WU Xiaoling
PBC School of Finance
Tsinghua University
August 29, 2013
Good evening all:
Welcome to Tsinghua PBC School of Finance!
Taking this opportunity, I want to share with you, our 138 new students5 new teachers, two words, "mission""dedication".
First is mission.
Tsinghua University PBCSF was founded on the basis of the Graduate School of PBC, an esteemed school established when China's Economic Reform was first initiated. It distinguished itself as the intellectual home for China’s financial talents, whose hard work in turn won a great reputation for their Alma Mater. Back then it was an innovation for a central government body to run a school by itself.the school did not have its own full-time faculty. The teachers we had were either from PBCthe financial system, especially the late economists with the BankingFinance Research Institute, whose pictures can still been seen in the teaching building;from Renmin UniversityProfessor Huang Da, whose work highlights the latest research results on finance by combining concepts from Sovietand socialist market theory;Peking University professors, Chen DaisunLi Yining being two outstanding representatives, who introduced Western Economics to China. Thanks to them, our students are exposed to the nutrition of professional practices, socialist market theory,western economics.
As reformopening upeducational revolution gained momentum, this approach could not always satisfy the needs of the time. After ten years of explorationa whole year of preparation, the Graduate School merged into Tsinghua University to form Tsinghua University PBCSF on March 29 last year. The past generation has had their mission accomplished,we, as part of Tsinghua University, have new missions ahead.
We have a mission for our country. China, once impoverished, has become the largest developing countrysecond largest economy in the world. It prides every Chinese people. But China is still underrepresentedincompetent in the international arena. So our mission is more than making China a better country, but to make it more engaged in the world.
If we are to say the graduates from Graduate School of PBC have contributed to China’s financial reform in last three decades, students of the new school are expected to engage more with the worldto voice for Chinafor the welfare of the people.
We also have a mission for the School. You are the first class of the re-designed Master of Finance Program, a professional degree program with a shortened duration of two years. Our exploration also includes the PhD program. This year, our doctoral students are admitted by different means. We have direct-doctoral, regular-track (full-timepart-time), international students, etc.
I was admitted to the the Graduate School in 1981 as its first class of students. You are in the same situation as we were. Although benefiting from the past teaching experience of the Graduate School, you still have a long way to go as the first class admitted after the establishment of PBC School of Finance.
Second is dedication.
I understand that some students are planning to intern during the second semester, but my advice is that you value the opportunity to study fulltime here. I don’t think it's a wise choice for you to list job-hunting as your priority now. It is common to have managers with master degrees coming here for part-time postgraduate study. They make such a decision because they regard education as an opportunity to improve their career prospect. Therefore, I hope that you try your best to avoid being distracted by part-time jobsinternships. In fact, you will have access to internship programs based on strategic contracts that we have signed with reputable financial institutions. You will also benefit from the career development services through lectures arranged by the School. A master degree from Tsinghua University PBCSF will ensure you a good start, however, in order to secure a good job, you should sharpen your abilities.
Our program concentrates on developing your professional skillsoffering you access to financial institutions. We have a 2000-alumni network of influential figures of governmental agenciesfinancial organizations. You will definitely benefit from this community as long as you have confidence, skillsknowledge.
In the end, I wouldto thank Tsinghua University for its support, especially, the extraordinary management team it provides. I appreciate their commitment to developing this newly-established school. I also appreciate teachers who have come back from overseas, including Prof. ZHOU Hao, Prof. CAO Quanwei, Prof. LI Sifive new teachers for their endeavor to work for this young but traditional school. My thanks also go to the other 100 staff members. With your commitment, we are confident that Tsinghua University PBCSF will have an ever brighter future.
Thank You.
