Houning Ma
Nationality:
China
Faculty and Department:
School of Business, Finance
Year of Study:
5
Undergraduate University:
Singapore Management University (SMU)
Why did you choose to do 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 do graduate education at NUS? If you received offers from other universities, why did you pick 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.
How does graduate school compare to your undergraduate experience?
The significant difference is the mindset. Different mindset guides the experience. Undergrad life is primarily about exploration and pathfinding. In contrast, graduate studies require a great amount of focus and commitment.
Briefly share about your research or thesis (i.e. dissertation topic for Masters by Coursework students).
I study the intersection between corporate finance and labor economics. Specifically, my research examines within-firm wage inequality and firm’s investment in human capital.
What impact do you hope to have with your research?
Some of my working papers on inequality potentially makes news-able policy impacts.
Share something fun from your graduate journey at NUS.
NUS has a wide array of sports facilities, great for sports lovers.
Share a challenge you faced in graduate school and how you overcame it.
Dealing with constant rejections is probably the most difficult part.
What message would you like to give to students interested in graduate studies in NUS?
Ph.D. is a big commitment. You will likely be challenged by mental stress and day-to-day bad news (rejections, null results, idea scooping etc.). In addition, you will probably be financially constrained in your entire 20s. Make this decision based on your passion. Make sure that you like doing research.