RMBI Student-Staff Liaison Committee (SSLC)

Year 1 Feedback Summary

23 July 2023
Introduction:
The feedback received in this feedback summary is collected based on a random sampling of RMBI Year
1 peers. This summary will break up into four categories for easier understanding. The section titles are
as follows: RMBI program curriculum and operations, Enrichment activities, Student advising and Other
Feedback from Our Peers.
Submission part
RMBI Program Curriculum and Operations:
Regarding the change that RMBI students are eligible to declare an extended major in AI and DMCA, we
received positive comments on this issue and are happy that the program office has implemented our
suggestions.
In the past semester, nearly all of our students contended with RMBI’s Program Curriculum and the
program office’s operations. We believe the courses taken during Year 1 Spring are meaningful and
beneficial to our career development in risk and technology fields. The courses taken are of adequate
difficulty in which we can achieve satisfying results with endeavours. We are also satisfied with RMBI
Program Office’s Operations as staff in RMBI Program Office send emails to us regularly when there are
internship opportunities or webinar events. Moreover, staff in program offices can always satisfy our
needs when we request different documents like recommendation letters. It is noteworthy that some of
our peers hope to receive more internship opportunity emails from technology companies, not just
various banks and insurance companies.
Enrichment Activities:
In the past semester, the RMBI Program Office has set up an array of meaningful enrichment activities
for fellow RMBI students, which include Capstone Project Poster Presentation, How to Ace the Interview
with a Personal Brand, Career Exploration using Lumina Spark – iBank & Consultancies (including
environmental consultancies), Career Workshop: Handling Job Offers like a Pro, Enhance Your
Professional Image: Join Our Career Development Workshop, Power CV and Cover Letter Writing
Workshop & Basic LinkedIn Profile Building. However, according to the opinion received, our peers are
not captivated by these career-oriented activities at an early stage and the time slots of these events
don’t fit the personal schedule, resulting in low participation rates often recorded in these activities.
Some of our students resort to randomly participating in one of the events only because they would like
to meet the requirements and did not avail themselves of the activities.
(It seems that the aim of joining enrichment activities among our peers is distorted, in which we focus
on our attendance in these events and neglect the lessons learnt during these opportunities. It is also
true that all the events are similar this semester, leading students to not participate in seemingly
repetitive events. Events can incorporate more diverse elements like those in the 2022/23 fall semester
that included a rock-climbing activity with GBUS Program and a games event with IPO courses (RMBI
and IPO mixer session), which can inflict interest among our peers.)

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 Student Advising:
Year 1 peers generally did not find their peer mentors helpful. Based on most of the opinions received,
our counterparts reported having a distant relationship with their peer mentors and will only
communicate with their mentors on RMBI 2001 compulsory event occasions. Otherwise, mentors and
mentees rarely reach out to each other. In fact, the same issue was raised in the last meeting and we,
Year 1 representatives, also received complaints from Year 3 representatives saying that we are not
active in approaching help and advice from Year 3 peer mentors, leading to an embarrassing
predicament of both parties not contacting each other. From the comments received, it is believable
that this situation is still prevalent because Year 1 students may feel awkward and inferior to seek help
from seniors. Compared to the mentor and mentee relationship in student advising, the relationship
between mentees is no better. Many reported their close RMBI friends are not from the peer mentor
group, which justifies that mentees in the same group rarely communicate with each other. Some
interviewees deemed the peer mentor scheme a failure as it failed to capture its primary goal.
(Maybe for the next cohort, the program office can consider incorporating more ice-breaking/interactive
activities between mentors and mentees on Orientation Day to make both parties closer. Thus, they will
feel carefree to express themselves and are more willing to communicate with their mentors when the
relationship is close.)
Raising part (Other Feedback from Our Peers)
Mingling with Graduates
Our peers expressed that they would like to meet RMBI graduates and have a casual conversation so
they would have a deeper understanding of the career paths of RMBI graduates. They believed this
would have a clearer picture while depicting their pathways. Respondents proposed the event can be an
RMBI 2001 compulsory event and thus exclusive to our community. Additionally, respondents suggest
the event can take place in HKUST to facilitate everyone.
Community Meeting
Our peers hold bipolar views to the community meeting held this semester. Negative comments blamed
the community meetings are set in the early hours of the weekend, discouraging students from coming
an arduous way to HKUST. Moreover, our peers believed that the event was dull and redundant as the
DISC survey/system used resembled the Lumina Spark test we did in the fall semester. It is not
meaningful for everyone to go through the same stuff again taking into account that the respondents
unanimously reported that games played throughout the event are childish and absurd, which fails to
inflict our interest. On the contrary, some respondents viewed the event as a precious opportunity to
get along and mingle with batchmates. Albeit they also don’t think the event is appealing, they are
satisfied with the event as it provided them with opportunities to make new friends and understand
each other better.
RMBI Student Association (RMBISA)
Some of our peers raised concerns about the newly revitalized RMBISA, while some of the members
expressed that they would like to gain support from the RMBI program office in both financial and
advising aspects. They would like the help of program staff to help coordinate relations and
communications with DSTO or other University organizations, which can speed up the overall

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 revitalization process of RMBISA. Also, some peers raised the request of hoping for an advisor from
RMBI program office, whom they can seek help from.
Peers from our cohort heard that RMBISA is revitalizing. Notwithstanding, they are unsure of what will
happen and what will the RMBISA brings them. Hence, they would like to get informed of the progress
of the student association (i.e. more transparency from the SA side to stakeholders).
Recalling the bad times in student advising experienced, some of our batchmates (including selective
members of the RMBISA) concluded that the passive attitude of incompetent peer mentors was the
culprit of the plight. While some members of the RMBISA found it taxing to arrange an Orientation
Camp, they are resorting to managing an Orientation Day in the coming years instead. Some peers
suppose RMBISA can provide help in orchestrating the orientation day. Furthermore, members of
RMBISA can take up peer mentor posts, who are possibly more fond of promoting the program and has
higher passion and interest in expanding connections within the RMBI community.
Selective Activity & RMBISA:
From the last meeting, peers hope that the program can organize party room activities or health/sports-
related activities as selective activities for students to vent their stress and get along with RMBI juniors
and seniors. Both the program office and RMBISA may take a step forward to organize such events as
suggested by respondents.

Aug 4 2023
Feedback Tracker
Mingling with Graduates
The event’s intention is good and received support across cohorts. However, the event has low chance
to be held due to low participation rates of previous activities and particularly in alumni events. Still it
worths a try to contact the alumni but the meeting is unlikely to be held in HKUST.
Community Meeting
The program office will still hold meetings on weekend mornings as they believe that timeslot
intervenes our daily schedule the least. However, program office guaranteed to study the nature of our
previous compulsory and optional events attended in order to avoid a wastage of resources and
redundant natures of events being held.
RMBI Student Association (RMBISA)

The program office assigned Ms Annka Koo <annkakoo@ust.hk> to be the advisor for RMBISA, she will
provide help including helping to locate pending actions to be done, finding related people and
organizations. The program office also stated it will provide help with the booking of facilities and will
provide the SA with the money retained in previous RMBI Society. The program office in full support of
the RMBISA hoping it will organize some of the entertaining/recreational activities, that students long-
wanted but the program office unable to deliver. The program also hoped the SA includes different
nationalities of students so everyone could enjoy themselves thoroughly. (Ex-RMBI Society is
compromised mainly of locals, leading to boycott of the society by mainland students.) Moreover,
program office hopes that the RMBISA can be more promoted within the cohort such that bonding will

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 be more stronger and the SA itself can be more long-lasting. (so that the embarrassing situations in peer
mentor situations will occur less frequently). A year 3 student representative has suggested to provide
the contact of the ex-president of RMBI Society to provide more support and guidance of revitalizing the
society (still pending). It is also discussed that the society can be operated currently and hold proposed
year plan events given that mutual agreement is made between Annka and the SA. Follow up emails and
updates should be sent to Annka to inform her.

Selective Activity & RMBISA:

It can be done once the SA is formed, no actions need to be done by program office.

End of document

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