Professor Sharing Section | WKU Professors from CBPM Encourage Students Taking Gaokao

Recently,The Media Center invited Dr. Rob Kim Marjerison and Jerry Choi, two professors from the College of Business and Public Management (CBPM) of Wenzhou – Kean University (WKU), to share their experience and guidance with students taking Gaokao, an annual national college entrance examination in China that marks some of the most life-changing moments in their lives.

Rob Kim Marjerison

Jerry Choi

How can students deal with the pressure and uncertainty in preparing for Gaokao and future life?

With Gaokao quickly approaching, stress levels are rapidly rising in many high-school graduates. Rob expressed that both Jerry and him attended level exams similar to Gaokao, which may vary in different countries. But each version has its merits. For China, a country with a large population, Gaokao can make the college admission process fairer and more merit-based. What matters in the college entrance examination is whether the candidate has truly acquired certain knowledge. It is more of a comprehensive assessment of what students have learned. A one-shot effort cannot promise high scores. Students should make a balanced study plan and set the right mentality for going into this exam. Although Gaokao is an important stop on a person’s lifelong journey, we can still have other options if we fail it.

“For now, adjuet yourself,pace yourself with your studies and also have a good rest.” said Rob.

Dr. Rob once worked as an auditor for the U.S. Department of Labor, spent more than a decade at sea with a merchant fleet, and served as a senior consultant at KPMG. He also managed a small satellite communications company, which was later acquired by ATT. At that time, the business he took charge of grew by more than $100 million in annual revenue. In addition, he holds two master’s degrees and a PhD in International Business from the International Institute of Management in Paris, France. He has been a Professor in Bhutan, Mexico, India, South Korea, Thailand and the US. He visited many other countries. We can credibly describe Rob as a master of time and energy management. So how does he plan for the future despite many uncertainties?

As Rob replied, uncertainties are about things we can’t control in life. Most things in life are out of our control. The only thing we can be sure of is that we can control how we respond to the unexpected things in our lives.

No one had predicted the occurrence of a pandemic like COVID-19. But some companies and individuals are capable of handling the pandemic well, for they are more adaptable.

“Adaptability” was a high frequency word during the interview. Rob explained, “Adaptability is a very important skill for everyone. We need to keep an open mind and accept that there will be uncertainty. Also, be well prepared for what may happen in life and face it.”

“Adaptability has become the watchword of doing business, especially for management,” added Jerry. He joked that Rob must have come across all kinds of emergencies while working at sea. Jerry himself was a Mechanical engineer at BOSCH and responsible for many operational managements. For them, the unexpected is a normal part of life and business operations.

That is what WKU is doing–training students to prepare for and respond to everything that is uncertain and unexpected.

Should I choose what I like or what my parents suggest?

We have to make different choices. It is not a easy task for students to decide on college major or future career. The choices we make determine our future. Follow your heart or your parents’ advice? Rob shared his experience and gave a different answer,

Rob said, “If I put aside actual conditions and livelihood, I would choose to be a guitar player and singer. But unfortunately, I don’t have much talent in music. So I’m afraid this career is not a good choice for me, unless I would spend my life trying unsuccessfully to do well what I enjoyed. ”

Having worked at WKU for more than four years, Rob has taught over 3,000 students, with more than a hundred in close contact. He found that parents play a major role in students’ decision-making about major. In particular, Chinese parents believe that accounting and finance guarantee a stable career in the future. But Rob stressed that the judgment of parents is associated with their own living environment, experience and personal knowledge. What they believe to be the best may have been the best choice one or two generations in the past, but my not be the right choice for their children. This is especially true in a rapidly changing world.

Here is a piece of advice from Rob,trust your parents intentions and don’t simply follow your interests as some of your western peers do. It would be best to choose what you are good at. A lot of students like to play games, but we can’t earn a living from that. Nevertheless, each student has some talents and can be good at something productive. Rob displays strong logical thinking and that explains why he becomes a business expert. Now that he has been engaged in this field for years with extensive management experience, he is eager to train students to think logically as a real businessman does.

He added, “Jerry and I have done different jobs. In fact, many people don’t spend their lives in just one career. Those who study accounting do not take accountant as a lifetime career. The world is changing so fast that you may pursue a career path not aligning with your college major in the future.” He advised students to develop transferable skills that can be applied to different fields.

Why are business programs promising?

Business studies help students build adaptability, resilience and mental toughness, which are important qualities to handle setbacks. Two professors also gave examples of some renowned businessmen such as Bill Gates, Elon Musk and Jack Ma. They were knocked down by life for several times but came back stronger than ever, and they always tried to learn from their experiences. That is the key to their success, a rule that holds true for later followers too. The positive attitude towards failure and resilience are exactly the qualities required for success.

“When we talk about leadership, what do we learn? In fact, an entrepreneur is first of all an intrapreneur, for whom inner qualities come first, and management afterwards,” said the professor.

With great adaptability, resilience to cope with setbacks and certain skills and abilities, a person can surely manage the team well and align each member around a common goal. There is no reason to doubt his or her success. Such a person can adapt to any field and always stand out in a team. These qualities and abilities developed in business studies allow students to be more malleable and adaptable in an uncertain world.

Professors Rob and Jerry then shared two students’ experience. There was a student showing no interest in business but loving music so much, he was encouraged to combine business logic and artistic talent. The students later went to UCL to study entertainment management and worked for a well-known entertainment company in Shanghai after graduation. Another student, who played sports in the stadium all day long, was guided to combine his passion and profession and become a sports agent in Chongqing.

Jerry added that we are now facing increasingly severe and complex business challenges in a globalized world characterized by an interconnected business ecosystem and complicated international relations. WKU wants to train problem solvers, rather than trouble makers, and the goal of business studies is to prepare students for the challenges and problems of tomorrow.

What are the advantages and features of CBPM?

CBPM students take multiple general courses during the first year, including courses from College of Liberal Arts and College of Science and Technology. The programs also help students develop English proficiency, which can improve their comprehensive qualities.

The interdisciplinary curriculum at CBPM is conducive to business logical thinking training in every respect. For example, students majoring in Marketing are also required to take classes related to leadership and organizational capability.

In the ever-changing business world, we can never know what comes next. The advancement of technology, for instance, has given rise to a large number of technology-driven companies. In response to the shifting global business landscape, the school opens courses to equip students with skills such as data mining, programming and data analysis, so that students are better adapted to the business environment in the future. Jerry told us that two top data experts will join CBPM this September. This will be of great significance to the college in the long run.

However, as Jerry put it, the most fundamental focus in business studies is the core competencies to manage money and manage people. By contrast, the capacity to manage data is a supplementary tool for solving problems, one of the capabilities required in business operation.

On this basis, CBPM programs are divided into two curricula, one in Finance and the other in Consulting. These are two major future career choices for students too.

Rob told us that there are generally start-ups and established businesses to be chosen. We may focus more on some large corporations, but small and medium-sized enterprises account for the majority of businesses worldwide. While Finance helps entrepreneurs start a business from scratch, Consulting provides effective solutions to established companies.

So WKU has done a lot of work in Finance and Consulting programs. Apart from taking specialized courses, students also learn to make professional and well-organized business plans, in which students can always reach out for guidance. WKU Business Plan Competition, the Marketing Marathon and other school competitions enable students to receive guidance from experienced experts at home and abroad. The winners will be offered substantial monetary reward to put their business plans into practice. So far, several projects have been in operation.

Business major program emphasizes application of what students learn in classes. Rob stressed that CBPM provides training courses that can develop students’ skills to do business in real markets. First, it is supported by professors from all over the world, who have extensive teaching and working experience. Many of them have made impressive achievements in their business careers. What they produce is not superficial knowledge and empty talk, but practical wisdom.

Second, the college also attaches great importance to cooperation with enterprises to improve students’ practical abilities. For instance, Rob has led his students to work on 12 consulting projects to help Wenzhou companies solve practical problems. “Role-plays in the classroom allow our students to have a basic understanding of complete consulting services, including problem analysis and providing tailor-made solutions, but actually working with real companies and helping them grow and prosper is the best way to learn,” said Rob.

At the end of the interview, Professors Rob and Jerry wished all high school graduates a great success in Gaokao!

Writer:Alisa