MAIS Student Profiles: Cheng Rui and Song Zhuoran reflect on the HNC experience

Elizabeth Gonzales (Certificate '22) interviewed a few Hopkins-Nanjing Center Chinese students, who share the inside scoop about their experience studying at the HNC. 
 

成睿 Cheng Rui (Ryan), MAIS '23:

告诉我你在HNC的经历。

Tell me about your experience at the HNC.

 
我本科毕业于距离HNC只有不到50米的南京大学商学院，主修国际经济与贸易。如果说，本科阶段的学习让我建立了用经济模型与数据认识世界、解释世界的框架，那么在中心这不到一年的时间的学习则让我认识到了自己身上的更多可能性。

I graduated from the Business School of Nanjing University, which is less than 50 meters away from the HNC campus, [and I majored] in International Economics and Trade. If my undergraduate study allowed me to establish a framework for understanding and explaining the world with economic models and data, then the less than a year's study at the Center has allowed me to realize more of my own potential .
 
我和来自各个国家各个不同学术背景的朋友们在电影课上探讨被”收编“ 的当代青年亚文化，在能源技术与政策的课堂上讨论藻基生物燃料与人类能源的未来，在社会学课堂上探讨究竟该如何用布尔迪厄的文化资本论来解释当下中国社会的阶级流动……这些看似偏离了国际关系这一话题本身的讨论，却恰恰塑造了我们HNC学生的开放、多元以及独立思考的能力，让我在面临现实问题时，能够不受理论与成见的束缚，更自由地思考，用更具创造力的方法解决。

My classmates, who come from different countries and academic backgrounds, and I have discussed contemporary youth subcultures that have been "incorporated" into film, talked about the future of algae-based biofuels and human energy in my class on Energy, Technology, and Policy, and analyzed how to use Bourdieu's cultural capitalism to explain the current class mobility in Chinese society in my Sociology class. These discussions, which seem to deviate from the topic of international relations itself, have precisely shaped the HNC students' openness, diversity, and independent thinking skills.  When I face practical problems, I can think more freely and solve them in more creative ways without being bound by theories and prejudices.

课程学习之外，HNC的其他活动也让我倍感充实。周五的晚上，我常常会参与HNC主办的各类讲座活动，讲座主题包罗万象：从中国实现碳中和的技术路线，到蒙古的外交策略再到如何规划自己在国际组织的职业生涯……

Besides the courses, other activities at the HNC have also enriched me. I often participate in various lectures hosted by the HNC on Friday evenings. The topics of the lectures are all-inclusive: from China's technical route to achieving carbon neutrality, to Mongolia's diplomatic strategy,  to workshops on planning a career in international organizations.
 
除了定期举办的师生线上联谊会，我还与好多同学时不时地在网络上交流最近的学习生活的情况以及对于最近的电影、音乐乃至社会现象的看法。

In addition to the regular online social gatherings for professors and students, I also communicate with many students on the Internet from time to time about my recent study and life, and my views on recent films, music, and even social phenomena.
 

宋卓然Song Zhuoran, MAIS '22: 

为什么选择参加中心？

Why did you choose to study at the HNC?

 
我的本科是金融工程，但一直对国际关系感兴趣。中心可以让我轻易学习很多让我感兴趣的跨多个领域的新知识，主要涉及的领域包括国际政治以及法律等。其次，我在本科期间参加过美国大学的暑校，对美国历史文化，以及美式教学方式感兴趣。最后，我想提高我的英语水平，我想英语教学是最好的方式之一。

My undergraduate degree was in financial engineering, but I have always been interested in international relations. The Hopkins-Nanjing Center has allowed me to quickly learn a lot of new knowledge across many fields that interest me, including international politics and law. I attended the summer school of American University during my undergraduate study and was also interested in American history, culture, and American teaching methods. Finally, I want to improve my English, and I think English teaching is one of the best ways (at the HNC, Chinese students must take English-taught courses by American professors).
 

即使课堂是虚拟的，怎么和同学互动？

Although classes are currently all virtual, how do you still interact with classmates? 

 

老师要求大家都开摄像头，这有效提高了课堂参与度。事实上，大家共同出现在一块屏幕上，使老师以及同学更能全面注意到各自的学习状态。身后的背景在哪里，也是可以聊天的内容之一。学生之间的互动主要来自于语伴，创建聊天室，互相修改论文语法等。

The teacher asks everyone to turn on their camera, which effectively improves class participation. In fact, everyone appears on the same screen so that teachers and classmates can pay more attention to their own learning status. “Where is the background behind you?” is also something students like to talk about in the class chat box. The interaction between students mainly comes from language partners, creating chat rooms, or revising each other’s essays for grammar.