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Experiencing Hong Kong's university hall culture and completing an internship in ANZ's Global Markets division were among the highlights of Wei Gen Ng's exchange experience.

Wei Gen, a UWA Commerce/Engineering student, was the inaugural ANZ UWA Business School Asia Fellowship recipient.

In September last year, he travelled to Hong Kong, completing a semester of study at the University of Hong Kong and a five-week internship at ANZ in Hong Kong.

Receiving the Fellowship, explained Wei Gen, gave him a unique opportunity to broaden his cultural experiences while gaining new insights into the finance field.

"I can think of few other learning experiences that would better an exchange at the University of Hong Kong and an internship at ANZ Bank in one of the world's financial centres, especially for a student looking to pursue a career in finance," Wei Gen said.

During his internship, Wei Gen was assigned to ANZ's Global Markets division. He completed rotations through the Economics and Markets Research teams, as well as the Equities and Sales teams, before undertaking a practical research project.

"In my final week, I prepared a presentation, together with the Head of Balance Sheet Risk, which I was fortunate enough to deliver in-person to the Hong Kong Executive Committee," Wei Gen said.

"My internship experience at ANZ Bank was more than I could have ever expected. I was given the opportunity to work with most of the department heads within Global Markets, who not only taught me a lot about the business, but also advised me on a career in finance.

"One of the most important things that I learnt from the internship was to make the most of your opportunities. Five weeks can go very quickly, especially in finance, so there is no time to be reserved and wait for things to happen. Meet as many people as you can, and try to find out as much about the business as possible."

The exchange wasn't all about work. Wei Gen also took the opportunity to meet other exchange and local students, explore Hong Kong, and take part in the University of Hong Kong's inter-hall softball competition.

"The hall culture is a very special part of student life at the University of Hong Kong and really manifested itself early in semester, during hall initiation, and during inter-hall sport competitions," Wei Gen said.

"I still vividly remember walking nervously to the batting plate in front of the entire screaming St. John and Morrison Hall cheer squad... Being part of a tradition that has lasted for almost 100 years and that still continues on strong today is something that I will remember for a very long time."

As he continues his studies at UWA, Wei Gen looks forward to putting his experiences to good use.

"I am truly honoured to be the inaugural recipient of the ANZ UWA Business School Fellowship, and I am grateful for the experiences it has given me. The Fellowship not only gave me the opportunity to study abroad in Hong Kong, but gave me the opportunity to work with, and learn from, some of ANZ's most respected and knowledgeable leaders," he said.

The UWA Business School welcomed the first incoming ANZ UWA Business School Asia Fellowship recipient from the University of Hong Kong in January this year.

Applications are now open for UWA Business School students wishing to apply for the ANZ UWA Business School Asia Fellowship in 2014.

Media references

Rhonda Flottmann (UWA Business School)    (+61 8) 6488 2925
Verity Chia (UWA Business School)    (+61 8) 6488 1346