Studying in Taiwan vs. at the UT

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How is studying at the UT in the Netherlands different from studying in your home country? In this blog, Chiu Chen Yu, shares her experiences with us!

My name is Chiu Chen Yu. I am 22-year-old. I am from Taiwan, Taichung City. Before coming to study a master program in the University of Twente, I studied my bachelor in Western Literature and Languages in Taiwan. During those four years of my bachelor, I did a part-time job in a Language Learning called Education First (EF) and I was a psychology research assistant in my university. When I first took these jobs, my main motivation is to earn some money. I am very much aware that this money cannot cover the expenses of my future studies, especially if I decided to study abroad. My first part-time job is in EF. With that job, I gained the experience of how it is like to work in a company that relies on its reputation and its international-based organisational structure. My second job as a psychology research assistant is more connected to the psychology minor I did during my bachelor. Although I started with the motivation of earning money, I gradually realised that I wanted a different study that allows me to contribute to the world and to see the effects of the changes I can make with my knowledge. But with my current bachelor, it is quite limited for me to figure out a way to fulfil that idea. Therefore, I am aiming for a change.

I gradually realised that I wanted a different study that allows me to contribute to the world and to see the effects of the changes I can make with my knowledge.

Studying at the UT. In general, universities in the Netherlands are not often heard in Taiwan. Most people go to the UK or the US to pursue their studies because these countries have more exposure in the studying abroad fair. I came to know the University of Twente because of my home university. They are partner schools. I exchanged to UT in the year 2016 to study psychology to finish my minor, and it was a life-changing experience for me. The academic in the Netherlands is completely different from Taiwan, and I was challenged to the maximum of my ability. Like some people, I had a break down when I first came to UT in 2016. Everything was so hard and overwhelming. And I was very far away from my family and close friends. In those hard times, I always need to take a one to two-hour walk around campus to forget the fear of failing. I could not fail because my scholarship relies on my mark. It was a dreadful experience. But that is one of the main reasons why I chose to come back again after two years. I passed that hard moment in 2016 and was amazed by how much potential UT has made me discovered about myself. I come back because I know for sure I will learn a lot and it will not be an easy master. At that time, I wasn’t sure which direction I want to focus on so I checked a lot of programs in the UT and ultimately found “Educational Science and Technology”. This is a relatively rare program in my home country and I actually had little knowledge about it. But after checking the program content, I realised this could a change I was looking for.

I passed that hard moment in 2016 and was amazed by how much potential UT has made me discovered about myself.

During the studies, the biggest difference I found is the amount of group work included. In Taiwan, group work is usually not preferred because the assignment is not that big and working individually allows teachers to see possible differences between students. But I really enjoy working in groups in the UT because it forces me to communicate with people and that is a really good way of knowing more people. Apart from that, I found that there is quite a lot of self-discipline needed. EST classes are mainly on Monday and Tuesday, which leaves me a lot of free days during the week. But instead of feeling easy-breezy, I still have to organise myself quite well to catch up with the speed of the courses. In Taiwan, we are used to passive instructions of what to learn and when to learn. Therefore, I am glad to find myself able to change and adapt to a rather active academic culture in the Netherlands.

What’s next? At the moment, I am at the starting point of my master thesis. During the master, I am continually challenged to think innovative, either toward designing for educational purposes or motivating learning in the workplace. Both tracks may sound different but they both start from understanding humans, which I believe is the foundation of a lot of success. After graduation, I hope to help companies as well as educational institutions to develop a more innovative and effective way to engage in learning so they can maintain a long-lasting growth and solid foundation toward the future.

During the master, I am continually challenged to think innovative, either toward designing for educational purposes or motivating learning in the workplace.

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