Author: Xinwen (Vivian) Zhang

Hi everyone, this is my life in Canada. I have been studying in University of Victoria about a year and a half. My major was Economics last year, but I am studying Child and Youth Care now because I am not interested in Economics. Here is a good suggestion for you: it’s important to choose what you are interested in. For instance, when I studied Economics, I wasn’t willing to do homework or spend extra time studying it. I couldn’t find motivation to study this major; however, I like CYC even though there are lots of papers that I should write. Furthermore, we have group discussions every class. It’s a big challenge for me because it’s difficult to join in with native speakers. They have great critical thinking skills and they talk fast. Nevertheless, I believe that it’s an excellent major that can help me improve both my speaking and writing. We also have counseling classes to teach us how to use the correct way to counsel clients. Moreover, I have a group project about creating a program that relates to CYC. Our group decided to create a program about basketball and children with disabilities. I also have a photography course. We work with film cameras and we need to print our pictures by ourselves in darkrooms. This course is time-consuming and costly.

Besides my major, I would like to talk about my life in Victoria. Victoria is a good city if you like peace and quiet. People in this city are friendly and accommodating. It’s always rainy here in winter and autumn. Last year was an unusually snowy winter in British Columbia. I believe this year will also be a snowy year because the temperature is low now. In my personal life, it’s not easy for me to have lots of friends because of my personality. Actually, you will also find friends in high schools or middle schools are your best friends forever. However, it’s important to find new friend here, try to become more social. Since I think a lot about my future and what I really want to do, I want to learn and try many things I never did before. You will learn and know a lot about yourself when you have enough experience in your life. Actually, studying in other countries isn’t only about studying, it’s also an effective opportunities to help you grow up. Knowing yourself and studying through everything is a continuous learning process. Last but not least, I hope you all receive your dream schools’ offers, and try your best to do everything. Don’t let yourself have regrets.