Ma Houning
Nationality: China
Faculty & Year of Study: Business School, Year 4
Undergraduate: Singapore Management University, Singapore
"Decisions should be made based on what you love, not what you don't like."
Why Did You Choose To Pursue A PhD?
Curiosity – inner drive that motivates me on a daily basis
Fulfilment – Pursuing new knowledge with a complete degree of freedom (and get paid to do so!)
Willingness to publish – a straightforward way to turn intangible (ideas) into tangible (journal articles with impacts)
Why Did You Choose To Pursue Your PhD At NUS?
Match in research interests – NUS finance department offers professors with a wide range of research expertise.
Reputable research faculty – professors are internationally well-recognized. Most importantly, they are serious about research.
Location – Singapore has always been one of my favorite cities.
Can you tell us briefly about your research topic?
Understand the relationship between wage and incentives.
How does PhD graduate education compare with your undergraduate experience?
Ph.D. is much more entrepreneurial, you decide what you do, and you are the sole claimant of every bit of tears and joys.
What do you like most about graduate school?
The faculty at NUS Business School is very nurturing and provides me with the best training possible.
Any advice for someone who's considering a PhD in NUS?
Decisions should be made based on what you love, not what you don’t like – Make sure you choose to pursue a PhD because you love research, not because you do not like other alternatives (corporate life etc.).