CHEN Jiawei (working at China Southern Airlines Co., Ltd., graduated in June 2021)

During the four years of studyin theCollective Action of Mobility Program of University Students in Asia (CAMPUS Asia), students from China, Japan, and the Republic of Korea (ROK) lived together and created manylovely memories in Japan and the ROK.Despite the differences between the three countries, we shared similar cultural backgrounds. At first, we struggled to express our ideas with limited language skills and clumsy gestures, yetlater we grew to communicate in fluent language to fully express ourselves. Those times were fleeting.

Affected by COVID-19, our study abroad programwas shortened to one year. It seemed like life was fast-forwarded. In just a few years, we have entered society and changed from students toworkers. I rarely use Japanese and Korean in my current job, but the lessons I learned during the process, including teamwork skills, critical thinking in figuring out problems, PowerPoint skills, and the ability to make a speech in a non-native language, were very helpful both in job-hunting and practical works.

Enjoy yourself while studying abroad, and do not hold back when you encounter something you want to try. When I was studying in Kyoto, I joined the volunteer organization at Ritsumeikan University. Each week, I accompanied autistic children to play around the city and ate lunches with them – lunches that were carefullyprepared by their parents. Despite language barriers, seeing the smiles on their faces gave me a great sense of fulfillment.

The four years with CAMPUS Asiafleeted away, but it left me with invaluable assets. I can still vividly remember the things I experienced with my friends there: discussing research topics, appreciating cherry blossoms, enjoying beautifulsceneries, and exploring cafes.All of these are memories worth remembering for the rest of my life.