Q: Initially, what made you decide to study abroad? Why did you choose your program?
A: There are a few reasons that made me decide to study abroad and chose UCEAP as my study abroad program. First of all, since I major in Management and Business Economics, I wanted to have a chance to go out and see the differences in the economics system between different countries. While I searched for the information online, I found that the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) is one of the top choices for me to study economics. The second reason is my personal preference to go to Hong Kong because I lived in Mainland, China, for many years, and I could easily understand the language they speak. However, there are still a lot of differences between Hong Kong and the Mainland, China. So, I would like to experience diversity in a different culture to enrich my life and learn from different environments. Also, my grandmother is living near Hong Kong by herself; the place I chose is more comfortable for me to visit and take care of her.
Q: What was the highlight of your study abroad experience?
A: The highlight of my study abroad experience was that my friends and I decided to hike a mountain call suicide cliff. The cliff was pretty high, steep, and dangerous; we needed to climb up by holding the trees' branches and roots. However, we made it to the top before the sunset and took some fantastic group photos. During the process of climbing, we helped each other out, holding hands with hands, and everyone has their roles. Such as the people in front were exploring the road and telling the dangerous out; some of the people were singing and making jokes, tried to make people happy and relax, some of the people were responsible for taking photos and recording the process, etc. I loved being with all of them and had a meaningful and pleasant trip with them, and since we were collaborating and enjoying all the time made the trip became unforgettable.
Q: What was your greatest challenge abroad and how did you overcome it?
A: As we all know, Hong Kong is experiencing a particular period, and protesters are everywhere. Due to the Hong Kong situation, the school I went abroad decided to cancel all the classes and tests in school and changed to online courses. Since I had to study online and stay in a turbulent circumstance, the greatest challenge for me was hard to focus on study and hard to ask for help about assignments and courses, etc. The way I overcome it is not an excellent way, but at least resolve into a better situation. I dropped out of two classes and focused on the other three. Also, while I have questions, I would send an email to the professors and ask classmates if they understand the problems. Even though it took some time for them to reply, I finally found a way to solve the problem.
Q: How did your coursework abroad compare to your courses at UC Merced?
A: The coursework abroad is a bit harder compared to the courses at UC Merced because first, the situation Hong Kong has right now, second, they have more students and the students there are working harder, third, they won't show you the grade until you finish your final exam. Usually, they only have one midterm for a course, which is the reason that made the students studying crazily.
Q: What did you gain from your study abroad experience?
A: During my time abroad, I gained a lot of things such as friendship, independent skills, and the whole experience in Hong Kong. I joined a lot of activities at school and love to talk to the people there and understand their cultures.
Q: What advice do you have for students considering study abroad?
A: The advice I have for students considering study abroad is that they should search for information about the place they are going to study overseas. Please make sure they bring enough money and prepare useful stuff for the trip, make confident bringing their certifications and documents, and don't lose them. While abroad, I would like to tell them to enjoy their life there, make more friends, join activities they are interested in, try something that is only there, but at the same time remember and take care of your academics. If you are playing all the time, you are going to fail. Also, I would like to advise that taking more general courses there is better for you to transfer your work, and before you take classes there, please let your advisor check your list and give you some suggestions. If possible, please record the days while traveling, you will find that experience unique and meaningful.
Q: Describe a typical day for you abroad.
A: A typical day for my abroad is I will go to my courses first, and then eat lunch with my friends. Then we will go to study for a couple of hours if we still have time before dinner we will go search for some activities, such as do some sports, play some instruments, sing, dance, gym, or maybe share our thoughts, experiences, and ideas, etc. After dinner, we would like to do our assignments, some times we will stay together, some times we will remain in our rooms until we finish it. We always want to walk after we finish our work, and then stay at the seaside to relax the view. (Since our hall is near to the sea like a walk in two minutes.) Sometimes, we cooked by ourselves or went outside to check for a good meal, and then if possible, we would like to watch movies together or playing some music because we all want to enjoy music and stay together.
