“Hi professor, I am working as an intern at Goldman Sachs and I want to become an investment banker at Goldman Sachs. In June I will graduate and receive my bachelor degree. I want to study abroad for my master but I also have a job offer from Goldman Sachs. What must I do? Can you give me an advice?” This was one of the questions that I discussed at the Education Expo China 2009 which was held in Beijing, last weekend. This fair is one of the largest in China and this is really a big thing. Quite a few international universities present themselves at this fair to attract the attention of Chinese students who want to study abroad for a bachelor, a master, a PhD or an MBA degree. Already before the doors open at 9 AM, students are queuing to get in. The universities are grouped around a country corner, like the Holland Corner, the Spain corner and so on and I estimate that the size of the building is about three times the MECC building. This is the third time that I visit this fair and it always strikes me how low-budget the Dutch present themselves or alternatively, how much more monetary effort other countries put in marketing on these fairs. Minister Plasterk need not worry too much about this if you compare the Dutch with their competitors who have a much more attractive booth and this does not only hold for the usual suspect-countries like Australia, the UK and the US, but also for a country like Switzerland.
My advice to the student? First I asked the student why she would like to work for institutions that created such a mess in the world economy. The answer was as expected: you can earn a lot of money. Then I told the student that it would be very wise to study abroad and obtain a master degree. First, it will give her much more outside opportunities and she should not hand herself exclusively over to Goldman Sachs. Second, because she was so young so there will be ample time to work. I don’t know what she will do but the day after, I received a very nice email in which she thanked me for talking to her and for my “wise advice”. I am pretty sure that if she goes abroad, Maastricht will be in her mindset. Mission nearly completed!