Chemistry in China- the Adventure begins

Over 10 weeks ago, my life changed completely. For the better. I was moving to China for a year! I was very apprehensive about it and even considered dropping out last minute. Somehow, I managed to pull through the apprehension, apply for a visa and travel to China all in a space of 4 days.

Let me introduce myself. My name is Nancy (Nancyanne) and I am a 3rd year chemistry student on a year abroad. I excited to share my travel adventures with you all. I am the same Nancyanne from Cardiff insiders. Feel free to check my other blogs here. As this is an introductory blog, I will answer 5 common questions people ask and I’ll share more as the months go by. Enjoy!

Why China?
Originally, I planned on going on a year in industry. However, an excellent member of staff advised me to go on a year abroad instead because I love travelling. There were loads of places to go to but, China was unique. I had been studying mandarin with languages for all since year 1 so I thought, “China is ideal”. It is not as expensive as Hong Kong or Singapore. It is not cold like Canada and America is just America. I also love south east Asia so, China was just perfect. Well still is the perfect place to be.

What is studying Chemistry in China like?
I think studying in china is like a pendulum. You go from one extreme to another. 98% of the time I love China, I am on a dose of euphoria. It’s beautiful, there is lots to eat, the people are nice and travelling is so cheap. However, that 2% lack of euphoria can be overwhelming. Those are the days I just want to go back home and I get tired of how good it is. But I love it! With regards to chemistry, It’s a bit challenging. I have a flexible schedule so, I have to be disciplined to get any work done. Having said that, I really love how hardworking all the students are. I am based at a postgraduate campus so all the students are quite driven and inspirational.

Would I consider living here in the future?
I would love to work here for a couple of months every year then go somewhere else then come back and then go back and so on.

How did I come to China?
By plane. Jokes. Like I said before, my school has a year abroad programme and I decided China was/ is the place to be. People like me are called exchange students. Similar to Erasmus students but that’s just in Europe. In addition, when I applied to come here, the university, Nanjing University of technology (南京工业大学) told me I could apply for a scholarship as well. Thankfully I was approved (the scholarship is about £500/month).

What next?
I hope I will do well this year and finish my degree then, come back here for postgraduate studies or for business.

Hope this helped you get to know me a little bit. In my next couple of blogs, I will give more details on how to apply for this programme & scholarships using chemistry as an example. Feel free to comment below if you have any questions.