An Italian student takes root in China and starts a new journey

Editor’s Note: Gianluca Salvicchi is an Italian student of the Master of Finance program at Shanghai Advanced Institute of Finance (SAIF), Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU). He came to the university in 2017, majoring in electronic information, but unfortunately he had to abort his studies in Shanghai because of family reasons. After completing a bachelor's degree in economics at Luiss Guido Carli in Rome, Gianluca came back to the SJTU for a master's degree in finance.

Before becoming a SAIF student, Salvicchi had been to Shanghai twice and once studied in SJTU for a while, which shows his tight bond with China. “I will be able to merge my two loves，China and finance”. Salvicchi started learning Chinese at 13. He loves Chinese culture, appreciates China’s education and believes in China’s future.

Study in SJTU twice to meet a better self

Salvicchi came to Shanghai as an exchange student at 13. He was curious about China, an ancient country with the same time-honored history and culture as Italy. In 2017, he became a student of the School of Electronic Information and Electrical Engineering of SJTU. However, due to family reasons, he had to suspend his studies.

Influenced by his father,  Salvicchi has been very interested in financial knowledge since childhood. After he went back to Italy, he studied economics at Luiss Guido Carli, known as Italy’s Harvard. During the four years of study, Salvicchi also learned about China’s development from his friend, which made him more confident in China’s potential for economic development.  “I witness that China is looking for its own path of development. I have seen China’s vitality and capacity and I believe that Shanghai, as an international financial center, will further expand its competitiveness,” Salvicchi said. He said he hopes to make his contribution to China’s financial development in the future.

After obtaining his bachelor's degree in economics, Salvicchi came back to the SAIF for a master's degree in finance. “SAIF is an incubation for intelligence and wisdom, which is a cradle for cultivating financial talents. I am very grateful to the school for providing me with the opportunity to meet a better version of myself,” he said.

Learn skills by professional courses

“SAIF provides preparatory courses to help me enhance my financial knowledge. Technical ability courses such as programming helps me become an inter-disciplinary financial talent with versatile skills. The Chinese course specially provided for international students also enhances my business communication skills,” Salvicchi said.

As a student of finance, Salvicchi has been very interested in the investment activities in the secondary market and concerned about macroeconomic development trends.

According to Salvicchi, SAIF’s classes fully embrace the current market, cutting-edge practice and local experience. SAIF professors integrate their knowledge with China’s national conditions, and give high-level insights and analyses. “Some of the financial innovation theories used in China have never been applied in Europe. It is hard to understand but it’s fascinating. China is creating the new standards for the global economy and for the central bank to make its decisions,” he added.

Influenced by the COVID-19, the economic growth has slowed, but China has effectively avoided the financial crisis caused by inflation. Salvicchi believes that it is rare for a superpower to combine economic interests with common prosperity. Financial growth and common prosperity  are the key to China’s distinctive success.

Gain assistance in career development

The Career Development Center (CDC) of SAIF has provided Salvicchi one-to-one employment counseling.  “Teachers pointed out my current shortcomings and advantages, gave me suggestions and shared with me interview techniques, which made me fully confident about my future career development,” he said. 

Under the instruction and suggestion of CDC’s teachers, Salvicchi decided to become an intern in a Singaporean stock research corporation. “It’s a very rare experience, which not only helped me to  gain insight into Asian stocks, but also improved my career competitiveness and the capacity of time management and planning,” he noted.

On his graduation, Salvicchi was successfully recruited as a regular employee by the finance department of Huawei. “I never dreamed of joining such an international company with a global reputation. Thanks to Huawei for bringing me a new challenge and building a bridge for further understanding China. As the only foreigner in the Chinese team, I will  try my best to contribute to the team,” Salvicchi said. “China is my second home. On the way to fulfilling my ‘Chinese dream’, with the help of SAIF, my future will be surely promising.”