7
A SIGNIFICANT LANDMARK
Oct 2012
UMP
ɽኪᄿఙ
Hong Kong is a big change from South Africa, my home
country, but a very pleasant one. The public transport is
amazing. The people are so friendly and one will soon
come to feel as if you are part of a big family. Coming to
study in Hong Kong from overseas may be a daunting
prospect at first, but it is well worth it. CUHK has a
unique philosophy as a university, and one that puts
its students first. There are organisations within the
University, which aim to help new students adjust and
make the most of the start of their new lives in Hong
Kong. My college is a very comfortable environment,
which I have already considered home. Friends can be
made quickly, and they will be friends worth keeping. I
have been interested in Chinese culture for a long time
and grew up learning about it and being exposed to
it, so I didn't really experience any culture shock here.
I was driven to pursue my studies in Life Sciences
because of my desire to help treat illnesses with (and
perhaps create new uses for) gene therapy. I hope to
achieve this through genetics research, and there is no
place I would rather study than Hong Kong.
BARLOW, J. St. Clair
(
from South Africa / Life Sciences / Year 1)
Turn over
a new leaf
T
housands of miles away from home, Hong Kong, so different and so new, will be the place which non-local students
may consider home. Here, four new students from far-flung corners of the world are sharing their excitements,
expectations and views on the life here, as they embark on the new journey and start taking the helm.
This is my first time in Asia and mostly everything is
new to me. However I do not really feel that it is hard to
understand the culture here. If you move abroad, you
have to be patient in the first phase and start to learn
how to be a member of this community. It is better to
free your mind about preconceptions and avoid any
stereotypes. I am rather curious about the habits and
needs of the people here. So I am trying to learn the
local language, which is Cantonese, as it has a strong
relation with the way of thinking of its native speakers.
At the university too, I try to learn as soon as the
new learning and grading systems, because they are
completely different than the ones we have in Hungary.
I really enjoy learning new things and that is why I am
very excited to start my study and research work at
CUHK.
GROF, Patricia Piroska
(
from Hungary / PhD in Mechanical and Automation
Engineering)