Ms Zou Jun shared stories about the changes in her daughter at UIC at the 2021 admission information sessions in Guangzhou. Ms Zou Jun's daughter is fourth-year Applied Psychology (APSY) student, Deng Yunxi.
UIC's educational philosophy left a solid first impression in Ms Zou’s head when she participated in the admission information session four years ago.
Deng Yunxi (left) and her mother, Ms Zou Jun (right)
Four years later, her daughter is graduating from UIC. The four-year growth of her daughter has proved her decision to be correct.
Different from traditional universities, UIC offers featured and highly-regarded courses. For example, the English Enhancement Programme (EEP) helps newcomers adopted to the English teaching environment. Other courses include sport cultures, voluntary services, emotional intelligence. Yunxi took the courses provided by the Division of Business Management and Division of Humanities and Social Sciences in her first year, according to Ms Zou.
English Enhancement Programme (EEP) for new students
The UIC Latin Class
In the senior year, Yunxi was lucky to participate in the online programme by the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education of the University of Toronto through the recommendation of APSY Programme Director, Dr Lai Wai-Lun. As a result, she got access to postgraduate courses in advance with students from all around the world. At the end of the online programme, Yunxi also earned credit for this course. Ms Zou acknowledged that her daughter gained a lot from the whole-person education that UIC's offers.
Besides, lecturers of UIC coming from various countries and regions with different cultural background. Communicating with them is like opening doors for students to get a better understanding of the world. Therefore, the English teaching environment and the international academic atmosphere are beneficial to their further study abroad.
Deng Yunxi with English Language Centre (ELC) lecturer, Mr Krik Glass
Deng Yunxi's class notes
'Busy' is the word that Ms Zou heard the most from Yunxi. She said that UIC students take their academic work seriously, including group discussions, research, and material reading. In addition, the students set deadlines for themselves. Ms Zou said that the students made good use of their four-year college life by absorbing knowledge.
Deng Yunxi giving a presentation
Their divisions or major programmes organise some after-class activities, which makes the students busy. The activities include hall events, high table dinners, sports meetings, and first-aid training.
Deng Yunxi (third from left) with UIC President Prof Tang Tao (middle) and other students
Yunxi joined United Innovative Charity Club (UICC) as a first-year student and was selected as the director of the public relation department. In UIC, she organised a student forum, sought sponsorship, and tutored primary students in Huitong village. During her second year, Yunxi served as a peer mentor, helping UIC freshmen to become familiar with college life. According to Ms Zou, these activities made her daughter more independent, and she gained friends from various grades and majors.
Ms Zou said that summer programmes allow students to gain around one-month learning experiences overseas. For example, her daughter took a course relevant to diseases and medicine based on her interests at Hong Kong Baptist University during her first summer vacation. In the following year, Yunxi selected the course related to organisational psychology provided by Nanyang Technological University (NTU). Ms Zou mentioned that these experiences allow students to know about different regions and countries via local and international classes.
Deng Yunxi receiving a certificate at Nanyang Technological University
Semesters of UIC covered a shorter time frame compared with traditional universities in the Chinese mainland. Therefore, UIC students are facing a more intensive academic life. Besides, the relatively long winter and summer vacations allow students to seek internships, take part in summer programmes, and do volunteering work. She said that Yunxi got a recommendation letter from her tutor after an internship experience, which benefitted Yunxi's application when applying for a master's degree.
Deng Yunxi interning at Guangzhou Women and Children's Medical Centre
Yunxi aimed for a few top-ranked universities in the UK and kept working towards her goals. Currently, she has got admission to University College London (UCL), a G5 university in the UK. She also received offers from several world-leading universities in psychology, including King's College London (KCL) and the University of Edinburgh.
Deng Yunxi with a First Class Award (2019-2020 academic year)
Deng Yunxi and Programme Director of APSY, Dr Lai Wai-Lun
Yunxi is planning for her further study in clinical cognitive psychology and Neuroscience. During her four-year study at UIC, she has laid a solid academic foundation for her plan.
From MPRO
Reporter: Du Jiewen
Editors: Samuel Burgess, Deen He, Zhang Fan
