M.B.A./M.S.A. Dual Master Degree - Alumna

Why did you choose graduate school at IUPUI?

In 2013, I met an entrepreneur, Bill Warren, who travelled to Beijing, China to launch a press conference for his project. I was serving as an interpreter for Bill and his group during their 5-day visit. After his visit, I became extremely interested in business, though my undergraduate degree is Broadcasting Journalism. Bill is from Indiana and graduated from Indiana University. He immediately recommended Kelley School of Business to me. Besides that, Bill and his wife, Susan, became my host family since I came to the U.S., inviting me to their house every single holiday. I am just in LOVE with the people in Indiana. So when it came time to choose my graduate school, Kelley School of Business (IUPUI) is the only school to which I applied, and thankfully, I was accepted.

What has been your favorite academic accomplishment since you’ve been here?

My favorite academic accomplishment is that I received the Kenda Beery Scholarship from the Master of Accounting program in September this year. It was such an honor to be the first recipient of this scholarship. I am also deeply humbled to be elected as the incoming President for our Graduate Accounting Student Board (GASB). I enjoy helping students to advance in their school and career, and giving back to the local community as much as we can. Lastly, I went through the Kelley Career Service and received a full-time job offer from Ernst & Young (EY) a few months ago. I would not have achieved these without Kelley.

What do you enjoy most about life in Indianapolis?

I love Indianapolis. It has both a big city and small city feel, with the quietness in the day and some vibrant elements at night. I am from Shanghai, the largest city in China with over 24 million people. I am very used to living in an urban city with the convenience of getting around using public transportation. Moving to Indianapolis is quite a big change for me. However, with the help of my host family and many other friends from church and school, I quickly settled down and enjoy driving around with very little traffic. I also enjoy walking and running by the canal in the afternoon when the sun is out. It is so peaceful and relaxing.

Please provide some details about your work/research as a graduate student and/or any activities you are involved in.

• Working as Due Diligence Analyst for one of the largest venture capital firms in Indiana, analyzing company’s data, market potential, ROI etc. in preparation for presenting the due diligence report to the investor (Angel) network
• Serving as a student member for the Membership Committee, Venture Club of Indiana, managing current member relationships and new member recruiting strategies
• Serving as a board member for GASB (Graduate Accounting Student Board) for over a year and will lead the organization to create more value for MSA/MST students
• Student member of Bridges International, a Christian organization for international students. Received a scholarship to attend a Christian conference held in Austin, Texas last December, which began my journey of becoming a Christian.
• Received a scholarship for the upcoming study abroad trip to South Africa in March 2017, and will be doing a management consulting project for local companies.
• Worked for Prof. Marjorie Lyles as a Graduate Research Assistant this past year on a research project about CEO hubris. Collected data of hubris measures for 200 selected CEOs and the financial data from the corresponding 72 sample S&P 500 & 1000.
• firms over the past 17 years, which helped analyze the correlation between CEO hubris and the firms’ M&A activities
• Went to India in March this year for a study abroad trip, learning about the challenges and opportunities of doing business in India and other emerging markets.
• One of the founding members of KIMWA (Kelley Indianapolis MBA Women Association), advocating for gender parity and women leadership.
• Won 3rd place in the Three Minute Pitch (3MP) Research Communication Competition, presenting a complex statistics research paper clearly and effectively under three minutes.