Campus Life & Future Careers

What do you want to do? That’s a loaded question.

I remember asking this question during a speed dating study. First, he says “well, I don’t know.” Then he shares a bit about what he’s studying. Eventually, if he feels safe enough, he might share a dream of his. He thinks it’s not practical. I listen as he convinces himself to be interested in something more mainstream and secure. Maybe you’ve had a similar conversation with someone, or with yourself — knowing what you want, but not sure if it’s the ‘right’ thing to pursue

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Milestone events tend to make me more pensive than usual. This year’s convocation was no exception. In this post, I try to capture what the day felt like for me and offer just one of many accounts of the experience. To the graduating class of 2017, particularly to the Science ‘B’ graduates, this is to our collective memory and moving forward. (more…)

I studied earth system science in my undergraduate. It’s a small program in which we learn about how the earth behaves as one single system. Learning about the earth has many perks, such as traveling to different places around the world with the excuse of studying diverse landscapes and ecosystems. (more…)

The feeling of uncertainty is hard to describe, but we have all felt it. It can be the doubt that inhibits action, the lack of conviction in a particular choice, or the ambiguity surrounding the future. We will all go through phases when everything familiar seems to change – starting a new career, moving to a new city, losing a loved one, starting a new relationship. For some people, graduating from university is one of those times, specifically graduating without any specific plans.

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Diligent monkey who stole my water bottle

I often hear people say that they love to travel. Perhaps it’s because I grew up in China and have already experienced a culture different from Western culture, but I never saw the appeal – or rather the benefit – of traveling. I couldn’t understand how escaping one’s own life to find meaning in a stranger’s life could benefit the traveler once he or she returns home. Interestingly enough, through a series of events, I found myself solo-traveling in Thailand for the past two months. My experiences were far from what my biases predicted.

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So I watched the film Yes Man starring Jim Carrey the other day. While it was mostly a typical Jim Carrey comedy filled with sporadic crude humor and sexual innuendos, I do feel there was a powerful message behind it. The film depicts a man with a broken relationship in a dead-end job who although has supportive friends, turns down every invitation for social interaction, ignores phone calls and can’t be bothered to give anyone the time of day. However, after going to seminar preaching the power of saying Yes, he reluctantly becomes a “Yes man”. He starts answering Yes to every question thrown his way no matter how insane the request. Soon, his luck changes; he meets the girl of his dreams, gets a promotion and revives his friendships.

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