CB welcomes the first cohort of EMBA+MPA students

In response to the Belt-and-Road initiative and to meet the training needs of senior executives in the face of increasingly complex business and socio-economic environment, the College of Business is collaborating with the School of Public Policy and Management of Tsinghua University to offer Asia’s first Executive MBA + Master of Public Administration programme. With a special focus on public-private partnership, this cutting-edge programme is timely and unique in meeting the contemporary needs of society.

The programme features state-of the-art knowledge and best practices of public-private partnerships and explores the latest business and public administration trends and knowledge that help students grasp the opportunities offered by the Belt-and-Road Initiative as well as to contribute to this gigantic project. With the support of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), part of the programme will be conducted in the UN Switzerland Headquarters and a field trip to Belt-and-Road countries, so that students can experience best PPP practices in a real-world context. An Executive MBA and a Master of Public Administration will be offered by CityU and Tsinghua University respectively to students who have successfully completed the respective award requirements.

The programme was launched in Spring 2019, receiving overwhelming responses from applicants. The first cohort comprises 32 students from various Asian countries and cities including Hong Kong, Mainland China, Taiwan, Malaysia, Vietnam, and Cambodia. All of them are either senior government officials or senior executives of government-owned enterprises or public-listed conglomerates, across industries such as finance, investment, construction and logistics. This cohort of students also possesses strong academic backgrounds, with four of them having a doctorate degree. The College of Business believes that this diversified student profile in terms of both cultural and work backgrounds will stimulate mind-provoking exchange and inspire new ideas, and benefit greatly in student learning, achieving the programme goal of “venturing beyond boundaries”.

The College of Business offered a 4-day orientation programme for students from 11 – 14 April 2019. Professor Houmin Yan, Dean of CityU College of Business, gave a welcome speech entitled “Aspiration and Anticipation”. He commended the students for their spirit of continuous improvement and their commitment to lifelong learning despite their hectic work life, and wished them a flourishing and unforgettable study journey. The orientation also featured a campus visit, seminars on the Chinese economy delivered by veteran current affairs commentators, business political seminars by political and business gurus, leadership workshops, programme outlines, a welcoming dinner, etc. Invited guest speakers included Mr Jasper Tsang, former Chairman of the HKSAR Legislative Council; Mr Shang Hailong, CEO, SenseTime (Hong Kong); Professor Yang Yongheng, Associate Dean of the School of Public Policy and Management of Tsinghua University; Mr He Xiaobo, Leading Trader, Bank of China (Hong Kong); Mr Shi Qiping, current affairs commentator, Pheonix TV, etc. The speeches and seminars covered a range of significant topics including political and legal systems, innovative technologies and so on.

Guests of the welcoming dinner included Professor Horace Ip, CityU Vice-President (Student Affairs); Professor Paul Lam, CityU Chief-of-Staff; management of CityU College of Business; Professor Yang Yongheng, Tsinghua University; faculty members of the programme; Professor Yi-Huah Jiang, CCU Outstanding Research Professor of Institute of Strategic and International Affairs of National Chung Cheng University; representatives of the EMBA and Doctor of Business Administration Alumni Associations. Also invited were students of CityU EMBA programmes to take this opportunity to mingle and connect with students of other CityU EMBA programmes.