On March 2nd, two teams - Pegasus and Unicorn - consisting of 12 students from Pao School Years 10 and 11 participated in the  Knowledge@Wharton High School Investment Competition Asia Pacific Finals. Ultimately, the Pegasus team won the championship thanks to the students' sharp thinking, confident presentations and investment projects that were both financially feasible and socially responsible. Team Pegasus will go on to the Global Final to be held at the Wharton School in the United States in May. 

Team Pegasus：Ray Wang, William Wang, Annie Zhang, Belinda Feng, Happy Zhu, and George Wang

There were over 1,000 eligible teams from all over Asia-Pacific region. Only 12 teams were selected to the regional final. Both teams of YK Pao School succeeded in getting into the top 12. 

Team Unicorn: John Yang, Jack Yang, Stella Chen, Chris Chen, Fiona Shen,  and Coco Chu

From the summer of 2018, YK Pao School has been actively supporting our students to prepare for these competitions. Many different departments supported the students, while teachers devoted time in extracurricular activities to helping students prepare. Similarly, our library also was integral in students' preparation for the competitions, providing them with a wealth of material about investment principles. 

Team Unicorn conducted an in-depth case study of the famous American electric vehicle maker Tesla, developing an innovation-centered investment solution. The team's business investment plan impressed the judges.

Business Proposal of Team Unicorn

Team Pegasus, winner of Asia-Pacific region, conducted in-depth research on the client, looking in depth at the client's website, career, educational background and preferred social media platform in order to identify the client's investment needs. When developing an investment plan, it is imperative to look to the future and apply the principle of ESG (Environment, Society, Governance) and being innovative. For portfolio selection, Pegasus employed machine-learning technology to develop a feasible investment strategy and financial model. 

IGCSE and IB Business teacher and competition advisor David Lin noted that the students performed beyond the class expectation. To win this competition, they need to go beyond their classroom learnings to develop a good understanding of basic investment concepts and strategies, as well as how to read an annual report. As they prepared for the competition, the students showcased strong analytical, teamwork and leadership skills.  

"It's really quite impressive that Pao students' knowledge of investment principles is on par with that of university students." David said.

The other advisor, McKay pointed out that students not only reviewed case studies, but also established a dedicated website and a WeChat account. "The students' projects are forward looking and socially responsible." she commented.

First 9 students in the back row from left to right，members of Team Tomorrow: Eric Tang, Michael Li, Steven Zhou, Yuki Hua, Helena Zhou, AshleyQian, Grace Hu, Sunshine Chen and LilyBo

The YK Pao School team of Year 8 and Year 9 students won the Championship as well as the Best Roadshow Award at the Tycoon Enterprise Competition - designed to encourage entrepreneurship and creativity. Given their outstanding performance, they have been invited to Buckingham Palace in London for the awards ceremony on May 7 and will be awarded by Prince Andrew.

For the Tycoon Enterprise Competition, Pao students developed a business plan for an information sharing and social platform for secondary school students. The competition required the students to submit a business plan, establish a website and a WeChat public account and use other channels to promote their business plan, and finally complete the evaluation report and present it. The judges were impressed by our students' professional presentation. No wonder Pao students won the grand prize at the competition - the quality of their presentation made them stand out from the crowd! 

Award winning team members: Cora Chen, Susie Li, Leon Wang, Yolanda Huang, Selina Liu, Carolyn Kong, Hanson He, Vicky Yang and George Yu

Photo: Dream Xia

Pao students delivered an impressive performance at the United States Academic Decathlon, taking ninth place in the Overall Team Awards, and second place in the Super Quiz test. More specifically, George Yu won a bronze medal in the Essay competition and a bronze medal of Science competition. Carolyn Kong won a silver medal in the Essay competition. Yolanda Huang won a bronze medal in the Music competition. 

The United States Academic Decathlon (USAD) is a major academic competition for high school students in the United States established almost 50 years ago. Through various forms of competition, USAD allows students to demonstrate their knowledge and skills in 10 different academic fields, helping them develop their scholastic potential. 

Mr. Yingkai Li, Maths teacher at high school, noted that this is the first time our students participated in this competition. In just a few months' time, students had to prepare to compete in many different subjects, including mathematics, natural sciences, social sciences, economics, literature, art and music. Students spent a lot of time preparing for this challenging competition, even sacrificing their vacation time and other leisure time. 

"Pao students' success in this competition is well deserved," he says. 

Year 11 Maths Class

Most excitingly, our team qualified for the finals, which will be held in April in the United States. This is a major accomplishment for our school, especially as it is our first time participating in the competition.