What is your biggest dream when you are or about to become a college student? Have you thought about studying abroad and being immersed in a completely different culture?

Studying abroad is an important part of a student’s life. They are exposed to new experiences, enhancing their personal development in different ways. It has a profound impact on students as people from all over the world come at one place with their different cultures and schools of thought.

In this new series about our international students, we have interviewed five undergraduate students at Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech) from different countries.

They choose to study in China, to get an innovative education, to discover new places and opportunities, to master new skills and to collaborate across culture at SUSTech.

In this first article, we provide a general introduction to some of our international students. Later on, each of them will provide a unique insight into themselves, their reasons for coming to SUSTech and their dreams for the future.

Chin Chin Tan—- An independent girl longing to explore more

We might think it is quite a challenge for a young girl to study abroad, but Chin Chin Tan does not exactly fall into our conjecture. Born from Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia, Chin Chin Tan as a Malaysian Chinese had already traveled extensively in her younger days. Before studying in SUSTech, she spent her high school days in Singapore, where she had already gained lots of experience of living and studying abroad.  Coming to SUSTech is a beautiful incident, which started from an educational fair but Chin Chin’s life in SUSTech is wonderful. She is proud of getting involved in lots of societies including SUSTech Volunteer Team, Public Welfare groups, Student News Agency and the Symphony Orchestra. She is also a cultural enthusiast willing to travel around China and explore more wonders.

Eszter Soos—- With itchy feet to travel around China

Eszter Soos is an intelligent young woman from Hungary, who is looking to develop her knowledge base and make more new friends in Shenzhen. Similar to Chin Chin Tan, she had also traveled in her teenage years, which made her think “stepping out the comfort zone” is not a big deal. At first, Eszter Soos had not thought about studying in China, as Chinese is really difficult for her. However, SUSTech being an innovative university in Shenzhen provides an English environment for learning, which reassured her family and finally changed her mind. Eszter Soos lives her life to her fullest, being an organizer in Christmas party and involving in lots of activities. Besides, she also expressed her wish of visiting all the places in China. She wants to try out different types of cuisine, learn traditional Chinese customs and continue to improve her Mandarin. Really hope she can achieve her dream!

István Zsombó—- A wizard at maths

Steve, as he prefers to go by, is a Hungarian freshman who joined SUSTech in 2018. As a young student, Steve has developed a strong interest in mathematics. While in high school, he competed in numerous competitions, including the Arany Dániel or the national final of the national mathematics competition. During his high school years, he received excellent results in mathematics, physics and computer programming competitions, so it was no surprise to any of his instructors when he excelled in his final scores, with all scores above 90%, and both his mathematics and informatics scores surpassing 96%. While he hasn’t declared a major yet, mathematics or computer science may be his future choice. Now, Steve is taking many general education courses and he highly appreciates the opportunities of the educational model. He expressed his gratefulness for the resources and energy at SUSTech, providing him with lots of opportunities to explore potential and interest. Currently, Steven hasn’t spent much time outside campus, because he can find pretty much everything he needs here. Shenzhen is in rapid development, people here are friendly. Hope Steve can develop his interests and find out more possibilities in SUSTech.

Sofia Serebrennikova—-A wise decision maker

Sofia Serebrennikova is from Moscow, the largest city in the Russian Federation. Before pursuing her education at SUSTech, she had already studied for a year at the People’s Friendship University of Russia, a public university with the highest level of international students in all of Russia and with the express purpose of giving young people from Asia, Africa and Latin America, especially from poor families, an opportunity to be educated and to become qualified specialists. However, she found that she was not satisfied with her studies there and was looking for somewhere else to study Computer Science. She applied for a position in SUSTech and she got it, which she considered it would be the wisest choice she has ever made for her education. Sofia is also an observer in her daily life. She admired the hands-on and friendly educational approach in China which is quite different from the hands-off approach in Russia. Also, she was amazed by “app for that” nature in China, reflecting on how technology greatly changes people’s lifestyle and brings more conveniences. These differences are new things and challenges for Sofia, but it is true that she is really enjoying and adapting to her current life. Make a wise decision, and have a strong determination to pursue the dream.

William Vong – A problem solver and goal catcher

William Vong from Cambodia was one of the first six international students to SUSTech. Since he was young, he knew the significance of education and had the ambition of getting a scholarship to study abroad. When he came to SUSTech, he admitted that there were lots of cultural and educational differences between China and Cambodia that force him to work harder so as to catch up with his fellow classmates. It was a little bit tougher at first, but William did not fear difficulties and step by step to solve all the problems. William is warm-hearted, knowing the loneliness international students may face, he is working with all the international students to develop an International Student Club, helping them to deal with their problems. He hoped that more social activities organized by SUSTech and student groups would be opened up to the international students so that it may be easier for them to adapt to the new environment. Step out of the country border can students experience more things. William strongly recommended Cambodian students striving for a chance to study abroad. Problems can be solved and goals can be achieved.