Programs

Dian Jiao’s journey at Shanghai Advanced Institute of Finance (SAIF) began in 2017. After graduating from the School of Mathematical Science of Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU) with the best grade, he chose SAIF Master of Finance (MF) Program to further study and transit into the financial sector. At SAIF, he won the opportunity to visit Columbia University for a dual-degree program after multiple rounds of selection and competition. From Shanghai to New York, he maintained outstanding academic performance while taking internships at world-class companies. During his study at Columbia University, Dian Jiao distinguished himself from competitors from all over the world and successfully won many enviable job opportunities, including a full-time offer from Citibank and another from a leading US-based quantitative fund with the assets under management (AUM) of over US$100 billion. In the context of the tightening of work permit policy in the United States, the academic performance superior to local graduates from top American universities and colleges also demonstrated Dian Jiao’s international competitiveness. For Dian Jiao majoring in science, success cannot be achieved overnight, but rather the result of extreme self-discipline and hard work. The growth journey at SAIF has also concentrated his efforts and strength, while visualizing his dreams. Never Complacent Searching for the Most Suitable Stage Dian Jiao has always been the "trophy child" in the eyes of everyone ever since his childhood. In high school, he emerged in the National High School Mathematics League and was recommended for direct admission to the Mathematics-Finance Undergraduate/Master Pilot Program of Shanghai Jiao Tong University. For the plain sailing on campus, Dian Jiao thinks otherwise. He claimed, "I am not a person who is at ease with the status quo." Because of the "uneasiness", when studying at the undergraduate program, Dian Jiao gave up the path of a direct master's degree in the same major. Instead, he actively applied for other programs and wanted to explore other territories. After some exploration, he made two major life choices. First of all, he planned to transfer from mathematics to finance. "The essence of finance is the reallocation of assets, which drives the positive circulation of capital to make the world a better place. It is very valuable." For Dian Jiao, the original intention of changing his specialty was to find the true meaning of his career rather than chasing a popular domain. Once the direction of his personal development was set, the second choice was to find a stage that really suits him. He picked up SAIF MF Program as the starting point for his dream life, after deliberate decision-making,"First, as a top-ranking and strategic institution, SAIF leads the business schools in China and even in Asia in terms of faculty, resources and academic standards. Second, I enrolled in the dual degree program jointly offered by SAIF and Columbia University, in which the participants will not only receive the education resources of two world-renowned schools, but also get the diplomas of both leading institutions. The value and international vision of the Program are remarkable. And third, when applying for the Program, I was highly impressed by the friendly and meticulous team of SAIF faculty and staff. I really love the atmosphere at SAIF, just like a home out of home." In 2017, Dian Jiao was recommended for direct admission to SAIF, thanks to his first-ranking performance and a GPA of 4.00. Although his goal was fulfilled, Dian Jiao wasn’t content with the past achievements. Always humble, he said shyly, "The quality of SAIF students is quite impressive. I am honored to learn from other outstanding classmates from different backgrounds.” Empowered by SAIF and Columbia University Seeking Professional Transformation In the senior year at SAIF MF, Dian Jiao successfully applied for the opportunity to pursue a dual degree in financial engineering at Columbia University with excellent academic results. In his view, this combination of double degrees is perfect, "SAIF’s curriculum focuses on the study of financial theories, so that the students can establish a comprehensive and systematic understanding of finance and lay a solid and specialized foundation. In contrast, the curriculum at Columbia University concentrates on the fields of mathematics and computer science, which highlights financial engineering and the cultivation of skills." It was an extraordinary challenge to get the diplomas of two world-class institutions in the duration of a single master program. The high standards and strict requirements of the two schools also urged Dian Jiao to be more self-disciplined and learn how to better deal with pressure and time management. In two years, he never missed a class for any reason. Even for some courses with remote option available, he was still be present on time, in order to ensure classroom efficiency and better face-to-face communication with instructors. In the last semester at Columbia, Columbia ’s exam week and SAIF’s deadline of graduation thesis collided with each other. Dian Jiao admitted that it was one of the most stressed periods in his life. Taking courses in both schools, completing his internship and successfully finding a job, Dian Jiao has a simple secret weapon that he has always stick to, that is, to do the right thing in the right time and stay focused. He believes that as long as you keep focused and efficient and 80%-90% of the learning is thoroughly understood and completely absorbed in the classroom, it will naturally minimize the pressure of after-class reviews. It is critical to properly arrange each time slot and concentrate on the right thing in the right time. Eventually, Dian Jiao’s graduation thesis was selected as the “Excellent Graduation Thesis of the Year”, while he also got straight As in all four exams at Columbia during the exam week. Over the two years, he won the full scholarship of the Program twice. Whether at SAIF or Columbia, Dian Jiao won A+ grades in many core courses. These dazzling achievements witnessed the perfect financial transformation of Dian Jiao as a man of science. Regarding the transformation, Dian Jiao smiled and said that the undergraduate experience in mathematics facilitated instead of hurdled his advancement. "The study of mathematics has made my thinking more rigorous and diverging, and at the same time cultivated an academic attitude to trace back to the source. These elements are highly helpful for my study of finance.” A Dream of Finance From SAIF to Worldwide SAIF's education not only targets at the improvement of comprehensive quality and abilities, but also encourages students to combine knowledge with practice. During the first summer vacation at SAIF, Dian Jiao was a little hesitant about internship. "I didn't expect that the tutor would come to me and discuss bout the arrangements for the summer internship. Such detail-oriented meticulosity touched and inspired me deeply." The one-on-one candid communication with the tutor cleared Dian Jiao’s concerns, who started to actively seek internship opportunities. At SAIF, Dian Jiao heaped a number of summer internship offers from world-leading organizations, including Macquarie Bank, Standard Chartered Bank, Morgan Stanley Huaxin Securities and Shanghai Stock Exchange. At Columbia, he was also selected for an internship at Citibank. Sharpened in the real-world context of finance, Dian Jiao was maturing, and his dream of finance became more specific. "Given my expertise and personality, I hope to further evolve in the field of quantitative investment." Leaving his alma mater and setting sail for a new stage of life, Dian Jiao attributes his smooth career path to SAIF’s comprehensive training and the background of multi-disciplinary education. "Concerning the reasons why I won the international professional competition, on the one hand, one of my strengths is the solid accumulation of mathematics knowledge, especially statistics. More importantly, I would like to thank SAIF for advancing my financial expertise in all aspects and solidifying the fundamentals of finance. Most of the students studying financial engineering abroad have a background in science or engineering, who lack knowledge in finance, which limits their growth." In Dian Jiao’s opinion, for science and engineering students who intend to transfer into the world of finance, SAIF is the best choice. Getting a satisfactory offer from a US quantitative fund is only the starting point of Dian Jiao’s financial career. This young man has a clear roadmap for his future, "In five years, I hope to become a fund manager in the company and then return to China for further development." To be back to China, devote to quantitative investment research and drive the development of quantitative investment in China, it is one of the key reasons why Dian Jiao gave up the offer from Citi and joined the existing company. It will also be the dream he will consistently pursue for in the future. After the cultivation and transformation in two world-known institutions, Dian Jiao today has some new insights of the globe and the future. "With further opening up, China's financial sector will be more regulated, globalized and specialized. In this context, I believe that the emerging segment of quantitative investment will usher in its surge and expansion."

About the Student: Han Lin SAIF MF 18 and LBS MFA Student Bachelor of Finance, Sun Yat-sen University Hello! My name is Han Lin, with a bachelor’s degree from Sun Yat-sen University. I was very fortunate to have dual admissions to the Master of Finance (MF) Program of Shanghai Advanced Institute of Finance (SAIF) and the Masters in Financial Analysis (MFA) Program of London Business School (LBS). Many thanks to SAIF for giving me an additional chance to choose and experience two different lives under two master programs in two cities in China and in the West. Encountering SAIF and LBS I think I am a quite easy-going person and the encounter with SAIF was destined. In the second half of my junior year, I realized that I was highly likely to study abroad for a master's degree, though in fact I didn’t have a clear idea. At that time, my Plan A was to go abroad, while Plan B was postgraduate recommendation by the university. I applied for SAIF Mini Camp in Beijing and received the invitation one week in advance. But I was in Denmark for an exchange program at that time, and due to a number of reasons, I didn't return to China. However, SAIF admissions team was very considerate to the applicants. When I was about to go back home, I was notified that I could directly participate in SAIF Summer Camp, which was also my last chance. One week before the Summer Camp, I happened to know a SAIF alumnus who studied at LBS through a CUHK alumnus who was about to enter LBS. And I learned about the SAIF-LBS program. Since I didn't make up my mind about going abroad or studying in a postgraduate program in China, it was the best choice. The experience at SAIF Summer Camp was great. What impressed me particularly was the frankness of the admissions team. The admissions officer answered my questions about the dual program honestly and patiently, and objectively evaluate my pros and cons. In the end, with the help of many persons, I was lucky to get the offer of the program. At LBS The year at LBS introduced me to a different life. With the current tagline of "Minds Alive", LBS is a highly diverse community with students, faculty and staff from all nationalities and backgrounds. At LBS, every idea is free and respectable. I learned a lot from my classmates and alumni and received plenty of encouragement. My mentor at LBS resigned from a top-notch investment bank because he wanted to change his way of life. A former trader at an energy corporation, one of my classmates told me that he would go to New York and try to work at an investment bank in the summer. Some students even joined a few startups since they felt that finance was a bit boring. They seemed to take these actions easily or take them for granted, the things I could hardly understand or that take great courage, which deeply inspired me. LBS is a big stage where everyone can do what they want to do and have their own space to play. Of course, the teaching at LBS is also first-class. The academic or industry backgrounds of the faculty are impressive, while the backgrounds of the students are diverse. There are students from more than 30 countries in my program. The curriculum is well designed and practical, laying a solid foundation for our career journey in the future. Studying and working in this diverse environment is extremely interesting, challenging and valuable. In addition, the School also cooperates with companies in the industry and introduces us to real-world cases. Each year, LBS will arrange every student to travel to one of six destinations around the world and participate in specific topics. For example, during the London Business Challenge Week, we completed a project selected from various industries. In Global Immersion Field Trip, after several weeks of research and preparation, we investigated the industries in different regions across the world and presented our findings. London is also a magical city, a perfect mix of tradition and modernity, hitting the ideal balance between work and life. In London, to perceive art, you can go to see a variety of musicals, plays and ballet. To pass the time, you can pick from an endless list of museums. You may visit a variety of royal parks either in a good mood or not, for example, the Regent's Park across the road from our School. It is also extremely convenient to take a couple of days and enjoy a get-away in different countries in Europe. In London, as long as you want, you can always find something to do. I also made full use of such convenience to travel to many countries, see many world-known landmarks and paintings, and also visit my friends in Europe. At SAIF SAIF at Shanghai Jiao Tong University is an international institution in China, known for its academic rigidity. The curriculum of SAIF MF Program focuses on theories and is taught in English. Many faculty members are top-notch professors with tenure at leading international business schools or doctors who have graduated from the world's top business schools, who are fully devoted, pay close attention to the experience and feedback of the students, and carefully prepare every and all sessions, with the support of responsible and competent teaching assistants. The students are also graduated from reputable universities around the world, with various backgrounds. For the sake of the dual admissions, I had to take up some first-year courses after returning to SAIF in my second year. Although the workload was extensive and the pace was fast, I learned a lot of knowledge and skills in the process. I also exercised my capabilities of time management, self-regulation and stress resistance. The faculty and classmates helped me a lot, and I gradually found the balance of life. The time I spent at SAIF also gave me a better understanding of China's financial markets and strengthened my competitiveness. The Career Development Center (CDC) at SAIF provide training and one-on-one consultations to the students, along with abundant resources to facilitate our job hunting. SAIF is located at Xuhui Campus in Shanghai, which is cozy and has a breath of life. It is a good place to experience Shanghai’s culture and presents a rich and colorful lifestyle, including various musicals and exhibitions. Grow with Outstanding Peers Whether at LBS or SAIF, I feel that my classmates and senior students are all remarkable. We can only be the better selves by “emulating those better than us". During the study, we help each other to solve problems together. When looking for intern or job opportunities, everyone works hard and boast a strong willpower. Never give up until the end! This spirit of struggle infects everyone. We are also enthusiastic about sharing our learning as well as job search experience and resources and cheer on each other. No pain, no gain. Hard work will pay off and our efforts will lead to excellent results! The joint program between SAIF and LBS allowed me to study two programs, experience two international metropolises full of financial vitality at home and abroad and join two large communities and their alumni network around the world. I am very grateful to the joint program between SAIF and LBS for giving me such an opportunity. This experience of studying at home and abroad has made me grow rapidly and broaden my horizons, enhance my competitiveness and harvest a lot of gains. I’ll welcome more friends to join us. "Dream irrigates hard work". I hope that everyone can live a true self in the future and devote to their dreams. Finally, I wish you all the best, with peace and joy!

Kangkang ZHANG had been admitted by Peking University Yuan Pei Experimental Class with the third highest score in the College Entrance Examination in Zhejiang before he was recommended to and later graduated from SAIF MF Cohort 2011. Undoubtedly, he went through a typical roadmap of a straight A student. Passionate at work, he quickly discovered Sunny Optical, the first 10-fold stock in his career, which not only brought remarkable return to his company, but also substantially improved his insights on investing in long-term growth stocks. In addition to the good habit of “reflection and summarization”, he believes it is important to build up your strength along the right path in the right way, “First of all, you need to know what you desire to make the most. Second, you need to understand whether you have the tributes that the industry wants, which will help you maintain your position over time. Consider investment, which calls for independent thinking, reflection, openness, inclusiveness and impetuosity. Then you have to build up and refine such tributes in daily work. Success follows the Law of Large Numbers, which can be a high probability event.” Over 1 million characters of notes Kangkang received the first job at Fidelity, one of the leading international buyers. However, the early days were full of chaos and confusion in addition to excitement. “All of a sudden, I had to take over the entire industry, check tens of stocks, study the companies, meet sellers, prepare reports, answer phone calls and attend meeting…. I was engaged by mails and sellers every day. But after one month, I felt confused because it wasn’t as fruitful as I had expected,” said Kangkang. Fortunately, his abilities of stress resistance and time management were suitably trained at SAIF MF. Once he stepped back and clarified his goals, he realized what he needed to strive for or reject. During the process, he learned how to optimally allocate his time and focus on the essentials in chaos. Kangkang attributed his capability of rapid alignment to his long-lasting habits of “reflection and summarization”. From the hand-written collection of mistakes in his years of elementary and high schools and the notes of all courses in college, to the summary of dozens of interviews during job hunting and the internship diaries, through to the ideas on research, investment, life and career, he has accumulated over 1 million characters of notes, including research summaries on public companies. “An investor pays attention to too many things to simply memorize them in your brain. Meanwhile, it is difficult to organize such complicated data. Along with charts and figures, these notes help me systematically identify the lessons and in turn improve my performance in all aspects. Though in some cases, the ideas recorded in the notes are subsequently proven to be wrong, it also drives me to better reflect the mistakes. In the era of information explosion, it is important not to mistake information for knowledge or knowledge for wisdom.” Discovering the “10-fold stock” In his first job, Kangkang also identified Sunny Optical, the first “10-fold stock” in his career life. “When I found it, it was only a mere electronic small cap price at HK$6. The company started from optimal lens and thus built up its expertise in optics. However, due to the short-term competition in module business, the market only considered it as a module factory with low barriers, which was proven wrong later. At that time, no one believed that it would achieve breakthroughs in the business of mobile phone camera with high barriers, or saw its deployment and accumulation in on-board camera, surveillance, drone and many other segments. But I realized that the market might fall short of its earning forecast and valuation.” It was his conclusion based on extensive and in-depth research derived from consistent and active communication with its management, numerous meetings with upstream, downstream and competitor experts, review of trade reports and literature and engagement of his electronics network, in particular the resources of A stock buyers and sellers. Kangkang gave the credit of this success to the practices at SAIF LIVE, “Thanks to the exercises at SAIF LIVE, I learned to how to model my findings, prepare convincing reports in English and personally meet every fund manager at their offices.” With sound pre-stage preparation, he successfully persuaded the fund managers with strong points. Later, the stock roared from HK$6 to over HK$70-80 in merely three years, which even doubled after he had left Fidelity. It not only created huge return to the company, but also demonstrated his professionalism. But in his own opinion, Kangkong benefited the most from the in-depth insights on the investment of long-term growth equities based on his experience in this “10-fold stock”, combined with Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits by Philip A.Fisher, a book highly recommended by senior fund managers at Fidelity. “We often focus on ROE and ROIC when looking at public companies. However, few investors take account of the ROI in the process of studying an individual stock. If you keep on investing your time and efforts in a promising segment, optics for instance, you will build up your own defense, which creates far greater return than identifying a number of separate stocks. Even if you do make profit by investing your time and efforts in some stocks that turn around or are frequently traded, it is likely that the industry expertise that you have grasped will be left on the shelf…. Time and efforts are extremely valuable in the research of fundamentals. In long term, the ROI of studying top-class segments and companies is exceptionally high, even though there are few opportunities in short term.” Know your destination and hone your skills Later, Kangkang left Fidelity and joined Wells Fargo Funds Management LLC as Researcher of Offshore TMT. Shortly after one year, he was promoted to Investment Manager. According to him, Chinese fund managers feature higher potential of ongoing growth, which provides a greater room of personal development and more opportunities of down-to-earth research, which are missing in international players. However, the investment philosophy and framework of international buyers are lifelong benefits. “I wrote down the words from experienced project managers at Fidelity in my notes, which I believe will contribute to my future. For example, the famous remark of Anthony Bolton, ‘People never change at my age’, has been repeatedly proven in many cases. Young researchers and fund managers are energetic, open to new things and quick in learning. However, they know little about human nature and easily trust the words of executives, while ignoring the importance of track records.” Working for either a leading domestic buyer or an international giant, Kangkang believes it is critical to mistake the value of the organization for that of your own. “You need to always ask yourself: Will people talk to me if I leave the organization? What are my values to others? These questions are often forgotten by recent graduates, who may overvalue the superiority of being part of the brand yet undervalue the ongoing buildup and improvement of personal values.” For Kangkang, it is advisable to clarify your goal of success as early as possible and build up your expertise in the right way, while enjoying the process without excessive worries about short-term outcomes, which is far better than the envy from or to others. It is also the most relevant tip to junior fellow students. “At school, your academic achievements are the sole criteria of success. At graduation, your offer is the sole criteria of success. However, after graduation, you will find that the world isn’t black or white. Some become successful entrepreneurs. Some fail and are out of our sight. Some make great fortune overnight. Some go flat broke. Some find the true meaning of life and happiness, even if they are seemingly mediocre. Some are confused and lost though seemingly successful,” added Kangkang, “I really like a remark of Dr. Zhu, Investment Director of Fidelity and also one of the best A-stock fund managers, ‘You need a rating system of your own. Otherwise, you may be easily overwhelmed and beaten by many other values.’”

Given her soft and gentle voice, you may mistake her for a student in an ivory tower. But in fact, she stepped into the world of venture capital five years ago. Lu ZHAI, a graduate of SAIF MF Program, now serves as Investment Manager at TMT Group of Sequoia Capital China. Lu ZHAI (MF2011 alumni), Investment Manager at TMT Group,  Sequoia Capital China It is worth suffering for Having completed her undergraduate study on National Economic Management at the Renmin University of China, Lu chose to continue her campus life in a graduate program. At that time, she already heard about Shanghai Advanced Institute of Finance (SAIF) and SAIF MF Program was also recommended by one of her seniors, who had enrolled this Program. Though only launched in 2009, SAIF MF seemed an ideal option in terms of curriculum and faculty. Lu carefully reviewed the situation and soon decided to join it without hesitation. However, she was quickly drowned by tons of specialized financial courses. Though used to be a student of straight As, she encountered a number of unknown areas. “At that time, I could hardly follow the lectures and that was something I had never experienced before. What's worse, the reference books were abstruse when I tried to prepare for exams,” recalled Lu of her campus days at SAIF. But the training under intensive study and enormous stress helped her quickly adapt to the hectic work and easily deal with her career after graduation. “It is worth suffering for,” said she. Live Course impressed Lu the most, during which the guest speaker presented and simulated his professional experience of consultancy at the classroom. It aroused the interest of the class and even imposed its impact on the future career paths of some students. “The guest speaker of Live Course guided us to take a closer look at the evolution of the industry, which played its role in our choice of career. Even now, if I have doubts at work, I would ask for his advices.” After graduation, Lu and her classmates still gather together from time to time, sharing their concerns and insights both at work and in life. “It feels really good to have such friends and alumni,” commented she sincerely. Do what you do the best The days at SAIF were full of overnight study and discussion, during which a team of students worked together to conquer numerous assignments one after another. But after graduation, Lu prefers giving full play to her strengths. “To pick up the right career path and do what you do the best” is her advice to younger students. Concerning career path, Lu smiled and admitted that she might have been the headache of Career Development Center (CDC). “I wasn't sure about my preference and don't know what to do.” Some focused on buyer research, some on project consulting and the others on equity and debts. But Lu was different. She tried as many as jobs during her internship. “After several attempts, I discovered that I would be better off in consulting and investment. A consultant explores which sectors will grow quickly and how an organization can work better. However, an investor goes further, who visualizes the outlook in 3-5 years beyond business analysis and roadmap.” Thanks to the ongoing assistance of CDC staff, Lu eventually gained a clear picture on her future career. Just before her graduation, she received an offer from Sequoia Capital. “As one of top-class investment institutions, Sequoia Capital met my interest the best.” From a confusing graduate to a firm investor, Lu ZHAI has worked at Sequoia Capital for five years and continues to enjoy her journey of investment by conquering the challenges along the road. Return is key to investment Talking about her job at Sequoia Capital, Lu admitted that “it's quite tough and you need to trade off between work and life, in particular for women.” To define “tough”, she explained that she has to meet 4-5 groups of clients until 10PM every day and also need to review each underlying company out of conference room, for example, which strategy to take, what kind of executives to employ, how to deal with competition and even more subtle details. “People used to describe me as 'nice' rather than 'aggressive'. But it's different now. My job requires me to create my own point and stick to it.” Undoubtedly, Sequoia Capital is prestigious in the trade. It is highly recognized for its precise and forward-looking vision by having invested in Meituan and Dianping separately, before these two organizations were merged. But according to Lu, instead of Sequoia Capital's intention, it was resulted from the unique competition and delicate interplay in TMT business, and such innovation and changes represent the charm of the investment profession. “Return is the cornerstone for the viability of a fund”, this statement was made by Lu repeatedly during the interview. The value of venture capital resides in figuring out an intersection between your own belief and fund's performance, serving as the entrepreneur behind entrepreneurs and bringing up more optimal solutions to the world. At Sequoia Capital, a VC platform highly respected by founders, startups from all walks of life always flood in. For Lu, such value-based inflow derived from brand awareness is the strength of an exceptional platform. “I hope I would help more remarkable startups over the next five years,” she was extremely confident in her next milestone along the journey of her VC career.