Autumn is a beautiful season. On August 31, right before the start of the autumn semester, on a day when the sun was still showing its full strength, new graduate students from all over China arrived on the campus of Peking University Shenzhen Graduate School (PKUSZ) to begin their graduate school journey.
The arrival marks the opening of their life together at PKU’s southern campus, otherwise known as Nanyan.
This year, PKU Shenzhen admitted 1255 new students, including 1160 Master’s students and 95 Ph.D. students. Between July 31 and August 1 over 900 of the newly admitted students arrived on campus.
Like other years, arrivals waved farewell to the family members sending them off to campus, while school staff and student volunteers warmly welcomed them.
However, there were also big changes this year. Before the new students arrived, senior administrators and campus management made every effort to ensure student safety and implement proper pandemic prevention measures.
Following the pandemic prevention protocol, each new arrival had their luggage disinfected, presented a recent negative test result, and underwent a temperature check. Thankfully, this was a short process—in no time students were able to enter campus and formally begin their time as PKUers!
Let’s take a look at how these freshmen feel about their first encounter with Nanyan.
Excitement, Confidence, and Future Challenges
Everyone’s first encounter with Nanyan is a little different, but it was clear that the freshmen are more than ready for their new adventure.
A longing for Peking University, Shenzhen’s geographical advantages, the layout of the economic industry, and strong scientific research strength were some of the factors that attracted the freshmen to Nanyan.
Many said they were very excited to come to their dream school. While others, like Yao and her friends from the School of Environment and Energy, said Nanyan is also close to home and they were impressed with the faculty.
The great help of dozens of senior students helped eliminate any discomfort of the new arrivals and make sure they can adjust well to the new environment.
Wang Lei from the School of Transnational Law (STL) affirmed that it was a good first impression, he especially liked the modernity of the STL Building. The architecture represents the innovative spirit of STL, which will expand his legal thinking and provide an advantage in the future job market.
Other students, like Duan from the School of Electronic and Computer Engineering, felt inspired by the ecological environment of the campus. The campus is in bloom with plenty of flowers, trees and a river walkway under renovation that is nearly complete.
Duan felt very excited to be at Nanyan and is satisfied with the level of scientific research here. He knows it can be a platform for him, but everyone will face many challenges along the way. For this reason, he will work harder over the next three years of study and life, striving to make a breakthrough.
Already, many stories have been made at Nanyan. Zheng from STL forgot some of her materials and the caring help of the seniors made her feel at home.
Freshmen who were in the observation room because of the hot weather and an increased body temperature said they were comforted by the teachers.
The charm of young and innovative Shenzhen, the enthusiastic Nanyan, the shiny and smooth lakeside of the Mirror Lake, the exquisite and towering Wusi Tower, the modern library with a rich selection of books, the sky, wildflowers, gardens, and green trees are all welcoming the young PKUers!
(Published by the Nanyan News Agency on thenanyan.com)
