By Wenliang HUANG from International Finance (2)

In April 2011, I walked out of the United States Embassy in Beijing with an approved F1 visa, and I knew that my life would never be the same again.

I’m coming, USA!

In 8 August, 2011, I took the flight to Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport from Shanghai Pu Dong airport. It’s really a long trip. Almost everyone in the plane was falling asleep slowly, but I can’t sleep in the night because I was so excited. I was thinking about my new life in USA. I believed my life would be different because of the experience studying in my dream school, University of Maryland, College Park.

The gorgeous city – College Park

College Park is a city in Prince George's County, Maryland. It is best known as the home of the University of Maryland, College Park, and since 1994 the city has also been home to the Archives II facility of the U.S. National Archives.The climate is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters.College Park has a station (College Park-U of Md) on the Washington Metro Green Line. Students can take metro to the city center of Washington DC, the most convenient way for people who don’t have cars.

One of the most beautiful campuses in the world

When I visited the campus following a tour guide, I thought this campus is just amazing.The campus is very beautiful, it's located between DC and Baltimore (two of my favorite cities on the east coast), and there is so much to do.  It's hard to imagine anyone who visited this school would not love it.

What to expect – academically

In the very first lecture, the dean of Smith business school said:” You are now part of team UMD. Let's help you achieve what you can and we will help you as much as we can along the way.This school spirit, however, comes hand in hand with a heavier workload, and much more class time than the weekly average of eight hours in JUFE.

Lecturers all have strong sense of responbilities. They like to get to know their whole class and encourage everyone to come to office hours regularly. With this support, I found that the additional hours became easy and I can get a lot more for my money.

The structure of the academic year is also completely different. American universities either break the academic year up into quarters, with finals at the end of each one, or semesters wherein you have midterms and then finals. This system brings with it less stress at the end of the year, but it does mean that you are being continually assessed - so you have to stay on top of your work. It is not uncommon that you always stay up preparing for the exams.

Smith business school encourages students to know exactly what they want to do as soon as possible. Three experienced career coaches help you find what you need to be the one you want to be and plan your career path.And most students in business school are very career-driven. For lots of them, university is their time to make connections and network for the future.

What to expect – Socially

The college social scenes differ across the nation. Some are absolutely wild, and some less so, with some frat-based, and others not. On the East Coast, the social scene centers on college (American) football, or the basketball team.

You have no idea of the passion and identity that the sports teams created on campus and in the town itself. During football games, the whole town shuts down allowing for hundreds of ‘tailgate’ parties to take place. You can even meet Barack Hussein Obama, the president of United States, in the Comcast Stadium of University of Maryland. He is also a fan of the basketball team of UMCP.

I would encourage everyone who wants to get involved in the mainstream of American society to learn to watch the basketball games or football games as they will usually bring with them a widespread friend base.

There are many house parties on an American campus as everyone lives so close together. The focus of the party scene will depend on your school, but wherever you decide to study every base will be covered; it’s just about putting yourself out there, joining clubs and societies and meeting new people.

I was fascinated by the fact that students here are well-trained to multitasks and work independently. Part-time jobs and internships in college are commonly encouraged. These practices are totally new for someone like me who come from a place where culture dictates that the youth must only focus on schooling, except in the case of extreme financial hardships.

I have a tremendous sense of pride in this school. From the nationally ranked programs to our endlessly gorgeous brick-building-green-grass campus, the University of Maryland will forever hold my heart in its hands.

In summary, in the words of one of my colleagues, “You must first perceive it, and if you believe it, you can achieve it.” Take a deep breath, collect your thoughts and your hopes, and enjoy the journey – detours and all.

Afterwards

I came back to Nanchang, my hometown, in July, 2013 and I found a job in China Merchants Bank as a Customer relationship manager in Corporation Banking Department. I am very satisfied with the ability I got in USA. I believe satisfaction with a study abroad experience is most likely to happen when you set concrete goals for your time abroad and determine to see them through. Before you leave home, ask yourself things like, “Why am I doing this – going to this country, this school, at this time? What am I hoping to get out of it – to learn, to change, to grow? What are three things I would like to do while I am abroad?” You would find journaling or blogging helpful to keep track of your own thoughts, to relieve stress, to let friends and family back home know what is happening, and/or to help you remember things that happened to them while they are abroad. While everything seems poignant and important while you experience it, you may be surprised just how fast memories fade. Having your own words (and pictures!) to help you remember what you are learning and doing can make the experience more memorable in the long run.