Chan Siu Chuen
MA in Linguistics graduate
My love for language started when I was young—at first Chinese, and gradually it spread to English as well. Such a passion compelled me to pick English as the major of my undergraduate study. After graduation, I decided to complete a Master’s degree in a related discipline. My first choice at that time, however, was not Linguistics, but Applied English Linguistics at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. Probably due to inadequate preparation, I was rejected by them. My first application failed, but my love for language did not diminish.
I was lost, and yet, I became more determined afterwards. Indeed, it was that failure, which forced me to be very clear about my application the next year, and allowed me to find my true love in linguistics. I started to consider more possibilities for my preparation: I researched into the fields of applied English linguistics and linguistics respectively, compared and contrasted the two, and browsed through the websites of the corresponding departments to know more about their curricula. The more I looked, the more I learnt about my interest, which did not lie in applied English linguistics, but linguistics in general. So, I set off on linguistics, to go on with the journey of love between language and me.
Here I was, having got in the programme of Linguistics at CUHK, the place to thrive on my love for language. Fundamentally, the courses I took consolidated my foundations in linguistics. I was exposed to extensive linguistic theories and examples modelled on, but not restricted to, English. In addition, I was given opportunities to explore the resources that the Department had to offer. For instance, I sat in undergraduate courses in phonetics and phonology to satisfy my keen interest in these areas and improve my knowledge of them. I attended talks, conferences and workshops given by distinguished scholars locally and overseas to broaden my horizons. I enrolled in courses such as bilingualism, language acquisition and language testing, subjects which I did not have the chance to study in my undergraduate degree. These experiences made me love linguistics more than ever.
The Department is wonderful place for students to study linguistics. Its curriculum design is worthy of praise, covering a wide range of subject areas in linguistics, which meets the needs of different students. The foreign language requirement for undergraduate students—though not an experience for postgraduate students, sadly—is the highlight. It gives students a rare chance of learning a language other than Chinese or English. Some may say that the coursework is challenging and demanding, but it is such a strict standard which keeps both the academic staff and students at their high levels. Curriculum aside, the Department deserves recognition for its knowledgeable and renowned academic staff. Students are surrounded by well-qualified people from whom they can benefit, who have a passion for their specialties in linguistics. The professors’ dedicated devotion to their jobs, researching into various fields of linguistics and pouring knowledge into students, makes them role models for their students, and particularly people who love linguistics.
My decision to study linguistics at CUHK is one of the best I have ever made, and I have no regrets. I am proud to say I am a graduate from this programme, and am continuing in my career with this love for language. I am now a lecturer teaching English and Linguistics courses at a local university, passing on to my students the knowledge that I acquired in the programme, and more importantly, sharing my love for linguistics. I hope to cultivate within my students a love for linguistics in a similar way as the programme did to me.
Time flies. It has already been ten years since the establishment of the Department and it is my pleasure to be a part of it. I sincerely hope that the Department can continue to spread this love of language to her students and be the favourable place for them to flourish for many decades to come.