On May 19, a group of 13 YCA teachers and students visited the APCO Beijing Office. Our Scholars gained valuable insight into the consultancy business through panel discussions on specific cases and engaging conversations with senior APCO staff.
Senior APCO workers Shan Shuang and Yuan Yining warmly received the YCA group. Jiang Manwei, HR director of APCO Shanghai Office, gave an online briefing covering APCO’s business scope, clientele, corporate culture, and career opportunities. Arturo Palacios, a YCA Scholar from Mexico, and Li Jiaxin, a future APCO employee, shared their internship experiences with APCO. These discussions sparked our students’ interest in strategic communications and government relations, with many expressing a strong interest in working with APCO in the future.
Our Scholars joined panel discussions focused on case studies. Li Yuqiu presented a real case from the international education consulting sector. The students worked in three panels led by APCO workers Zhang Jiewei, Liu Zhaohong, and Li Jiaxin. The students provided insightful analyses, exploring decision-maker’s psychology, social relations, and stakeholder dynamics. Li Yuqiu provided feedback on the students’ work, highlighting the gap between their proposals and real-life solutions.
The experience of engaging with the case study was akin to immersion in a video game, as our students gained a deeper understanding of Chinese youth preferences for social media and education, as well as the intricate connections between governmental and non-governmental institutions in international education. During the Q&A session, APCO staff members addressed questions about career requirements and shared their experiences in the consultancy business.
Feedback from the YCA delegation was overwhelmingly positive.
Dario Cowdery (UK): I truly enjoyed this visit to the APCO Beijing Office. We were warmly received and the staff were frank with their job. The case study revealed what the company does in their daily business. The workers tried their best to support and help us all the time.
Kathy Song (USA): During this visit, I learned more about policy analysis and public affairs, honing my skills in reading news summaries and staying abreast of business policies, hot topics, and key issues in China, along with understanding its political structure. I’m grateful to the APCO staff. Thanks to them, I found the short planks in my studies I hadn't recognized in a purely academic environment. It was an entirely enlightening experience.
