My Study Journey in China

Ali Sajid from the School of Business and Tourism Management at Yunnan University. [Photo/WeChat account of School of International Chinese Language Education, Yunnan University]

How time flies. Under the setting sun, when I drank coffee and saw my classmates busy attending classes through the window of my dormitory, it suddenly occurred to me that I had already turned 29. Twenty-nine years had passed in the blink of an eye. I still remember clearly how when I was little, I liked basketball more than studying and I just wanted to play basketball every day without going to school. One day, like usual, I was playing basketball at home when my father came home and realized that I had skipped school. He was so angry that he slapped me before taking me back to school. That was the first time my father ever hit me. I was terrified and since then, I have never skipped any classes.

Just like that, I began studying seriously, and I graduated from high school in 2015.

In 2016, I officially started learning Chinese at a university in Islamabad. After intensively learning Chinese for months, I successfully passed the HSK (Level 3) examination. With the help and encouragement of teachers, I finally arrived in the capital of China, Beijing, for further study in September 2016. On my way to school from the airport, I saw from the car window the beautiful views. Trees on both sides of the road swayed in the wind, as if welcoming me to this beautiful land. The tall buildings and beautiful urban views made me wonder whether I was in a dream.

My time studying in Beijing is the most unforgettable period of my life. With the assistance of teachers, my Chinese proficiency improved rapidly. What touched me most was that in order to take good care of students from other countries like us, the teachers, in addition to working hard to teach us, often visited us at the dormitory during out-of-class hours. Only on weekends did they return home to see their families. At that time, I learned the secret behind "Chinese Speed": Chinese citizens take their jobs seriously and everyone at their post works hard and makes contributions. The careful guidance of teachers enabled me to successfully pass the HSK (Level 4) examination in the first semester after coming to China. Then I passed Level 5 in the two-month tutoring class over the winter holiday and Level 6 in my junior year. During my five-year stay in Beijing, I not only mastered the Chinese language, but also gained an in-depth understanding of the Chinese people, culture and history.

The year 2020 marked my fourth year in China, and I was still dedicated to learning Chinese. At 5 a.m. every day, I would get up to prepare for class. In the daytime, I worked hard at my part-time job and at night after work, I continued with my studies. The adversity I faced gave me many valuable experiences and taught me many valuable lessons. The experiences of working with Chinese people made me realize that my abilities are still inadequate. For example, in addition to specialized knowledge, I still needed to learn more about management so as to better face future challenges. Such experiences taught me to be persistent, self-reflective and enterprising, and laid a solid ideological basis for my future career development.

Finally, in 2021, I got my bachelor's degree. At that time, I realized that the chances of returning to China for a master's degree were quite small. But I was not scared away by the challenges. With an optimistic mindset, I kept applying. After unremitting persistence and efforts, in March 2023, I decided to apply for the tourism management major at Yunnan University. During my preparations for the interview, I was both nervous and excited. After a long hard wait and the final interview, I finally received the good news: I was admitted.

In September 2023, I entered the beautiful campus of Yunnan University and started a new study journey. This new opportunity makes me feel confident in my future and I can not wait to face new challenges and dive into an ocean of knowledge. I believe that Yunnan University will become a place for me to continue growing and pursuing my dream, and I look forward to making my stay here fruitful and meaningful.

That is my story of studying in China. In the future, I hope to make my own contributions to the friendship between China and Pakistan, and help promote Chinese culture in Pakistan and other places around the world. I am very grateful to China for the opportunities and knowledge it offered me, and to the teachers along the way for providing me with such valuable life experiences. I will work harder at both work and life in the future so as to better realize my personal values. Thank you, China for everything you have given me! May the China-Pakistan friendship last forever!