Thoughts of studying at University of Cambridge

Time:2014-09-02 13:57:40 Clicks:

By WEN DU from International Accounting (1)

When I look back on the past years in University of Cambridge, I feel it is not only a challenge in my life and study, but also a reunion of my own character.

Life overseas means independence. Students who go abroad may do things all by themselves. , Therefore, they could get rid of the overfull protection of their parents and learn how to face the difficulties, which helps them grow independently and quickly. In a foreign country they are confronted with greater challenges, more unsteadiness and less help from their families and friends. This may lead to the high pressure of students who have expectations of a successful academic performance in the UK in order to honor their family and their own country, hence gaining help from others can release stress. Subjectively, seeking the help from others such as professors is a necessary skill which a student himself prefers. With these advantages, the conclusion may be that the Chinese international students overcome difficulties and improve strategies to increase the value of foreign study experience which enlarges a student’s view of the world, as well as improves one’s personality, which will guarantee a more splendid future in his academic life career.

When it comes to the culture, culture is a total way of life of people in a certain group. The term culture is so board. As I have stayed in the UK for nearly three years, I got to have some knowledge about the educational system in the UK which operates with a free market spirit in much a less regulated more lassies-fair climate. Its curricular organization is less structured, allowing students themselves the freedom to make their own educational choices. Competiton is fierce in most British institutions of higher learning. A great variety of courses attract as many students as possible, and because of the comparatively less comprehensive curriculum of British high schools, nearly everyone who completes high school enters an institution of higher education.

Socio-culture adaption refers to the ability to acquire and perform culturally appropriate social skills and behavioral competence to fit in the host culture. Thus, the process of adapting to social life in the UK may cause considerable stress for many Chinese international students. Knowing another culture is also important today. Respecting other people and their traditions will foster cooperation and peace. So, in the first place, adjustment of different situations will truly help international students when they are experiencing various cultures. Expressing ideas freely, directly and confidently are fantastic ways to narrow the culture gap.

More specifically, in psychological aspects, Chinese students are always too shy to actively seek counseling and psychological help. Sometimes students cannot solve the problems by themselves because they may be confused by the specific cases they have never met in UK and they have no one to share the sorrow due to divergence of opinions caused by different culture.

An important thing that contributes to Chinese international students’ difficulties in studying abroad is an arduous work of language. One cannot deny the fact that it is important to be bilingual in today’s fast-paced world. People have a global economy and communication by internet and satellite TV, which means students must be familiar with other languages in order to keep up with new developments. Students have to force themselves to accept the challenge of language.

During my stay there I find it is a little bit different from our Chinese university in terms of the students' grades. Our Chinese teachers put emphasis on one students' test paper regarding it as a judge for the course they are taking. However the British teachers focus on student’s performance, such as their attendance, assignment in vehement of discussions. Unlike Chinese teachers who use exam as their sole standard to access students, teachers in Britain assess students by a lot of assignments project problem. They assess students by various ways. Improving their various ability and prepare them for future purpose is their goal. This assessment is desirable in helping students move forward and help them to be creative. Therefore I was serious about every assignment and spent a lot of time searching for material reading and writing, from which I gained a lot.

The value of self-independence and self-esteem that my mother taught me when I was still a child turned out to work. As I stayed longer in uk, I better understood the society and its people, and I began to make my own friends. I was able to keep balance of my life and study, to set up individual goal and keep trail on it, to respect myself as well as others. Life gradually became simple and easy; therefore it helps me to better concentrate on my individual development, and to reach my goals. Taking one step back, my independence gained my adaption in the new environment, and inversely, the ability to engage in the activities helps me to move even further.
To be honest, I was also staying up all nights in writing down these words. My mind would be calm and free at the time when the night was silent and peaceful.

As I said, nearly three years of life cannot be simply summed up with several sheets of paper. The reason that I picked the points above to talk about change because I fel they were closely related to my learning experience. Anyone would inevitablY have to learn to become independent while studying abroad, though there would be some lonely times. Therefore, the life away from home has been both rich and boring, and in my opinion it was also contradictory. However, the knowledge and experience acquired in the uk would be absolutely beneficial to the next step of my life.