SOP as My Undergraduate Studies Reach Their

SOP

As my undergraduate studies reach their finish, I am ready to embark upon the next phase of my academic career. The Bradford University's reputable MSc program in Finance, Accounting, and Management offers the depth and breadth I am currently seeking. As an international student who has lived in the UK for the past four years, I also believe I have much to offer to Bradford and its student body. I have the ability and desire to work with my fellow graduate students on projects that will expand our knowledge about the rapidly changing world of business and finance. The gamut of group projects I have participated in throughout my undergraduate career shows that an international perspective, especially an Asian one, can greatly enhance the power and potential of any given project. During my graduate studies, I hope to deepen my understanding of finance and management in particular. Currently, my strengths reside in the areas of financial management, managerial Accounting, taxation, and auditing. In graduate school I would like to do more than deepen my strengths. I would also like to strengthen the areas of finance that are most troublesome or challenging to me, because I intend to be ready to meet the challenges of the professional business world when I receive my degree.

One of the reasons why I am selecting Bradford's program is the set of modules that comprise the MSc in Finance, Accounting, and Management. Modules like research methods and strategic management will provide me with the necessary foundation to perform useful work in the future. Although I am uncertain of the specific areas of business and finance I will become involved with, they will most certainly be meaningful in terms of their impact on the global business community. In all likelihood, I will be able to consult businesses, governments, and possibly even the NGO sector on foreign direct investment in Asia. Strong intercultural awareness, sensitivity, and communications skills make it highly likely I will be involved in helping businesses strategize their multinational investments. Being able to communicate in multiple languages makes it so that I can help broker deals between companies doing business with China. My communications and cultural awareness skills also ensure that I can help entrepreneurs and established enterprises both navigate potential communication impasses. Working within different organizational cultures, different structural environments, and different political models helps me translate these differences to both the Western and the Eastern worlds.

The elective courses at Bradford that certainly attract my attention include the module on change management. Change management is an area that intrigues me, partly because change can make or break a business. Having read numerous case studies that show what strategies work, and which ones do not, I can see that there are ways to coach business leaders effectively in the area of change management. Empirical research can guide the choices that CFOs, CEOs, and other leaders make, preventing an overreliance on guesswork and biased assumptions. Change is inevitable; no business leader should ever fear change because most of the time it prompts a positive new era in the business's history or organizational culture. External forces such as natural disaster or political upheaval, or a major technological breakthrough, can also reveal which leaders in a given organization are the most resourceful. This has clear implications for human resources management.

My uncle is a regional manager of a large manufacturing firm in China. This firm manages lucrative supplier contracts with businesses in fifteen different countries in five different continents. Working with him has brought to light many of the realities of the global business market we read about in school. One of those realities is that external forces have tangible effects on business development and success. The political climate of a nation can have a tremendous impact on local and regional operations. It is up to the managerial staff to anticipate problems before they arise, assess the situation, and provide a coherent list of practical solutions.

Therefore, other elective modules at Bradford that I will engage with include advanced international business, and international business strategy. In the future, I foresee working with business and government to strengthen the infrastructures that foster healthy economic growth in the regions that need it the most. In addition to China, I have a strong vested interest in some of the Chinese firms that have a presence on the African continent. By increasing understanding of the African business, political, and social environment, I believe I may make a positive difference in the business relationships between China and its African partners. I hope to take advantage of internship opportunities that may come my way while studying for my degree at Bradford.