Canada

Time flies, I can’t believe I have completed my first year of University and I am not a freshman anymore. Studying abroad is one of the most challenging yet rewarding and exciting experiences I have ever had. It was challenging because it was difficult for me to be away from my familiar homeland – Hong Kong for so long. I began to call the residence “home” and in this new home I had no parents to run to, so I did feel overwhelmed sometimes. Most of the friends I met are from my floor because I saw them everyday in the hallway, the elevators and late at night. Before I’m in University, my cousins always complained to me how sucky dorm life is; luckily my floor mates are very supportive and friendly, they were willing to explain and teach me when I had difficulties on comprehending theories in Linguistics. It was also fun to join different activities and events such as floor dinner; colors war and Do it in the Dark (residence energy- saving competition) that were organized by our residence and houses. I somehow feel regretful for not being active enough to participate in these events due to the heavy workload, which I have lost many opportunities to expand my social network. Overall, I had a great time living on campus and it was an absolutely sad day to have to move out. Living on campus has led me to become more independent and out-going; I really enjoyed having the chance to spend a long period of time living in a new place with people who have different cultural backgrounds.

University of Toronto is a really good place for academic pursuit but also personal growth and development. There are many societies like this Hong Kong student union called Novelty my roommates joined as committee members. I participated and helped in several of their events and I truly think joining those student organizations trains up your organizational skills, and provides you with a medium to meet more friends of the same background. It really helps to open up your social network in a place where you are unfamiliar with, it is a great way to engage in non-academic related activities and enrich your university life.

Academically, I finally have the chance to study philosophy as this subject is not offered in the DP program of VSA. Lectures are really different from high school classes, just imagine a huge hall packed with 1000 university students from all over the world, it is really an amazing sight when you first walk to the lecture hall. The professors and tutors were helpful as well. The tutors especially, create an excellent atmosphere for us to discuss the topics and materials of the course in-depth. The course content is relatively much harder than what we study in the IB, I had to pay a lot of effort to complete the readings in order to catch up with the teaching pace. To conclude, Canada is a good place with fresh air and nice people, I really like the environment of Toronto.

​Experiencing university life in a foreign country has been rather difficult yet rewarding. The hugely diversified culture in Toronto is particularly something that I have to take into account when I actually do something as they put huge emphasis on respecting other cultures and background. However, this is a very rewarding experience especially being a Social Science student as this increases my chances to learn about my fellow colleagues and apply this knowledge to enhance my learning. Despite all this, Hong Kong is still my home and I always stay connected with relatives and friends in Hong Kong. Everything is so much better in Hong Kong compared to Toronto because it seems to me that Hong Kong is a much more civilized and advanced city. Imagining you have no phone signal in the subway at all…

University is totally different from secondary and primary school. You have to make your own choices and tolerate the good or bad consequences that come with it. University is all about being independent and responsible for your studies, joining clubs and making new friends, especially when you’re studying abroad. It is not I was used to because I have been in VSA since young, everything was familiar to me. The best way to enjoy university is to meet friends from dorm, parties and classes. I was lucky to have my friends with me when I needed support, particularly studying and snacking late at night. I can’t wait for the next year to come.