Australian Maritime College MBA student Chun Hei (Chris) Wang has won the 2021 Shipping Australia Prize for Excellence!
Shipping Australia congratulates Chris on his achievement!
He was nominated for the $750 prize by the Australian Maritime College because of his demonstrated excellence in his commercial shipping related studies.
Dr Vera Zhang, Senior Lecturer at the National Centre for Ports And Shipping at the Australian Maritime College, commented: “Prizes are an important part of recognising the outstanding efforts of our AMC students and are a tangible incentive for our students to strive for excellence. We are very grateful for the generosity of our industry donors who continue to support our prizes program and our students.
“Sincere congratulations on Mr Wang’s hard-earned success in commercial shipping subjects in his studies with Department of Maritime and Logistics Management, Australian Maritime College. Mr Wang was awarded the Shipping Australia Prize in 2021 due to his high achievement in commercial shipping subjects in his studies of MBA (Maritime and Logistics Management). In one of the major commercial shipping related subjects, Maritime Economics for Managers, Mr Wang reached a result of 87 (High Distinction), which was the highest score in a class of 42. He also achieved the second highest Grade Point Average among graduates in the course MBA (Maritime and Logistics Management) in 2021”.
Shipping Australia caught up with Chris to find out more.
How did you feel when you found out that you had won the prize?
I was having lunch with my young family in town when I found out I had won the Shipping Australia prize. I am so surprised and feel so honoured upon receiving this news.
What will you do with the prize money?
I would probably spend the prize money on gifts for my wife and my one year old son as they showed a lot of support to me when I was doing the course. I am pretty sure I would not get the prize if they are not around.
How do you think that winning the Shipping Australia Award will affect your future career?
I think the award would provide my future employers a good impression of my ability and enthusiasm towards the shipping industry.
What course are you studying? Why did you pick that course?
I was studying a Master’s degree in Maritime and Logistic Management. I picked this course because of my seafaring background, which is the forefront of the shipping industry. I am interested in having a more in-depth knowledge in this industry after spending a year working onboard container vessels.
Why did you decide to study maritime subjects?
At the beginning, I chose to study maritime subject just because of my father. I have grown up in a maritime family as my dad is a harbour pilot in Hong Kong, which got me exposed into ships and maritime knowledge at my early age. Throughout the course I am actually more interested in this subject because it is one of the oldest industry in modern civilisation and I can always find our ancestors’ intelligence in the maritime industry.
What are your future career plans after you finish your course?
My career plan is to get into either the port industry or the shipping logistic industry in Tasmania. I am also open to getting back onboard if the opportunity comes.
What’s the most interesting aspect of the maritime industry for you?
Given my academic background of holding a bachelor degree in Economics, I always find it interesting that how the maritime industry forms the backbone of our world’s economy. While globalisation and trades keep our world connected, it would be impossible for them to take place without the maritime industry.
There are many maritime educational institutions in many countries in the world that you could have chosen to study at. Why did you pick the Australian Maritime College? Why did you choose to study in Australia?
I pick AMC when I was studying my pre-sea program back in 2017, I just decided to pursue a higher degree of study in AMC when COVID hit us two years ago. I chose it because it is the most well-known institutions that provides professional training to seafarers. It is also one of the few institutions around the world that has the course structure to let student gain working experience onboard after completing each block of study. Of course, the beautiful and astonishing environment of Tasmania is also one of the reason I chose to study in AMC.
What have you most enjoyed about studying in Tasmania? Why?
Given I have grown up in a big city, the amazing scenic view and quiet environment in Tasmania are probably the two thing that I enjoyed the most. I can always get a quick recharge by going outside whenever I feel tired and frustrated about my study.
What one message, or piece of advice, would you give to a person who is considering a career in the maritime industry or in studying maritime subjects at university?
While studying in maritime subjects can be broad, it actually leads to endless possibilities in our future career such as the field of seafaring, logistic management and port management. We might not know how the knowledge we acquire today is going to be used in the future, but I am sure all of us would be grateful to have these knowledge or experience when the times come.
What do you do in your spare time?
I spent most of the spare time with my wife and my 1 year old son because family is probably the most important aspect of my life at this stage. Working out at the gym, learning guitar, and riding motorcycle are the other three things that I recently enjoy doing to challenge myself in my spare time.
