Programme: Fudan University SOE Online Winter School
Partner Institution: Fudan University
Period: December 19, 2022 – January 8, 2023
I took two courses in the China Vision 2022 Programme – Econometrics and China Modern Economy. The second course, in particular, shaped my view on China.
Starting from the history of China, this course expounds on the influence of the imperial examination system on modern education. It covers the structure and operation mechanisms of various organizations, such as the government, SOEs, and industrial chains. Of course, I have also come to recognize China's various advantages in development. China's economy is very dynamic, but on what basis did it become so prosperous? How did it gain such benefits? Is it because of luck, or is it because of existing advantages?
This course explains the reasons one by one from the perspectives of business, culture, and politics. For example, China's labor force is abundant and cheap, coupled with a high level of education, making domestic production and foreign investment in China always dynamic (of course, in the case of open trade). Later, I also learned about the challenges facing China at present, such as the gradual slowdown in economic development, inequality in various resources, and gender inequality. These are factors that will have a negative impact in the long run and need attention.
In the course, I can say that many of my previous misconceptions were corrected. For example, before participating in the China Modern Economy course, I thought that China was one of the countries with the largest gender inequality and the biggest gap between the rich and the poor – a perception shaped by various local media reports. However, afterward, I found that the situation was much better than I thought (even though people should admit that this is still a problem that needs to be changed and seriously affects the quality of life of citizens).
As for the Econometrics course, the design and teaching were excellent. The course introduced various linear regression methods and diagnostics, starting from the basic concept of probability, which is useful for research in any field (such as studying the distribution of per capita GDP of countries or its relationship with population). I learned a lot.
In short, this is an experience that I will not regret.