Year and program: Fifth-year, Sociology major and Law & Society minor
Where is home for you? Hong Kong
What three adjectives best describe you?
Empathetic, genuine, and creative.
What extracurricular activities have you been involved with (UBC related or not)?
Outside of APAC, I served as the VP Communications and Co-President for the Sociology Students’ Association, and was the Associate Editor for Sojourners, UBC’s Undergraduate Journal of Sociology. I also volunteered to be an Orientation Leader for Imagine Day and was a researcher for YMCA Canada and UBC Learning Exchange’s Making Research Accessible Initiative (MRAi). In terms of professional experience, I interned for the U.S. Consulate in Vancouver and Global Affairs Canada. I am currently holding a co-op position as a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Consultant at TELUS.
What is your best study strategy/tip?
I’d recommend creating a to-do checklist at the beginning of every semester. The to-do checklist should ideally cover details of each assignment, such as the weightage, word limit, components to include, etc. That way you can keep track of different dates and deadlines while also knowing in advance which deadlines may conflict each other, which tasks are more important, and hence adjust your time accordingly. Research has shown that visualizing work through charts, tables, diagrams, or even checklists, is helpful for increasing one’s productivity, efficiency, and organization. When multiple tasks come up, a visual serves as a centralized system in place to allow a person to anticipate work. It helps one stay sane, organized, and up-to-date with priorities. That in itself is an essential skill to have, especially since the majority of us are juggling multiple courses and tasks simultaneously.
If you could travel back in time to your first year at UBC, what is one thing you would do differently?
I would definitely tell myself that getting a bad grade is not worth beating myself up over it for days. I find that assignments in most of Arts are often subjectively graded and because of that reason, a grade does not define the value of your work. What the grade is that it is only a reflection of whether the professor or the reader resonates with your ideas—but nothing beyond that. I would also give myself more time to sit with the feedback, and if possible, request to read my peers’ work so I can have a more concrete understanding of areas of improvement. I’ve had a lot of people provide these tips to me coming into university but at the time I don’t think I’ve fully internalized that advice yet. It is a shame that it’s taken me this long to realize this, so I hope I can set myself as example and help students realize it earlier. I’m also just here to provide emotional support if they need it!