Why I chose to study internationally and how this has benefited my career

Originally from China, I spent six years in Singapore and five months in the United States, before pursuing an MSc course in London.

I’ve benefited a great deal from this international exposure in the sense of education, language learning and cultural influence.

Getting familiar with people from different countries makes me more aware of what is happening out there in the world!

I learned to respect others’ lifestyle’s and deal with others with an open mind. What’s more, I became more mature and independent. In the face of difficulties, I can quickly calm myself down and figure out an optimal way to solve it instead of crying on the shoulders of others first. However, there are occasionally problems and hardships too. I try to avoid Chinese festivals since I can’t go back to reunite with my family, which can be an emotional strain.

I became so used to that style of thinking, that I encountered cultural shock when I returned to China during vacation. For instance, I always open gifts in front of my friends when I am abroad but it’s impolite to do so if this takes place in China.  Being financially independent makes me more focused on real problems and thus, to some extent, I felt as though I missed out one some generational fun.

Every penny is carefully considered and I need to save for a long time for a trip home. But I never regret the decision of going abroad since I’ve learned so much, which could never happen if I stayed in China; I would have stayed in my parents’ house, innocent and naïve, without the worldly experience I’ve gained through travel.

Learning to deal with people, solve conflicts wisely and start hunting for jobs has come from international study, which given me more privileges to start preparing myself early. Currently I’m looking for full time positions in Banking/Financial Services. I embrace the challenges in this industry and really see myself working out Excel/VBA macros, solve complex problems using my mathematical background.

However the competition is brutal too. Even if you get the job, the battle has just started as you have to be re-evaluated every year based on your performance.

Despite all these hardships, I still expect to get a job in front office and start my future career in an exciting industry. Meng is an FDM Student Brand Ambassador. If you are interested in a career at FDM Group you can find their latest vacancies on the GradJobs job board!

Meng Zhang is a Master’s student from China who studied Risk Management and Financial Engineering at Imperial College London.