My Global Future Leader Experience
Lloyd is currently studying at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), with major in business economics, and minor in accounting. He distinguished himself not only in the grades he earned, but also in his widespread interest regarding like the sports and music. Besides creating the Bruin Hedge Fund Club of UCLA as one of the joint-founders, he is also an active member of the soccer and guitar club.
On July 1st, Lloyd came to Beijing to participate in the Global Future Leader Assistantship Program, and experience China by studying in the Peking University and living with a selected Chinese family.
The Global Future Leader experience has been a tremendously rewarding experience. Not only has this program expanded my views on China as a nation but also gave me the opportunity to experience China’s storied history, arts and culture. Not only that, staying with a host family gave me the first-hand opportunity to interact with local Chinese citizens to better understand their nation’s perspectives. Thanks to my gracious hosts, I was afforded the chance to visit many cultural attractions and restaurants synonymous to Beijing - like the Summer Palace, The Great Wall and Dadong – places that have come to define Beijing’s identity.
This program has also allowed me to study at one of China’s premier universities. Learning Mandarin at Peking University has increased my grasp of the language and made me realize the importance of Chinese as a global language in the 21st century. The teachers that have taught me were so enthusiastic and affable that I longed to come to class every day. The experience was made better by the wonderful classmates that I have, some of whom I have made close connections with.
Zhang Yao – China’s Internet technology boom
On May 11th, 2016, Zhang Yao, founding partner of Beijing Bit Capital Investment Management Co. Ltd and internet hardware entrepreneur, gave a lecture at the Honshow Art Museum in Beijing on how the internet is changing traditional industries. With less than 30 available seats, which most were reserved for industrial entrepreneurs, one of the summer participants of the GFL program received a great opportunity to take part and get to know more about China’s great ”Internet Plus” Strategy. At this event, the participant understood the importance and the growing demand of the intellectual infrastructure market in China.
China has the biggest amount of Internet users in the world and boasts a huge e-commerce market with successful companies such as Alibaba, Tencent (creator of WeChat), Baidu and Xiaomi. With a GPD-growth slowing down, the Chinese government has outlined a new strategy called ”Internet Plus” to reinvigorate the economy by relying on the power of the web and technology. Working within the high-tech industry, Zhang Yao has paid close attention to how e-commerce companies have integrated internet technology with manufacturing and business, and gained the upper hand in the competition with traditional industries.
For the future participants of the Global Future Leader Assistantship Program there will be similar opportunities waiting ahead!
Global Future Leader present at the NAFSA 2016 Conference & Expo in Denver
From the 29th May to the 3rd of June, Global Future Leader Assistant Program attended the 69th NAFSA Conference and Expo held in Denver, USA. Being present at the six days long event for the very first time, the GFL office got an unique opportunity to enjoy the broad platform that the conference and expo offers, and explore new and exciting horizons in international education!
During the annual NAFSA event, representatives from the GFL office engaged in conversations with universities and other organizations within the education industry from Canada, USA, Britain and Australia, on a wide range of topics connected to studying and interning in China. This did not only prove to be fruitful towards connecting and establishing relations with educational institutions abroad, but also to deepen the understanding of current trends within international education.
