With over one thousand students arriving at Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech) to register for the next stage of their lives, the campus was once again filled with vitality and youthful vigor. We spoke to one of the new undergraduate students to get a better understanding of their feelings of their new start in life.

Xu Jialu is from Xingtai, a city in Hebei Province, and said to be the oldest city in northern China, dating back at least 3500 years. Xu Jialu is not just an excellent student, but has proved herself to be an excellent dancer and violinist, with national rankings in both.

Xu Jialu has kept her eyes on SUSTech for many years, having wanted to travel to Shenzhen since middle school. Last year, she came to SUSTech as part of a high school summer camp, and found its strong faculty and abundant resources fulfilling her dreams.

When she arrived on campus on Thursday to register, she finally became a member of the SUSTech community. She felt comfortable with the campus, having already spent time here and having met some of the faculty members, counselors and teachers.

Xu Jialu has clear goals for her personal development. “I think I can fully develop my abilities at SUSTech, and have an excellent platform to achieve my goals.”

As part of her future university life, Xu Jialu hopes to join some music clubs and continue to enjoy playing her violin. She also hopes to join some liberal arts societies to improve other aspects of her life. “I think in a science and engineering university, it’s also important to develop myself in humanities and social science.”

Her priorities are already in hand, with Xu Jialu wanting to focus on improving her English language skills and computer proficiency. These skills will be important as she plans to specialize in clinical medicine, with the hope of potentially contributing to the health of human society. “Medicine is a sacred area. It’s not just about saving lives, but improving people’s living standards and personal happiness.”