A sea of new students flooded into the gymnasium for the first official event held in the Sports Complex at UIC’s new campus. They were here for their inauguration ceremonies, where they were officially welcomed to their new campus.
Students watch the stage as speakers welcome them to their new campus
The ceremonies began with the Chinese national anthem, and all students stood as it played. This was followed by a sing-along to UIC’s college anthem. To help the new students sing along, several senior students led the singing.
Older students lead the singing of the UIC Anthem
New students follow along with the lyrics to the UIC Anthem
President of UIC, Prof Ng Ching-Fai, gave an officiating speech. He started the speech by introducing historical figures of Zhuhai and the surrounding area, since most students have come from other cities and provinces. Prof Ng Ching-Fai emphasized that UIC is a global community and shared his hopes for students of UIC to be part of making the future a better place.
Prof Ng Ching-Fai officially welcomes the new students
Following the president’s speech, the Vice President (Academic Affairs), Prof Zee Sze Yong, gave welcoming remarks to the new students. His topic was about “Learning to change your mindset”. He highlighted the importance of students being able to have open minds and accept new ideas during their time at UIC.
Prof Zee Sze Yong gives welcoming remarks
The Vice President (Students and General Affairs), Prof Zhang Cong, then gave his welcoming remarks to the new students. Prof Zhang Cong reiterated the significance of the new students deciding to study at a liberal arts college, and encouraged them to accept as well as learn from the differences they encounter. He then introduced and congratulated the students receiving full entrance scholarships.
Prof Zhang Cong gives welcoming remarks
Afterwards, the students who have received full entrance scholarships thanks to their impressive high scores on the Gaokao (National College Entrance Exam) were welcomed on stage to receive certificates for their remarkable achievements. They looked proud as they are recognized in front of their peers.
Students who recieved full entrance scholarships are personally congratulated by Prof Ng Ching-Fai
Scholarship recipients pose for a photo on stage with Prof Ng Ching-Fai
Han Minxuan gives closing remarks
The Year One students fill the entire gymnasium
The event ended with remarks from a student representative, Han Minxuan, who talked about how she fell in love with UIC, and is excited to finally be here as she starts her learning journey. She surprised the audience by launching into a beautiful song at the end of her speech. She sang about starting a new journey at UIC, to the tune of the famous song ‘Scarborough Fair’, made popular by Sarah Brightman among the Chinese audience.
Reporter: Samantha Burns
Photographers: Ivy Liao, Liang Jianhao
Editors: Samuel Burgess, Deen He
(from MPRO)
