Enerzaya Gundalai

Why did you choose to study at SSEES?

In truth, it was more fate than planning—I didn’t initially realise how specialised SSEES was, or how right a place it could be to study Mongolia and Central Asia. Once there, I found myself in a uniquely interdisciplinary environment that reshaped how I thought about politics, history, and economics. Coming from a country often absent from comparative studies, I was struck by how valuable it is to situate Mongolia within wider regional debates—and how much potential there is for SSEES to engage more deeply with this part of the world, and for more students from Mongolia to see themselves as part of that conversation.

What was the motivation behind studying your chosen course? 

I wanted to seriously investigate two main questions: why some countries are poor, and what Marxism was and why it was abandoned as a political and theoretical project. The History, Politics and Economics programme at SSEES offered the ideal combination to pursue these questions, especially in the context of post-socialist societies like Mongolia.

What did you enjoy most about your studies? 

I loved how critical the curriculum was. There was a quiet, revisionist, decolonising thread running through many courses that taught us to dismantle and interrogate what counts as "objective" knowledge. Studying at a UK institution like UCL was valuable because you gain access to the established academic canon, but you're simultaneously taught to question it.

How would you describe your time at UCL, what was the highlight? 

It was a period of intense intellectual reconfiguration. The highlight was writing my dissertation, "Is Mongolia’s Capitalism for the Many or for the Few?". It was the first time I could apply that critical lens to my own country, using EBRD data to test established economic theories against the messy reality of Mongolia’s transition. That process of challenging the "standard narrative" was deeply empowering and resulted in a First Class mark that validated my specific interest in institutional economics.

What have you been up to since graduating?

I have been working at the intersection of practice and policy. I returned to Mongolia to take over as CEO of my family’s business, Dalai Eej Resort, at Lake Khuvsgul. Simultaneously, I have kept one foot in research, analysing corruption for the Independent Authority Against Corruption and contributing to UCL’s Global Informality Project. I’ve tried to bridge the gap between abstract policy design and the on-the-ground reality of running a business in a developing economy.

What is your current role and what does it involve? 

As CEO of a tourism enterprise in a national park, I navigate the exact institutional frictions I used to study. My role involves everything from logistics and staff management to navigating complex land-use regulations. It is a daily lesson in how "institutions" actually function (or fail) on the ground, far removed from the textbooks.

How do you use your degree in your job today? 

I use the critical thinking skills I honed at SSEES to diagnose the systems around me. When I face a regulatory hurdle or a policy shift, I don't just see a bureaucratic obstacle; I see the political economy behind it—the incentives and the history. That ability to "read" the institutional landscape, a skill developed through comparative study, is invaluable for navigating the business environment in a post-socialist frontier economy.

What are your future plans/aspirations?

I am planning to return to academia for a Master’s in Public Policy to formalise the lessons I've learned in the private sector. My goal is to move from navigating these institutional voids to helping fix them, specifically by designing better frameworks for land-use rights and transparency in Mongolia’s tourism sector. I aim to turn my "micro-level" experience at Khuvsgul into "macro-level" policy solutions.

What advice would you give to current students?

Don't be afraid to bring your own context into the classroom. If you are from a region or background that isn't the "standard case study," use that. The academic canon needs your perspective as much as you need its rigour. Also, treat your dissertation not just as an assignment, but as your first real contribution to the field—it’s the moment you stop just consuming knowledge and start producing it.