Elvin LAY

Student of RMIT University, Australia
Exchange to Tianjin Normal University, China

Thinking back to the time I studied abroad in China, tides of memories and feelings of nostalgia rush over me. Without a doubt, it was an invaluable experience that I'll cherish for a long time to come. With most full-time students, financial feasibility is an issue that impedes such opportunities, therefore, my utmost respect goes towards Cheung Kong Infrastructure Holdings (CKI) for helping students realise their dreams of going on exchange. I am so privileged and grateful to have been a recipient of the 'Endeavour Australia Cheung Kong Award', which made my participation in the mobility program possible.

Coming from a Chinese background, people often found it strange that I had never been to China prior to my exchange. Once I was there, I never looked back - China is such an amazing country. I was situated in Tianjin, a city more than 3 times the size of Melbourne! Even though I was only there for 3 months, I learnt so much in that period of time. The opportunity definitely presented its challenges, but it's in the face of adversity that we grow most. The best part of it was growing together with my Australian, local and international colleagues; forming life-long friendships.

The most rewarding part of the exchange was contributing to the 'English Corner', where local students were encouraged to partake in group discussions in English on topics of their choice. Initially, they were all very shy and required lots of coaxing, but just a few weeks in and they were leading the conversations. It was very inspiring seeing the students open up and become more comfortable with the language. Students from China are also incredibly well-mannered and polite, they attended every single session and showed great appreciation for our time.

Surprisingly, there was still time left to engage in things other than study in China. I spent a fair amount of time with other international students, immersing ourselves within Chinese culture - a lot of which came to us as a shock, shopping and exploring. Tianjin Normal University provided remarkable hospitality which added to our experience, as they took us on excursions to the Great Wall of China, art craft villages, Tianjin River Cruise and various other attractions.

This experience has assisted in my character development, improved my cultural awareness and of course, allowed me to drastically improve on my language skills. Chinese (Mandarin) is undeniably one of the world's most influential languages; knowing the language has been immensely beneficial to my professional work life, and connecting with family and friends.

To conclude, I would like to thank RMIT University, the Global Mobility team at RMIT University, CKI, Honorary Professor - Mrs. Guosheng Chen, Tianjin Normal University and all other parties involved in making my program possible. I strongly urge those who have the opportunity to study abroad, to take it and make the most of their time at university. It not only enriches your study and looks good on a résumé, but it is also the highlight of university for most exchange students.

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