Presenting to the First Minister at the British Embassy
If someone had told me this time last year, that a year from now I would be not only meeting the First Minister, but also presenting to her in the UK embassy at Beijing I wouldn’t have believed them. But then again, that’s just another one of the surprises that the Tianjin Scholarship has offered me.
The embassy residence where the meeting was held, was amazing. The surrounding garden and architecture gave us a feeling of home we hadn’t felt in a while, and upon entry we were surrounded by assistants, photographers, ambassadors, and other important individuals. It definitely wasn’t a setting I ever thought I’d find myself in at the age of 18.
Once we were settled in at our tables going over our presentations, with the First Minister across the hall in a meeting in another room, it was a waiting game, and I will admit I don’t think there was a scholar that wasn’t a bundle of nerves at this point. We were literally about to meet and speak to Nicola Sturgeon whilst sitting in the British Ambassador’s residence in Beijing, who wouldn’t be nervous?
Once she had entered the room 9 scholars presented 3 separate topics to her about the experience of living and learning in China, the discussion points were: student mobility, international collaboration, and learning languages abroad.
The first topic presented “Learning Languages Abroad” was an interesting segment for us as language students studying abroad, and was led by 3 of our scholars James, Kirsty, and Alison, who are all former Higher/Advanced Higher language students. This topic was an amazing opportunity for them to compare how the teaching methods in China could benefit Scotland. In a way their presentation was making a real difference, as it was Nicola Sturgeon’s opportunity to hear the opinions of the young people who have all just sat SQA exams and have another educational experience to compare to that of our time in Scotland. One scholar Kirsty Baxter, formerly studied one of the first new Advanced Higher Mandarin courses set by the SQA, and she got to share her opinions with the First Minister on changes that she thought could benefit those going to study the course in the future.
Our International Collaboration talk presented by Max, Joseph, and Alex, spoke about how living at a foreign studies university has allowed us to meet many different students from different countries, allow for more language-learning and culture sharing opportunities. The First Minister would also have been glad to hear them talk about how we have been sharing Scottish culture during our time here, and many students view us as the “Scottish” students rather than British due to their interest in our strong individual culture we hold within the UK. We also spoke about how we have created lifelong friendships during our time here with people living across the world, and how we still keep in contact with those who have left and met some during our time travelling across Asia.
Last but certainly not least, was “Student Mobility” which was led by myself, Ailsa, and Rocco. The three of us discussed the benefits that China has brought us and how allowing Scottish students such opportunities will benefit, not only them as an individual but Scotland as a whole. Ailsa reflected on the Tianjin experience and how it has impacted her, whilst Rocco and I focused on how this specific scholarship is different to others and how studying abroad compares to education at home. We explained to the First Minister the skills and opportunities that living in China has brought us, as well as how these can be used in the future.
After the presentations, the First Minister made her way to each of the 3 tables to personally meet the scholars, this section of the meeting was a lot more informal than I had expected considering we were meeting the First Minister. When meeting us she was very interested in asking about our experience here, and this wasn’t the usual questions about classes and adapting to life in China, she was interested in our individual experiences and things we had done during our time here that made it unique to each scholar.
The presentations allowed us an opportunity to share our opinions on language learning and the opportunities given to us abroad with the First Minister. It was a privilege to feel like we were making real change to our education back home, and to the future of not only our scholarship but similar opportunities for students in the future to study abroad and experience what we have.
Each of our scholars are hoping to move onto different career paths once the year is finished; some into the educational sector, others into business or medicine, and for myself, I am hoping to go into the Creative Industry, which often makes people question why I am taking a year abroad to study Chinese. The confidence and communication skills this gap year has brought me has made me an efficient networker and more outgoing person, which will help my career. This year has also brought me the opportunity to network with businesspeople at various events, such as the First Minister meeting and the event in Beijing the following day, and many of these people hold work/intern opportunities for us in the future. Learning Chinese also means that in the future I hold the opportunity to return and work here, and by finding and being able to communicate with contacts in the Chinese film/media industry I am making it more possible for my work to be used in one of the largest markets in the world.