Name: Liu Haoyang
Hometown: Shanghai
Program: NYU Shanghai - NYU Stern joint Master of Science in Quantitative Finance program
Undergrad: Shanghai University of Finance and Economics ’20
Major: Finance, International Finance and Banking
After spending his entire life in Shanghai, Liu Haoyang, MSQF ’21 was considering leaving the city to attend graduate school. He applied and was admitted to many international graduate programs, including a master’s-doctoral program in Economics at University of Wisconsin and Cornell University’s Master’s in Accounting. But when he considered the NYU Shanghai - NYU Stern MS Quantitative Finance (MSQF) offer, with the chance to have a joint degree from renowned NYU Stern and NYU Shanghai, he chose to stay in Shanghai and take advantage of the exciting opportunity to learn from faculty in two of the largest financial hubs in the world.
In the past year, Liu says his MSQF classes and professors were instrumental in helping him develop his interests and direction. “During my time in undergrad, we learned concepts like futures and options just from a theoretical standpoint, but in the financial world, the most important thing is to know how to actually use these financial derivatives,” he said. “In the Stochastic Modeling course in the MSQF program, Professor Joshua Reed taught us the reality of how to deal with actual problems rather than just dealing with concepts.” He also cited Professor Yu Shi’s Business Communications class as one of his favorites. “Although we met through Zoom due to the pandemic, Professor Yu made me feel like we were in actual class with a lot of interaction, teamwork, and communication.”
Liu has also taken full advantage of both campus resources and what the city of Shanghai has to offer, including growing his professional experience and networks with internships in private equity, financial analysis, and fund management companies. “I’ve gotten to experience trading different kinds of currencies, securities and stocks in both interbank markets and exchange markets. I’ve tried product design, business analysis, and stock (financial analysis),” he said. “Through these internships, I’ve learned what I like and what I don’t like.”
As for career development, Liu consistently utilized the resources of NYU Shanghai’s Graduate Career Development Center, including attending recruiting events and doing resume reviews with the specialized career coaches. Before he received his full-time offer, he sent his resume to over 200 companies, was invited to 30-40 interviews, and ultimately received four offers.
Liu has accepted a full-time offer to join the French-Chinese fund management company, AXA SPDB Investment Managers, as a Product Assistant this summer. “I’m really excited to work in fund management where you’re always learning something new,” he said. “With fund management, I’ll have the chance to know what’s happening in the world, staying on top of new technologies and business trends.”
Liu credits his classmates and the collaborative and cohort nature of the program as one of his favorite parts of his master’s experience. “Our professors always encouraged us to make new groups, which allowed us to get to know each other and make new friends,” he said. “What I like most in this program is the way people communicate with each other. Before, I didn’t care too much about teamwork - you do your part, I do my part, then we come back together. But in the MSQF program, we work together and want to see each other succeed.”