By Victor Deshoulieres (GMiM2022)
Three years ago, in 2021, I was preparing for my LBS interview, reflecting on why I was so excited about joining this programme and what made it stand out to me. Today, I find it interesting to look back on my motivations and share my experience.
I applied to LBS because of its excellent reputation, its high-quality programmes and the chance to kickstart an international career. However, I applied to the GMiM programme specifically because I was incredibly curious about experiencing life in China.
At the time, I knew very little about the country or Fudan University. I had never studied Mandarin nor visited China. What little I knew came from my parents, who had travelled there, and from contemporary media. Still, I was eager to discover the country for myself. Fortunately, I managed to convince LBS of my motivation. Today, I am deeply grateful for this opportunity, as it brought me so much more than I had imagined.
My time in London
In the summer of 2022, I graduated from the MiM programme. LBS delivered everything I had hoped for: a stronger CV, a great educational experience, and lifelong friendships. The year in London was also incredibly intense, with a whirlwind of classes, interview prep, and Sundowners. And luckily, all that interview prep—coupled with amazing support from the LBS’ career centre—allowed me to land two internships in strategy consulting, which I completed in the gap year I took between LBS and China (also because China was closed due to COVID-19). Looking back, I believe deferring my year at Fudan helped me prepare for this chapter with greater intention, curiosity, and an open mind.
My time in Shanghai
And so, here we are—late August 2023. I’ve just arrived in Shanghai, ready to start this new chapter, meeting people in the GMiM programme as well as students from other double-degree programmes, such as LSE and Sciences Po Paris. Fudan started things off with a small trip for our class, and then the year truly began.
At Fudan, I particularly enjoyed the classes that focused on understanding the country itself. One of my favourites was “Multinational Strategy in China,” which highlighted how a lack of cultural understanding and adaptability can lead even major companies to fail in the Chinese market.
Understanding a culture requires experience in it. Within just a few weeks of arriving, I could already say that living in China was a culture shock—and I loved it. Every day felt like an opportunity to gain experience in the culture, whether through daily habits, food, history, or language. Since I had a lighter class schedule at Fudan than at LBS, I had time to explore the city. I wanted to experience Shanghai like a local. I got a scooter, visited historical museums and Sun Yat-sen’s former residence, spent countless afternoons wandering through the former French Concession, and immersed myself in Chinese history by reading extensively about both its recent and distant past.
I also travelled around China. An early trip to Beijing via an overnight train helped me appreciate the depth of China’s history and inspired me to explore other historical cities. I was also lucky to make friends who were eager to join me in discovering these things, making the experience even more enjoyable. From my travels, I realised that the more you understand China’s history, the richer your experience becomes, sparking even more questions about how the country has undergone such dramatic changes over the past few decades.
Interactions and the importance of learning Mandarin
One thing that truly made my year in China unforgettable was learning Mandarin. From the moment I arrived, I began preparing for HSK2 (Chinese official language exam), which I’d say is the minimum level of proficiency needed to enjoy traveling in China. Learning Mandarin while living there felt like a game—it was so much fun to chat with local classmates or strike up conversations with people at the food stalls near Fudan.
Besides, Chinese people genuinely appreciate it when you try to speak their language. As natural as it may seem, understanding the language made my experience richer. Once I passed HSK2, I went on to HSK3, which turned out to be essential when I went travelling in western China after defending my thesis. In places like Tibetan Yunnan, Sichuan, Gansu, or Xinjiang, the Mandarin I knew was necessary, not just for practical situations like finding a lost passport but also for engaging in meaningful conversations with locals.
The thesis
A major component of our time at Fudan was the thesis, which every student in the masters is required to write. I chose a topic connected to China: the strategies of Chinese EV companies entering the European market. There’s a lot of flexibility in selecting your subject, and after seeing so many EV-focused cities firsthand, I was inspired to explore this topic. Some key insights from my research may be worth highlighting:
- Many in the West still hold the outdated belief that Chinese products are of inferior quality.
- In reality, Chinese technology in many industries has surpassed that of the West, and the EV industry is a clear example.
- China has emerged as a world’s leading innovation powerhouse.
As a European, I initially came to China with the same negative stereotypes about Chinese products that many foreigners hold. But after living there and experiencing the country’s cutting-edge technology in daily life, my perspective has shifted. Today, I see Chinese products as equal to—or even better than—those in the West. Experiencing life in China is the best way for anyone to understand this transformation directly.
What the GMiM leaves with me now
I came to China with an open mind but also with preconceived notions of what the country would be like: massive cities, heavy pollution, and good technology. What I found instead was some of the most beautiful landscapes I have ever seen, far less pollution than I had imagined, and truly impressive technology (daily apps such as Alipay made things more convenient for me). Most importantly, my interactions with the people there helped me challenge and reframe my Western biases about China. It’s easy to judge a place you’ve never visited, and so much harder to truly understand it.
To learn about China in the classrooms is to scratch at the surface of what China is like; living there completed the picture, illustrating to me the reality of the country today. Overall, the GMiM programme offered the perfect combination between intensive academics in London, and a life experience in Shanghai. Today, I can say that I hope to return to China one day, having enjoyed so much there. Asia and China are growing economically and will continue to offer many exciting opportunities, but what really makes me want to return is how stimulating, fascinating, and enriching life felt.