Wenjie Xu, FMBA 2021 Shanghai Excellent Graduate: Life should not be limited.

Release time：2021-12-02    

In June 2019, under the burning sun, the “red bull” Ulan Bu and the desert glittered with white light. The 2019 5th International MBA/EMBA Desert Trail came to the final fever-pitch sprint. According to the rules of the competition, each team needed to climb over the Hero Slope, a big sand dune with the most difficulty around Ulan Bu and the desert. It is 100 meters tall at an incline of 70 degrees, so it is also called the “Desperate Slope”.

Wenjie Xu is a student of FISF Part-time Finance MBA (FMBA PT+) Class 1. At this time, she was in no mood to admire the grand extensive desert landscape, as she was sparing no effort in challenging her physical and mental limits, struggling against the soul-crushing quicksand under her feet. The moment when she finally made it to the top, surrounded by the boundless and far-stretching sky and earth, she heard a voice yelling inside her, “from now on, my entire life will no longer be limited!”

Since graduation from university, Wenjie Xu had worked in a listed commercial bank. In 2011, she was transferred to the asset management department of the head office, and since then she has taken root in the field of asset management. At that time, the asset management industry in China was on the eve of galloping development. In the next 10 years, she took multiple key positions in this field, from a dealer at the beginning, to financial product creation, and to investment management. That is why this young but experienced expert in asset management often says with laughter that she “has witnessed the entire process of China’s asset management industry advancing from the initial stage to rapid expansion and to regulation”.

Accompanying the flourish of the industry is her own outstanding growth. She won the Golden Bull Awards for financial products, annual “Star of Financial Planning” and other honors, and took charge of financial products worthy of over 10 billion yuan, growing step by step into a steady and proficient expert in investment management.

Xu is deeply aware that only by constantly improving her internal skills can  she go long and far enough in the financial industry which is composed of numerous elites and talents. Over the years, she has never ceased studying in spite of the busy work and huge pressure. In just two years’ time, Xu passed three levels of the CFA exam at one stroke, being the youngest CFA holder then. More than that, she acquired the FRM at the pace of passing two levels a year. “Learning makes me happy.” This saying is not a “humblebrag” of a straight-A student, but a life credo that she actually sticks to.

In 2019, FISF launched the Part-time Financial MBA (FMBA PT+) program. For Wenjie Xu, applying for this program can be regarded as the “best outcome from both internal and external factors”. From internal perspectives, she has long yearned for Fudan University,; while on the other hand, from external perspectives, she needed a high-quality program to sort out past accumulations in work, to improve her knowledge system and to broaden her innovative vision, so as to support her transformation from the professional field to management. FISF FMBA PT+ offers in-depth integration of both finance and management, a wide global vision, and a set of unique curriculum system and education mode. All these features urged her to make the final decision to come to FISF.

Stretching infinitely and uncovering crossover potential

For Wenjie Xu, what she has gained from the two years’ learning in FISF FMBA PT+ far exceeds her expectation. She has never thought such a non-athletic person as she could ever take part in 5th International MBA/EMBA Desert Trail representative of the program, which not only broadened the way to personal self-discovery but turned her into a sports talent. She never imagined graduating with the highest GPA, getting the first-class scholarship, and being honored with Shanghai Excellent Graduate. Nor has she expected that apart from the intense study, she would create FISF FMBA “Jing Rui” Reading Club with fellow students, organize the FISF FinTech business case contest, and serve as the Student Ambassador of FMBA to promote and popularize the program.

When asked how she could undertake so many public services beyond her busy schedule, Xu smiled and said it was due to her executive force. “I’m the kind of person who would take action immediately once I have made up my mind.” Meanwhile, the aggressive and intense atmosphere of FISF FMBA PT+ is also a great encouragement and inspiration for her.

“In FMBA PT+ Program, we can be more excellent together with a group of excellent companions.” She said sincerely. Elite students from various backgrounds and prestigious professor with both academic knowledge and practical capability brought about mind-blowing thought enlightenment and aroused her passionate energy.

FMBA PT+ Program is an innovative program of FISF. Both the school and its students are devoted to it with an entrepreneurial attitude to jointly make progress and improve the program. “Each student has a sense of responsibility arising therefrom. Holding the dedicated and enthusiastic spirit of entrepreneurs, we all throw ourselves into the various class tasks.”

The more you are devoted, the more excellent you are. Though the past two years’ busy and tiring workload, she managed to discover more self-potentials. “Acting as the student ambassador, I had the chance to get in touch with more excellent people, which enabled me to get beyond the vision of ordinary students and see things at a higher level. It has raised my cognitive level, and largely enhanced my presentation skills and public communication ability.” After actually completing her education, she now has more confidence to say, “FMBA PT+ not only opens the door to a business school but also reveals a way for me to keep expanding my boundary and make self-breakthroughs.”

Spurring with long accumulation and planning for the future

In this rapidly changing information era, it has been a required course for professionals to constantly update themselves and upgrade their expertise. During her stay in FISF FMBA PT+, Wenjie Xu first attempted to do academic study by publishing an academic article named At the time of COVID-19, What does ESG mean to China’s Asset Management Industry? on Fudan Financial Review. At the same time, by writing academic papers, she successfully further integrated her knowledge, insights, vision and horizon to achieve a more efficient output.

Indeed, it is not a normality for a business school student to be absorbed in academic study. According to this saying, Xu stated that it was simply because of her characteristics. She has loved reading since childhood, and has long formed the habit of pursuing truth. She likes to get to the root of what she is interested in and make a thorough investigation.

After joining FISF FMBA PT+, her academic interest was stimulated by the deep scholarly atmosphere here. “Having worked in the asset management field for many years, I have much practical experience, which shall be integrated with theoretical knowledge. Thus, I need to summarize and extract at a higher level and then feed the theories back to new practices.” Making the first attempt in the academic field gave Xu a sense of achievement. She plans to study for her doctorate in the near future to go on exploring the exquisite academic world and experiencing the joy and glory brought by scientific research.

Since graduating from FISF FMBA PT+, she has been assigned a significant development project in the enterprise. When it comes to future plans, Wenjie Xu is extremely clear that she will stay focused on the field of asset and wealth management and go on a way toward expert career development. She believed that China’s capital and wealth management industry will be more closely connected to the global world, and the global vision empowered by FISF FMBA PT+ will help her have an insight into the development opportunities in the industry and make layout for the future in advance.

Accordingly, Wenjie Xu is full of confidence and sends her wishes to younger students joining the school in the future. “Within the two precious years, do embrace changes in yourself fully, dare to have a try, broaden your boundaries and enjoy the joy of growing wildly.”