The first group of junior abroad program participants in Lanyang Campus (more than 100 students) has come back after one-year learning in foreign countries. “We have not only improved our language ability and broadened our eyesight, but also made our future goal clearer,” they chorused. Dr. Liou Ay-hwa, Dean of College of Entrepreneurial Development and of College of Global Research and Development, congratulated these students on achieving their dreams, and expected that their stories of studying abroad could be a model, leading their school juniors to experience the spirit of English education in Lanyang Campus.

With the blessing of all the teachers and students, the first group of junior abroad program participants in Lanyang Campus went to 13 countries respectively like America, Britain, Canada, Sweden, Austria and Finland to study last year. Although there were joys and sorrows during the process, all the participants seized the chance to experience life of studying abroad, to learn the different cultures, to improve their language ability, and to cultivate their independent personalities. “I met a lot of people from different countries and cultures during those days. In my opinion, ‘Do as the Romans do when in Rome’ is the best way to make friends,” said Chen Yu-chieh, a senior of the Department of Information and Communication Technology Management, who just came back from University of Sunderland, UK. Lee Pei-ling, a senior of the Dept. of Multicultural and Linguistic Studies, who came back from University of Vienna, Austria, expressed, “The most important thing I learned from the program is to cultivate my independent characteristic.”

Due to the difference of languages and cultures, these students abroad faced various kinds of difficulties and frustration, but they could resolve the problems by respect, communication and toleration. “I faced the problem of racial discrimination when arriving in America, but it was easily solved if I stood from a more understanding perspective,” Chen Yu-chieh said. Moreover, the school authority also set up a reporting system so that students abroad could have a platform to communicate with their teachers and parents. Students’ advisors would contact students by msn or email, providing help at any time. Yu Pin-hsiu, a senior of the Dept. of Global Politics and Economics, who came back from California State University, Sacramento, USA, indicated that he could feel the care from his teacher despite the long distance between them because his teacher often communicated with him via msn. He Hsuan-hung, a senior in the Dept. of Software Engineering, who came back from University of Michigan, Flint, USA, pointed out that the interface of school reporting system is forum-like, which is very convenient for passing on information since the message and the reply can be easily understood at a glance.

In the last year of college life, all the students who joined the junior abroad program decide to spare no effort fulfilling themselves, working hard for their future. Chen Yu-chieh expressed that he became very interested in media design after attending the related course in America, so he plans to take it as his future studying focus. As for the suggestion to his school juniors, Yu Pin-hsiu said “open your mind and just do it” is the best way to overcome cultural differences. “It is better to travel far than to read voluminously,” Yu encouraged his juniors. ( ~Yen Shu-chun )