valuable experience  working with the trade desk to supervise and monitor trading, writing procedures to reduce risk, and collaborating with an analytical team to conflate the fluctuation of collateral as affected by everyday operations. This allowed me to familiarize myself with the inner workings of corporate finance in a real-world context. I was also prompted by my coworkers, who were mostly graduate students with very specialized areas of proficiency, to think more critically about what aspect of Finance I wanted to pursue, and whether graduate school would be beneficial for my career plans. As a development planner and team leader for the Chinese Student Association, I realized my passion for teamwork,organization, and leadership. Not only did I organize career developments every semester, I took the initiative to plan social events such as lectures and galas in order to foster a robust social relationship and work environment with my peers. I initiated career-planning workshops for other undergraduates, helping them write resumes, connecting them to career counsel, and providing advice on majors and minors. I was responsible for delegating work, corresponding with clients, and recruiting new members for the association, and I thoroughly enjoyed the collaborative  experience!  My participation in the Student Association was very formative because it made consider management as a career path and had an aspect of teaching, which I believe is a fundamental skill to management. The tasks of organization, delegation, and collaboration came naturally to me, and I realized how effective a great team can be in developing big projects to fruition. Finally, at Ernst & Young, I was mentored closely by my team leader Wade. I took the initiative to streamline contract formats and write supporting file code, and my enthusiasm prompted him give me more significant responsibilities, such as resolving balance sheet discrepancies during external audits and assisting  him with accounting work. He took notice of my eagerness to learn and provided one-on-one career guidance for me, gave me tangible experience in the field, and provided resources for me to explore the different possibilities for a career in corporate finance. I was inspired by his innovative approach to daily challenges, but foremost by his dynamic leadership, which made the experience greatly influential in my career goals.

In the Enterprise Risk Management program, I hope to contribute to the program through my passion projects, such as the simulations I coded during my undergraduate studies which modeled initial public offerings and stock market fluctuations for educational purposes. I hope to become an effective and galvanizing team leader, like Wade in order bring an emphasis on the social aspects of the finance world: the impact of leadership, team-building, and collaboration, with a focus on tailoring business practices to the cultural aspects of different markets.

In my long-term professional career, I hope to work in a field related Asset Management and supervise a team. I would love to use my understanding of Finance to help international companies adapt their procedural finances, company culture, and internal communications in order to thrive in today’s global market. I would love to apply innovative solutions that help companies foster inclusivity regardless of geographic differences. For example, the Blackstone Group has had less success in China compared to in the West because of its inability to adapt to the applications of Chinese culture to the Chinese market economy. My goal is to explore this relationship between culture and economy so that companies can thrive independent of cultural barriers.