Introduction:

Myname is Swopnil Deo, andI am writing to express mysincereinterestinapplying for thefall scholarshipwhile sharing myjourney as a passionate global citizen committedto notonlyacademicexcellencebutalso theinternationalbusinessenvironment.Iwas born in Nepal and movedto Europe at ayoung age, so I hadthe unique opportunityto live in various countries across the continent.My experience living in Switzerland,Portugal, andDenmark,alongwithChina,hadfosteredanappreciationformulticulturalenvironmentsanddiverseperspectives. Thisglobalupbringingnotonlybroadenedmy worldview, but also sparked curiosity for me to choose London, one of the world's most cosmopolitan cities, as a destinationfor my exchange program.

MyacademicexchangeinLondon was theresultofmypassion andcuriosity tobetter understandinternationalbusiness.AtBayesBusinessSchool,Inotonlyexcelled academicallybut also engagedin variousmoduleprojects whereI was able to apply a uniqueperspectivegainedfromstudyinginChina.Inadditiontomyacademicachievements, Ialsocompleteda 10-month professionalexperience,further bridgingthe gap betweentheory and practice.

Alloftheseexperienceshaveshapedmeintoamorecompleteindividual,bothpersonally and professionally.In thenext section of this report,I would like to sharemy achievements—academic,professional, andbeyond—asI continue to cultivatemyself as a global citizen and contributewithinthefield of international business.

Academic experience at Bayes Business School:

During my exchange program at Bayes, Ihad asignificantleewayinchoosing coursesintheareas Iwas really interested in.This led metochoosefroma diverse rangeof modules, such as econometrics, corporate governance, bank strategy and management, mergersand acquisitions, asset management, corporate risk management, behavioral decision-making,andtechnologyandinnovationmanagement.Allofthesecoursesplayedapivotalroleinallowingmetosatisfymycuriosityinvariousareasofglobalbusinesspractices, financial systems, and strategic management.

Firstly, one of my mostrewarding projects tookplace during theCorporateGovernance module.Forthisparticularproject,Iinvestigatedtheevolvinglandscapeofcorporate governanceinChina. The focus was to evaluatehowparty organizationsinbothstate- owned enterprises and private companies are contributing to becoming anovel formof enterprisegovernance in China.This project not only allowed meto learn more aboutthe emerging roleof partyorganisations in bothstate-ownedand privateenterprises, butalso evaluatedthewayinwhichdifferentformsofgovernanceareconstantlyemergingin different parts oftheworldyet remain under-explored in main-stream academia.

Secondly,Iundertookasignificantprojectincorporateriskmanagementduringmy exchangeprogramatBayesUniversity.Inthisproject,IevaluatedthecriticalriskmanagementfailuresatEvergrandeGroup.Inthisproject,InotonlyarguedthatEvergrande Group had employed excessive leverageto grow, but also demonstrated how the management at Evergrande Group failed to identify externalfactorsthatwere critical foran organization ofits scaleandsize.Iprovidedan extensivetimelineofthefailures and provided recommendationsfor avoidingthem inthefuturefrom both a business and regulatory perspective.

MyprofessorwasextremelydelightedthatIhadchosenanunderexploredtopicand commendedmeforproducinganexcellentwork.Henotedthatmyanalysisnotonly deepenedhis understanding of the crisis,but healsodeemedit worthyofsharing with this class,whichwas incredibly rewardingfor me.

Finally,Econometrics wasoneofthemostenjoyableandinsightfulmodulesItookat Bayes. Whileinitiallyintimidatedby the excessive amount ofmathematics,I foundthe moduleto beoneofthe most useful I hadtakensofar.With hardworkanddaily practices, I was confident enough to perform aproject where I utilized dataanalysis tools suchas EViewstoanalyzepre-covidstockdataforcertaincompanies,comparingthemwith industry averages.This project andthe insights Igained not only helped me completethe modulewithadistinction,butalsotaughtmevaluableskillsthatIwilluseformy dissertation and in my professional career.

Inadditiontotheabove-mentioned modules, Ifoundalltheother modulesenriching.The bank strategy and management provided mewith a comprehensiveview of the financial system, focusing onkeypoints that triggered various crises, such as the2008 financial crisis.The modulealsowent intodepthontopicssuchascryptocurrencies,altcoins,and alternativeforms of bankingthat are currently emergingwith players like Revolut, Monzo, etc.

Overall,Imanagedtodowellinallothercourses,wellinlinewithmyacademic expectations.However,duringmyexchange,Ireallystoodoutinmyprofessionalexperience atNike as an operations data analyst. This ten-month internship was one of the mostvaluable parts of my exchange program abroad, and inthe next section Iwould like to dwell into it.

Professional experience:

The main reason my professionalexperiencewas pivotalwasthat it extended beyondjust gainingcreditsorsecuringacertificate.Facedwithfinancialdifficultiesduringmy exchangeprogram,Isoughttheopportunitythatwouldprovidenotonlyvaluable experience but also a suitable incometo cover my expenses inthe UK. Ifaced afinancial challengeintheUKafterthecancellationofmypreviousOBORscholarship,butthe internshipopportunityfromNikeTownLondon'soperationsdepartmentprovidedme

with a valuable learning opportunity and competitive pay.Furthermore, the opportunity alignedwellwith my interest in operations and business strategy.

Inmyrole,Ihadtheresponsibilityofanalyzingandoptimizingstoreoperationsthatservedover16,000customersonadailybasis.Icollaboratedwithvariousteamstoprepareweekly operations reports, often basedonthevariousdatagenerated inourstore, suchasaveragetransactionvalue,netpromoterscore,inventoryturnoverrates,customersatisfactionscore,gross margin returnon investment,customer retention rate,leadtime, etc. Furthermore, I hadthe chancetowork onthe launch events of someofthemosticonicshoes,suchasKobe,YearoftheDragonAirJordan1's,andmanymore.Duringthese peaktimes, Iwas ableto leverage and build on some ofthe knowledge I hadgainedduring my supply chain moduleat Renmin University,which required metoensurethetimelyarrivalofbest-sellingproductsthroughinventorymanagementandsalesforecasting, with the goal of supporting individual and store monthlyKPIs. The rolealsoallowed meto guide and train new interns, further honing my leadership and mentorshipskills.

During my tenure atNike, our store, with the support of all teams, includingoperations, achievednumerousmilestones,including thehighestglobalsales, thehighest valued Nikestoreglobally,and thehighestdailyrevenueonBlackFridayandChristmas.This experienceof working with a great team,adopting thevaluesofalifelonglearner,and leveragingmybusinessknowledgenotonlyenrichedmyunderstandingofoneofthe most critical departments of an organization,but alsoallowedme toprepareforfuture rolesinleadingglobalbrands.Additionally,mysupervisorhasgrantedmealetterof completionfor professional experience,which I have attached below.

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Image 1:Professional experience completion letter

Personal growth andthe discovery of a new interest:

During my time in London,I developedanewpassion for writing asaresultof the daily reports I had towritefor myjob at Nike. I quickly followed up onthis new hobby by taking theinitiative to writeregularlyon topicsI foundinteresting.Over theyear,Ipublished variousshort-formarticlesallrelating toChina,asI thoughtIhad theexperienceand insightto providetheworldwith afresh,young perspective as someonewho had studied in China.

This led me towrite articles primarily on platforms like LinkedIn and SubStack, covering topicssuchasChina'strendintheeducationsector,therapidriseofChina'scivilian aerospace sector with the launch ofARJ-21 and C919, as well as broader topics like the USban on TikTok and a translated version of theChineseBureauofStatisticsquarterly reportontheeconomy,withtheaimofassistingforeignbusinessesonLinkedIn.I've provideda screenshot ofsomeof my articles below, alongwiththeiraggregateviews.The articles I have written have gotten over 16000 views and reached over 4000 members in the professional community.

Image2: Examplesofsome ofthearticles writtenand topics explored

Image3:Analyctics ofpostimpressionsand individualsreached

Conclusion:

My time inthe UK has been morethanjust an academic adventure. Before movingtothe UK,I had the urge to become amore well-rounded individual. TheUKnot onlyprovided mewithanexcellent platformforself-development, butalsooneforself-discovery. Itook advantage of the opportunityin theUK to developmyself academically,professionally, and in my own personal space.Although my academic pathway may not directly relateto the professional experience and personal growth, they have significantlycontributed to my understanding of myself and my desired futuretrajectory.

Itismyupmosthopethatthescholarshipcommitteeviewsmyapplicationfromthe perspective of my professional, academic, and personaldevelopment. Thescholarship willallowmetoremovesomeofthefinancialburdenassociatedwithmyexpenses, allowing metofully focus on my studies.Thankyou for considering my application.