A defining postgraduate journey
PURSUING a postgraduate credential in business requires one to take stock of their career and the trajectory they want it to take.
The upside is obvious. According to the Graduate Management Admission Council, an MBA, a DBA or a PhD serves as a springboard to leadership roles and an earnings boost.
Financial Times data shows that salaries can increase by over 100% three years after graduation, depending on one’s industry, role and location.
The financial value of earning a postgraduate business credential is not lost on Lo Pei San, a PhD student at UCSI’s Graduate Business School.
But instead of focusing solely on earnings potential, the 24-year-old digital marketer is quick to explain how her studies are essentially an “investment in herself”.
“Thought leadership and rigorous research matter to me,” muses Lo. “I’m pursuing a PhD at UCSI because I have an invaluable opportunity to learn from – and work alongside – renowned researchers who are at the forefront of their respective fields.”
Lo is referring to academics like Prof Dr Garry Tan Wei Han and Senior Prof Dr Ooi Keng Boon, both of whom serve as her research supervisor and co-supervisor, respectively.
Prof Ooi and Prof Tan are both ranked in the world’s top 2% of scientists by Stanford University. Both are also ranked in the world’s top 10 for research productivity in mobile commerce applications by Clarivate Analytics Web of Science.
“Working with the best motivates me to do better,” says Lo. “My supervisors are very responsive and I’ve learnt so much when it comes to research and peer review.
“They’ve also expanded my network and I’ve been able to work with reputable researchers from leading universities in Britain.”
At UCSI’s Graduate Business School, nothing is left to chance. Be it a dynamic case discussion, a simulation or an intensive research endeavour, precocious students like Lo are challenged to think like never before.
Discussions are convivial but intense as every assumption is challenged. And the diversity of thought, talent and experience in the student body encourages the cross-fertilisation of ideas.
This super-charged intellectual environment has resulted in farreaching impact. Publications in Scopus-indexed journals have shown a year-on-year rise of 100%. Research funding has also shown strong growth over the same period.
Lo is fast becoming a prolific researcher in her own right. She won the Emerald Review Writing Competition in 2021 and her research on livestream marketing has yielded insights that were published in three top-ranked business journals.
They are the Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services (Elsevier; ABDC - A) ,the Journal of Computer Information Systems (Taylor and Francis; ABDC - A) and the Journal of Business Research (Elsevier; ABDC - A). The latter has an approval rate of 6.5%.
Her research focus is both timely and timeless. Livestream marketing is becoming increasingly popular and is estimated to be worth US$423bil (RM1.9 trillion) in China alone this year.
The growth of livestreaming was greatly accelerated over the last two years by the pandemic and an increasing number of Malaysians are falling prey to impulse buying during such streams.
“Livestream marketing rides on a ‘see now, buy now’ approach that induces consumer demand within a short time frame,” Lo explains.
“My research shows that the majority of viewers don’t watch the entirety of an hour-long stream. In fact, most people devote their attention to streams for only 20 to 40 minutes.
“This necessitates swiftness and an influencer will seek to create a perceived need through the use of addictive hooks, enjoyable sessions, quasi-social relationships and cognitive triggers.”
The triggers Lo alludes to are the perception of scarcity or the limited nature of a particular product, as well as the notion of added value from discounts.
These considerations make her body of work stand out. Cognitive evaluation has been largely neglected by existing literature on impulse buying and her insights have shed new light on a phenomenon that is reshaping the global marketing landscape.
Lo’s success is proof of the pudding. And her accomplishments are a microcosm of the good work that takes place on a daily basis at UCSI’s Graduate Business School.
Her experiences – and that of more than 1,100 peers in her cohort – have helped her develop an indispensable worldview that will serve her for the rest of her career.
And this more than justifies the investment in a postgraduate credential.
■ For more information on MBA, DBA or PhD programmes at UCSI, visit ucsiuniversity.edu.my/about-us/ ucsi-graduate-business-school or contact 03-9101 8882 or 011-3591 5021.