PhD Experience Sharing Gathering

Our Department held the PhD experience sharing gathering for PhD students and their supervisors and panel members on 16 June 2017 (Friday). The event was well attended by not only students and their supervisors and panel members, but also by the whole AC faculty, the Graduate Teaching Assistants and Teaching Assistants.

We understand that graduating PhD students are very concerned with their job placements and with completing their theses on time. We hoped to alleviate their pressure and provide them with a chance to share their thoughts. Everyone enjoyed the event immensely that they freely talked to their friends, and shared their thoughts with their peers and faculty members.

Let’s enjoy the photos below and see what some of them had to say about the gathering.

**Shared by Colleagues**

"I regarded the PhD experience sharing gathering as a valuable opportunity to gain extensive knowledge about the Accountancy profession for my research study in the near future."

Ms Daphne LAU, GTA

"The PhD sharing gathering was very fruitful. It has provided us with a fantastic opportunity to share our information, our thoughts, and the future development of the Department’s PhD program. I very much enjoyed chatting with our instructors and students, and I congratulated our PhD graduates who have bright careers ahead of them. Of course, I enjoyed the food and snacks a lot too!"

Ms Daisy WU, GTA

"At the Department function, our Graduate Teaching Assistants had the opportunity to listen to PhD students share their experiences, to help them overcome the stress of study workload and job placements. It was our pleasure to talk to them and hear them share insights and stories with peers."

Miss Maple WU, GTA

"Originally I didn’t know much about PhD study, such as what PhD students’ work lives look like, what courses they are studying, and how to write a dissertation. After chatting with some PhD students and professors, I was told that a PhD degree is extremely challenging, as it requires three to four years of effort and dedication. Yet it is a rewarding learning experience through which I could learn perseverance and persistence. And a PhD degree is recognized and appreciated all around the world.

I was delighted to learn more about their PhD journey from this gathering. Thank you to the AC Department for organizing this activity."

Ms Michelle YI, GTA

"The AC Department offers a range of activities directed at the development of PhD programmes. The gathering on June 16 was one of those. It aimed to alleviate PhD students’ thesis-writing pressure and enable the sharing regarding job hunting experience, the preparation of job market papers, and thoughts on research-related topics.

The activity was held in a pleasant environment. We had face-to-face sharing with faculty, CityU PhD students, joint programme students, and those who might be interested in applying to a PhD programme."

Miss Karen ZHANG, PhD student

"I mingled with top-notch researchers. The PhD sharing gathering provided the opportunity to dine and share, not only with fellow PhD students, but also with well-accomplished faculty. I had some questions regarding research in my mind prior to attending the gathering, but I left the gathering with all the answers I needed. How did this happen? Our faculty, albeit busy with their research and work, made time to interact with us on a one-to-one basis, offering their expert advice on various issues that PhD students face."

Mr Albert Kwame MENSAH, PhD student

"I am excited to be a part of the big AC Department family. The Department is making my stay here in CityU memorable by providing much of needed resources and support for the PhD programme. The recent PhD sharing event illustrates AC Department cares for its research students.

I expected that the event would involve a discussion where students shared their experiences and offered suggestions on how to improve our PhD programme, but it turned out to be more comprehensive than I expected. For example, the AC faculty’s renowned accounting researchers shared their experiences, providing opportunities for students to learn from the best. The casual nature of this meeting was appealing and put us all in a relaxed mood conducive to discussion. Thanks to the very supportive administrative staff for organizing the event.

I am sure that similar meetings will take place in the future so that we can share ideas on how to make our research programme more competitive and make the AC Department an even more attractive environment for researchers. "

Mr Bright Gershion GODIGBE, PhD student

"It was a privilege to attend the PhD sharing gathering in the AC Department. It felt like a big family gathering at home, sharing ideas and food. At the gathering, we shared ideas about research and PhD student life. Because AC provides good training and seminars to develop our research skills, we talked a lot about PhD student life. For instance, Prof. Zhang Liandong, talked about the job market and gave many tips on how to build a CV. He also mentioned his career plan and gave suggestions on career paths. He noted the importance of maintaining a good quality of life by striking a balance between PhD studies, hobbies and friendships. In addition, senior PhD students could share their experiences in the job market.

I am in my first year of study, and the importance of developing a research reputation was an important piece of advice that I gained from the sharing event. Prof. Phyllis Mo discussed her research project on the One Belt One Road initiative, and my home country, Indonesia, which is one of the contributing countries. It indicates that the Department does not solely focus on the US, but also has an international focus.

I believe that the PhD sharing event was very beneficial to all PhD students and involved high-quality research training and sharing. I hope this gathering will be held each semester rather than annually."

Mr Novrys SUHARDIANTO, PhD student