After four years as an International Tax Lawyer for Deloitte in Amsterdam and NYC, Vasco van der Flier chose CUHK’s MBA to learn about Asian business.
International tax lawyer Vasco van der Flier quit Deloitte and headed to Hong Kong for an MBA that would help him move into international management .
After Masters degrees in Finance and Law at Vrije Universiteit in Amsterdam, Vasco van der Flier, 28, began his career in Amsterdam and New York City as an International Tax Lawyer for Deloitte.
Interested in finding new career opportunities and in broadening his business knowledge, he started to think about doing an MBA. In particular, knowing that the world economy had shifted from West to East, he decided to apply to business schools with a focus on Asia, to be able to understand its business culture.
He applied to business schools in Singapore and Hong Kong, got some offers, but chose Chinese University Hong Kong (CUHK) for its proximity to China.
Vasco, who is the current President of the MBA Student Association at CUHK, won both the MBA Entrance Scholarship, which is given to outstanding candidate at the time of application, and the Mong Man Wai Scholarship, a merit-based scholarship that is offered by local sponsors.
For him, the main attraction of CUHK’s MBA program is its flexibility and the fact that students can complete the program in one year or in eighteen months, if they want to do an internship or an exchange in another university. “I’m not doing an internship, or an exchange during my MBA”, he explains, “And I didn’t want to be tied up in a two-year program, and stop working for so long.”
In addition, he liked CUHK’s student diversity and its alumni network: “Having already done two Masters degree, finding networking opportunities was very important to me”, he explains.
Finally, he wanted to choose the concentration in Chinese business: “Many companies want do business in China, but need to understand its business culture”, he says, “classes like Leadership and Organizational Behaviour in China or Corporate Fund-Raising Initiatives in the Chinese Equity Markets give you a good understanding of Chinese business practices”.
Vasco thinks finding the best MBA program is a combination of different factors: “rankings are not the only think to look at. For me, for example, the geographic location and the flexibility of the program were essential”, he says, “I would recommend CUHK to everybody who wants to focus on Asia and understand Chinese business culture”.
Before moving to Hong Kong, Vasco had the opportunity to study and work in the Netherlands, and in the US, and do volunteer work in Brazil, India and South Africa. What he likes about studying in Asia is the size of the class, smaller than in Dutch universities: “In Amsterdam classes were big, and there was not a lot of communication with professors. Here students have more opportunities to interact with them and to have one-to-one feedback”.
Vasco doesn’t know yet what he’ll be doing next year. He would like to pursue a career in international management: in particular, he is interested in financial services, venture capital and entrepreneurship. He would like to live in Hong Kong or New York, his two favourite cities in the world.
Read more about the reasons people head to business school in the Why MBAsection
Student Reviews
One of a kind
I studied Bioinformatics at CUHK last year. It was the only Master's degree in Hong Kong in this field. This program developed my analytical skills and equipped me to be a Bioinformatician in a very practical way.
I enjoyed my year here and met classmates from different parts of the world. If you are thinking to enhance your profile, this degree program would be a good option.
general education courses, unique college system, large campus
The university facilitates multi-dimension and interdisciplinary learning. In social science faculty, we need to choose courses as our faculty package from other departments (architecture, psychology, sociology, etc.) to learn more than our major required courses. We are also required to finish general education courses, which aid our critical thinking and humanistic sensibilities. I do recommend the social science broad-based program, and the professors I met so far are all responsible and erudite.
LLM
The faculty of law is relatively new. You do not need to have a LLB to pursue a LLM, which is special. The taught programme is great for mature students who want to obtain legal knowledge.
CUHK has good teaching staff too.
Amazing Campus and Great Educational Environment
Not only is CUHK's main campus breathtaking, it provides for a good educational environment for students. The university is well-equipped with modern and up-to-date facilities to help students with their study. We have 8 libraries in total around the campus; one for media, one for architectural studies, the medical library and the law library. The Professors are always helpful and are happy to talk to students when needed.
Moreover, the college system within the university brings forth the uniqueness of CUHK. Each student belongs to a different college, and in that students are able to meet different peoples from different countries and students from different faculties.
I think CUHK provides for a well-rounded university life for all students.
exthrillating
One of the most down to earth places in HK. A great opportunity to learn and embody the local culture. Also had one the most beautiful campus in Hong Kong up on the hillside. Glad to have graduated here.
Innovative and Supportive
My university provided me with all the support I needed, and encouraged me to be up to date with all the new developments in the world. They also provided me with the incentive to excel at what I do, and they take much pride in my achievements. I have had a very rewarding university experience.
Small, New But Friendly Law School
To being with, I think the campus of CUHK is the best and the biggest in Hong Kong, with fresh air and trees everywhere.
I am an undergraduate Law student at CUHK and I think the teaching here is great, with very friendly and nice professors and the new Lee Shau Kee Building.
In terms of the courses offered by CUHK, as one of the largest universities in Hong Kong, CUHK is an all-rounded university, offering a wide range of courses to students. Students may take the introductory courses of discipline other than their own major, or even declare a minor.
For law electives, due to the small amount of intake, the variety of law electives are not that huge. However, the Faculty is offering some international programmes, which can be treated as law electives, but at the same time, provide us with an opportunity to travel and know more about the legal system of another country.
The career support from the Faculty of Law is also amazing. The Faculty will organise CV Sessions and talks on how to get an internship from law firms or mini-pupillage from barrister's chambers. Each student will also have a Distinguished Professional Mentor, which is a current legal profession, providing us with practical advices and updates of the legal field.
Finally, from my personal experience, I think the students in CUHK are friendly and genuine. As Law students, competition is inevitable for grades, GPAs, vacation schemes and training contract. However, I think the competition in CUHK Law School is a positive one, in a sense that help us grow together, instead of fighting with each other no matter what. That is the biggest reason why I am having a very good time here in CUHK Law School.
A place to explore your interests
As a law graduate from CUHK (both undergrad and post-grad), I realise that I had many opportunities to explore my areas of interests (legal and non-legal both). The faculty/university requires us to take a certain number of non-law electives, and offers a plethora of courses to choose from. Personally, I took 3 modules in Korean --I can't say it's made me highly proficient, but it's definitely given me a good foundation (I can walk into a Korean restaurant and confidently order food, at the very least). The fact that language courses are offered also provides students who are more financially constrained an opportunity to learn a language without having to shell out a premium for a decent language course. On top of that, we have a range of law electives as well. I know of classmates who have developed lasting interest in different areas of law because of the electives they took in school. The two electives that I would say have changed me is (i) mooting and (ii) family law. I think my experience in an international commercial arbitration moot competition has helped tremendously in formulating legal arguments and legal writing. On the other hand, taking a family law elective has made me very interested in the family law practice, especially in terms of child rights. For these experiences which I have gained, I'm grateful for the opportunities provided by the school.
One main issue most students I know have is with the way our GPA is calculated and the lack of transparency in terms of how the honours system works. As our GPA is marked on a curve. it's highly unrepresentative of what we have achieved as individuals. Given that our GPA is the only criteria that is looked at when we apply for the compulsory post-graduate law course (mandatory should we want to practise law and/or be trainees in Hong Kong), it will put our own students at a distinct disadvantage when we compete for limited spaces with students from schools where GPA is not on a bell curve.
Valuable time in CUHK
I like the learning environment and people at CUHK. Surrounded by hills and Tolo Harbour, CUHK provides a balance between nature and hustle. You can always escape from the busy study life and meet your friend around the big campus for different activities.
