Despite the drizzling skies today, there was unbridled enthusiasm from the more than one thousand students who arrived to register on campus. The Student Affairs Center was crammed with students from the “millennium generation,” who had traveled from all over the country to start a new chapter of their lives. SUSTech University Council Chairperson Guo Yurong and Vice Chairperson Li Fengliang were accompanied by other school leaders as they visited the Students Affairs Center and the new undergraduates, in scenes filled with laughter and warmth.

The continued use of our comprehensive “6+3+1” college entrance system saw a total of 1030 new undergraduates join our student body from 22 provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions across China. The quality of our new students has improved again, year on year, with the students selected from some provinces representing the top 1% of their graduating class.

The male: female ratio continues to improve, with 3.383 male students to every female student, and most of our undergraduates were born after the year 2000. Our youngest student was born in 2002, not yet 16 years old. Among our new students are 47 students from 12 ethnic groups including Manchu, Hui, Bai, Zhuang, Mongol, and Uyghur.

As the freshmen arrived, the atmosphere was warm, and despite the crowds, everything worked well. All the departments organized the new students in managing the registration process into a one-stop service, ensuring that students could go through everything quickly and efficiently. Staff and student volunteers were enthusiastic and patient in answering the questions from both freshmen and parents.

Chairperson Guo Yurong and Vice Chairperson Li Fengliang spoke with freshmen and their parents, as part of their visit to ensure the smooth operation of the registration process.

In an interview with reporters, Guo Yurong said that she hoped that the students would cherish the opportunity to become strong-willed and determined individuals. She pointed out that becoming an active part of the student community provides numerous chances for personal growth for students and hoped that everyone would actively take part in the enormous variety of activities at SUSTech.

Li Fengliang answered questions about the upcoming military training for freshmen and the financial aid system while taking the opportunity to introduce SUSTech’s efforts in exploring, cultivating and fostering top-notch innovative talents.

“The first semester of your university life is the most important. I hope that everyone will adapt and integrate into university life as soon as possible, find their own direction, establishes a professional attitude and writes a wonderful chapter of their life at SUSTech.”

Song Shuhao, one of our fresh-faced undergraduates from Fujian province, said “When I came to SUSTech, the beautiful campus scenery was my first impression. I saw that some parts of the campus are under construction, so I am looking forward to seeing them finished. I’m very happy to be like this because on a beautiful day; I found SUSTech in my heart.”

He talked about his four-year life plan at SUSTech with a smile. “First of all, study hard, of course. Then I’ll join my favorite sports club and make friends with like-minded people. I hope that I can make continual progress and become a better person through my efforts at SUSTech.”

Zhou Aile, who completed high school in Shandong province, said, “I am very happy to come to SUSTech, I’m overjoyed to be able to spend the next four years here. I hope that I can progress and develop, along with SUSTech.”

Wuhan student Huang Runqing has come to SUSTech after leaving her hometown for the first time. Her mother came with a big smile and said: “I’ve always been comfortable with what my children do, and SUSTech has made me feel highly reassured by their decision!”

Yan Sikai’s mother, who lives in Shenzhen, believes that her son will easily adapt to life at SUSTech. She said “My child has always been interested in medicine and has wanted to come to SUSTech to study medicine. We hope that the construction of SUSTech’s medical school will be smooth and that in two years, our son will have the opportunity to choose his preferred profession.”

Many student volunteers helped today in a variety of areas, including connecting students from nearby Tanglang Metro Station to guiding students through our campus and receiving them at the Student Affairs Center. There were volunteers from the SUSTech Student Union, the SUSTech CYL Branch, SUSTech Volunteer League and the Residential College Pioneer Camps, so the veritable army of volunteers spread out over campus to ensure that students and parents were assisted in every possible way.

Wang Tianlin was one such volunteer, who was in charge of looking after people arriving at the main gate said: “Everyone has been in place since 7am. We are hoping to give lots of help and guidance to the new students, so they can feel the enthusiasm and thoughtfulness of SUSTech as soon as they come into the school.”

Liu Yubin, a freshman from Shude College’s “Pioneer Camp,” joined the volunteer team. He said that as a freshman, he was fortunate enough to enter the school in advance and join the Pioneer Camp. He joined a series of activities, so he could quickly become familiar with SUSTech’s campus. “I am familiar with Shenzhen, and now I am familiar with SUSTech. Today I have the opportunity to play an important role in serving the new students, students who are just like me. I feel that this is a truly meaningful beginning for my college career.”

In order to prevent accidents, the South China University Emergency Rescue Team also arranged team members and emergency supplies in the Student Affairs Center. Rescue team member Li Yufeng actively advised the new students, saying that the integration of the university is not only about one’s excellent studies but a high-quality university experience. With a large number of student organizations and associations, there are many ways that students can enrich and enhance their college life by getting involved in different activities.