US grad: Look for job in HK or Shanghai?

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  1. #1

    US grad: Look for job in HK or Shanghai?

    Hey everyone,

    I'm looking for job search advice. I'm graduating this year from a top 30 national university in the US with a degree in International Relations and Economics and with a Chinese minor. I'm Chinese-American but my Mandarin is so-so and my cantonese is non-existent. I am a US citizen and do not have HKID or permanent residency. I've interned at a wealth management group before at one of the big bulge bracket banks and last summer interned at a boutique in Shanghai doing private placements for Chinese fund managers. Didn't have to use much mandarin there since we were pitching to US investors. Ideally I'd like to work at a boutique investment bank doing private placements and/or cross-border M&A as my English skills would give me a small advantage there. However, I'd be willing to consider something else like business development, consulting, or a management trainee program; I've been invited to interviews at two consulting firms in Shanghai that focus on helping US clients break into the China market.

    Anyways, it seems that most companies require face to face interviews and I am debating whether to move to HK or Shanghai to start my search. I have places to stay in both cities. HK seems like it has more opportunities in finance but also a more competitive job market. Shanghai would be a better place to improve mandarin and learn about Chinese business culture, but probably has less finance opportunities and much lower salaries. Any advice would be appreciated.

    Note that looking for a job in the US and then transferring over is not an option; yes I know it's a lot easier but I love it out in Asia and would rather not wait one or two years before going over. Also I am good at networking and willing to grind it out; it'll be hard because I am not fluent in Mandarin but I found my last internship in China through pure networking so figure I can do it again. Just not sure whether my chances would be better in HK or Shanghai.

    Thanks very much,
    -an ambitious 21 year old


  2. #2
    alanhku

    I'm in exactly the same position, except I'm graduating this year with a civil engineering degree. Any job search advice would be much appreciated.
    -another ambitious 21 year old