6 November 2018

At the Business School we are given lots of opportunity to learn about the real-world of business and equip ourselves with relevant skills. In this blog, I would like to share what we got up to on an exciting trip to the Green Investment Bank.
Students in career talk at the University of Edinburgh Business School

It’s my fifth weekend in Edinburgh. Next week is reading week, which will give me a chance to reflect on what I have learnt and how things are going. Looking back, the last five weeks have been really busy and valuable. The Business School has provided a diverse range of interesting social events that have helped us to build precious relationships with our classmates and alumni. Meanwhile, the Student Development Team has supported us to enhance our global employability skills in many different ways, including a visit to the Green Investment Bank.

This was the first time that all the Master's in Accounting and Finance students dressed up formally together. On the way I asked Stella, from the Student Development Team, ‘Is it possible to ask questions and what kind of questions can we ask?’

Stella replied that we could ask questions on anything that we felt confused about or topics that we are interested in. We could ask about the business or personal career journeys, and seek advice if we wanted to pursue a similar career.

Presentation at Green Investment Bank
Presentation at Green Investment Bank

It didn’t take long to reach the office. After we had registered at reception, the management team began their presentation. The CFO talked about the process of setting up the Green Investment Group in Edinburgh, the reason behind the creation of the bank, and their long-term plans. I was inspired by their ambition and the conviction with which they pursue corporate social responsibility. The executives also shared their career path with us, and this gave me some idea in terms of my own career direction.

During the Q&A session, our classmates asked a range of questions, such as, ‘How can Green Investment make profits, could you share a typical case?’, ‘How can you judge when an investment is ‘green’?’, ‘What job opportunities can you provide for us?’, ‘What keeps you up at night?’. This was really interesting and informative.

The next exciting session was networking. It was a super good opportunity to ask questions about the real world. I talked to the CFO and Finance Manager. They were so kind and patient when answering my questions. I learnt that we do need to keep ourselves up to date with what is happening in the sector. Reading the latest business news will help to improve our commercial awareness and to stand out when we are speaking to employers.

The staff from the Green Investment Bank put a lot of effort into hosting this event for us, spending substantial time meeting with us both during and after work. l am quite lucky to have had this opportunity and am very grateful to our Programme Director and the Student Development Team for organising this.

Since this amazing visit, I have come to realise that there are plenty of decisions that we need to make to determine our career path. Mistakes are unavoidable and we should accept them and move forward with confidence.


Jing Wang, MSc Accounting and Finance 2019