New York University Shanghai students are celebrating after graduating with bachelor degrees and Shanghai diplomas.

The class of 2018, which included 265 students from 35 countries, 134 of them Chinese scholars, is the second group of NYU Shanghai graduates to pass with flying colors, after last year’s class.

Some of them have already landed jobs in top-flight companies and intergovernmental organizations, such as Amazon, Alibaba, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, IBM, L’Oreal, Morgan Stanley, Standard Chartered and Tencent, while others have earned coveted postgraduate scholarships, including one Schwarzman and two Yenching scholars. But some foreign graduates are intending stay in China after graduation.

Greece-born Louis Demetroulakos graduated a year ahead of schedule and will work for Hellas Group of Companies as a business development manager, splitting his time between Shanghai and Athens.

“I will be working to bridge two of the world's most ancient civilizations together with gastronomy and hospitality,” said the Global China Studies major from Boston of America.

He used to dig up pieces of porcelain in his backyard when he was around 5 years old, which he believed were from China. His interest in China deepened during high school, where he took a Chinese history class, which ultimately led him to apply to his dream school, NYU Shanghai.

“I hadn’t told my parents, so the acceptance letter came as a surprise to them,” Demetroulakos said. “They were worried about me moving so far away, but I had prepared a 3,000-word essay for them explaining why I really wanted to make this move and why I thought I should be here.”

Demetroulakos chose to major in Global China Studies and admitted it has changed his perspective and given him a good toolkit to look critically at different situations.

“I love learning how past traditions in China can influence how people behave today in business situations,” he said. “It has made me much more sensitive to the people that I'm working with.”

The combination of in-depth local business knowledge and cross-cultural awareness has helped him stand out in applying for jobs.

“NYU Shanghai has equipped me with the cross-cultural tools to navigate the global workplace,” Demetroulakos said. “I say with all certainty, that NYU Shanghai is the best decision I've made in my life.”