Bulletin Spring‧Summer, 2008

Emily Wong (New Asia College, CUHK) In this two-week exchange, we had a taste of school life at Yale, American culture and much more. It was a very pleasant, inspiring experience. Honestly, I was very impressed with Yale students. Intelligent as they are, many are in fact very serious about their studies and maintain an active extra-curricular life. On top of all this, they are also concerned about world politics and issues at large. One of the most memorable parts of this exchange trip was a one-night stay at the house of a local family. I was really lucky to be assigned to a large, warm family with six lovely kids, one of whom had been adopted from China since birth. I could sense the presence of a strong bond and love among the family members. Indeed, this kind of ideal family is rare nowadays. Colin McCarthy (Yale University) Prof. Gordon Mathews of CUHK guided the YUNA exchange group through the building that he called 'the centre for low-end globalization'. When I think of cross-cultural exchange in the globalizing world, I am now reminded not only of these immigrant residents of Hong Kong, but also of the YUNA Exchange programme. YUNA, at its heart, is about bringing together 16 students from different backgrounds, each with their own identity, and fostering an environment of cultural interaction. Through our respective trips to our campuses, we have each learned so much from our peers. From the Super Bowl to dim sum to Chungking Mansions, our experiences and interactions during the programme have allowed us to develop our own understanding of the changing world and tie ourselves closer to people we would never have had the opportunity to meet without YUNA. They also experienced globalization from the ground up by visiting Chungking Mansions in Tsim Sha Tsui. The competitive programme attracts a large number of NA applicants each year. On average one is picked out of 10 applicants. In 2007–08, over 2,000 short-term exchange places were offered to CUHK students. Together with the long-term programmes, they enabled over 90% of the University's annual student intake to go on exchange. Other short-term exchange programmes include the Summer Study Abroad Programme of Chung Chi College, which supports its students to study in prestigious schools like UC Berkeley; the Summer Programme at Utrecht University of United College, which supports its students to read European Cultures in this renowned university in the Netherlands; the Global Vision Award Programme of Shaw College, which funds its students to learn French and German in the Catholic University of Lyon and the University of Heidelberg. Emily Wong Overseas Student Exchange