Combining technology and finance in Oulu
Hoang Pham from Vietnam is taking part in the international Master’s programme in Finance at the University of Oulu. Pham completed his Bachelor’s degree in commercial banking back home, and got a job as a customer relations manager. Later, he was promoted to banking product development.
Eventually, he felt he wanted to pursue further education and he started looking at his options for studying internationally.
“I was looking at a Master’s programme in the United Kingdom. I applied and was accepted, but the programme was only for one year. It seemed like a short time to study and experience everything that’s part of living abroad,” Pham says.
The programme in the University of Oulu lasts for two years and covers the core areas of finance, investment management, and corporate financial management. Pham says he is interested in studying at the crossroads of finance and technology.
“I am interested in how artificial intelligence will affect finance. First, I will learn the fundamentals of finance and then learn coding, technology, and combine the two. This is the modern trend in the world.”
International environment
In addition to his studies, Pham enjoys the international crowd at the university.
“When I first came to the university, it was a ‘wow’ moment for me. There were a lot of people from all over the world, and everybody was very nice. I’ve made a lot of new friends in my first few months here.”
“Even though Oulu is a quiet town, there are always friends to share ideas with and chat about things,” Pham says.
Helping others
Pham settled in quickly to his new life in Oulu. He had plenty of help and advice from his fellow students with practical things and within a couple of weeks, he felt settled and ready to focus on his studies fully. He does take the time to be a UniOulu Ambassador, though.
“I find that it’s a great way to take advantage of my creativity in promoting the studies. And it’s good to help others in the way that I was helped when I first got here. I had a Kummi student and I wanted to be an Ambassador to help others like she helped me. Helping others is the best method of communication,” Pham says.
