Scholar Stories: Cheng Discovers Balance Between Studies, Athletics at U-M
12/8/2021 9:34:00 AM | Men's Soccer, Features
Continuing the series that began in 2016-17, each Wednesday MGoBlue.com will highlight a Michigan student-athlete and their academic pursuits. These are our Scholar-Athlete Stories, presented by Absopure.
By Emma Warshofsky
Growing up in Hong Kong, C.Y. Cheng did not know 'student-athlete' was an option. With the Hong Kong education system encouraging students to pick a specialized field of study at the start of high school, Cheng thought he would have to choose between soccer and academics in ninth grade. Now a senior on the University of Michigan men's soccer team and a student in the Ross School of Business, Cheng encourages others from Hong Kong to pursue both academic and athletic paths in high school and college.
Looking to give their children the opportunity to explore their interests and gain independence, Cheng's parents sent him and his siblings to boarding school in the United States for high school. At The Hotchkiss School in Lakeville, Conn., Cheng was able to continue his studies as well as his soccer career after playing on the Hong Kong national team.
Seeing his peers go on to continue their sports in college made Cheng want to do the same.
"I didn't really know about the whole student-athlete thing until I got to high school in the U.S. Back in Hong Kong, how it worked with athletics and school was, you pick one or the other," Cheng said, "Seeing a lot of my teammates able to enjoy sports and school in college was something I was looking forward to."
Among Cheng's high school teammates were Umar Farouk Osman and Francis Atuahene, two former University of Michigan players.
"It's a small world ... while coach was watching Umar play, and before that Francis Atuahene, he saw me playing and we got in touch," Cheng explained. "Obviously, Michigan is a great school and I knew the soccer program was really strong as well. Finding that right balance is something I was looking for in college."
With his spot on the soccer roster secured, Cheng began making decisions about his academic path. Interested in business, his older teammates encouraged him to apply to the Ross program. While researching the curriculum, Cheng noticed some parallels between soccer and business.
"As I learned more about the BBA program, I realized that the soft skills required in the business world are very similar to soccer and team sports in general. Since I've played soccer my entire life, I wanted to continue to use the leadership and team-working skills off the field, as well as learn the hard skills of business."
To go along with his major in Business Administration, Cheng decided to minor in Sustainability. Growing up around his family's sustainable business in textile manufacturing, Cheng has always had a passion for the environment and is familiar with using sustainability as a competitive advantage in business.
To further expand his knowledge, Cheng joined the Erb Institute Undergraduate Fellows Program, specifically for students interested in business and sustainability.
"I get to attend graduate panels and learn from like-minded people that have similar goals in life and care about the same thing," Cheng said. Through these panels, he discovered his interest in impact investing, "instead of just expecting profit, you invest in the company that makes an impact in society."
Cheng was able to get hands-on experience with impact investing this past summer, landing an internship back home in Hong Kong with a venture capital fund called Horizons Ventures.
"I did research on DNA data storage, plastic alternatives, and carbon capture technology ... that was some really cool stuff," Cheng shared. "Having a background with the Erb Institute and the sustainability minor was really helpful in guiding me through the way."
With hopes to continue with impact investing after graduating, Cheng is thankful to have had the opportunity to explore his career interests while playing soccer.
"I'm grateful that my parents always had an open mind and gave me the freedom, independence, and support to pursue both paths ... I know there's a lot of Hong Kong athletes who have the ability to balance both academics and athletics, he said. "By sharing my experience at Michigan, I hope that it inspires more athletes, or their parents, back in Hong Kong to encourage them to pursue the student-athlete route. The skills that I've learned throughout my four years here will benefit me for life."
