Portrait photograph of: Tianhao Zeng

Tianhao Zeng

Country Of Origin: China

Degree: MSc Money, Banking and Finance, 2017


IT Assurance, EY


Why did you choose to study at LUMS?

My priority concerns about choosing university to study would be university itself like its reputation, ranking, and service provided to students, plus geographical location. If you search any information about Lancaster University in details online, you would be surprised at how this young university outranks the majority and becomes top 10 in the UK, especially Management School (LUMS) is among the world’s top 100 business schools. According to Financial Times rankings based on future recruitment, salary, students’ satisfaction, education quality, and etc., LUMS is well-marked comprehensively in the final results among the targeted schools. Upon those information, I concluded the excellent management and high-quality education bring the ranking out. The study experience I had there has proved that my decision to study at LU was the smartest idea ever.. In addition, the campus is located at the suburb, where one can focus on study which should be the main mission of studying abroad and get close to the less-polluted nature. Also, one can find daily necessities in town and it is conveniently connected with other big cities like Manchester, and Liverpool.

What/who inspired you most at LUMS and why?

Dr. John Whittaker, who teaches international money and banking, inspired me the most. After my first being not very successful, I felt certainly frustrated. But in the process of finishing the second essay, Dr. John encouraged me to discuss my outline and arguments with him once I think it out, and thus we could find out the potential weakness behind my structure. Most importantly, he taught me the necessity of finding reliable proof, like data source and literatures, to support my statement, rather than describing my opinion palely, which definitely will guide my career and life. Besides, he kept questioning me in detail and marked the unsatisfied supports, which made my conclusion more convincing and tenable. 

Describe your time at LUMS in three words:

Intercultural, international, and out of comfort zone. 

What are your best memories of your time at Lancaster?

My best memories of time at Lancaster consist of social and work experience, like studying and cooking together, celebrating Chinese New Year with my classmates, hanging out in the York market, walking together along the canal in the town, playing pool and drinking in the bar, hiking in the Lake District, exploring the Scotland Highland, sunbathing on the Barcelona beach, doing campus tours, being volunteer in the professional conference and international culture exchange 2017. Really miss the old days and old friends, especially my Greek friends and international office colleagues.

What are the best things about living in the Lancaster area?

Considering the geographical location of Lancashire, the most amazing thing is hiking either in the Lake District or Yorkshire valley national park. Every Sunday the society will lead its members to go hiking. This is my favorite after-class activity as compared with the city, I prefer to get close to the nature, which gives me the opportunity to get to know the other side of the UK including culture and landscape. During the trip, I got the chance to acquaint with the teammates who were undergraduates or in other programs, and we shared our own experience. Besides, the scene of the families hiking together weekly did change my sense of family.