Yuhan Zong
New Zealand’s beauty, pace of life, weather and its ‘very kind and enthusiastic people’ attracted Yuhan Zong from China to study here.
Currently undertaking a degree at Ara Institute of Canterbury, the 21-year-old couldn’t be happier about being here.
“Christchurch is a beautiful city and I’m enjoying it here,” she says. “I really hope to contribute to its development once I have the ability.”
Yuhan is studying a Bachelor of Construction, specialising in quantity surveying. “This programme is Level 7 and the higher level courses stand for greater difficulty. But by studying those courses, I’m feeling more confident and better prepared for getting a job once I graduate.”
She says being an international student means there are some challenges, particularly with communication and assignments, but she feels well supported. “My tutors are very patient and friendly and we discuss tasks a lot – it’s a process of improvement. I especially want to thank Kam Cheng. Kam is a very responsible tutor with a very good attitude. He responds promptly to my emails and his answers are very detailed.”
Yuhan has made use of Ara’s extensive student support services, particularly the services for international students. “The staff are very friendly and happy to give advice. They will try their hardest to solve your problems.”
Ara’s commitment to ensuring its students are work-ready when they graduate has a lot of appeal to Yuhan. “For students like me who have never had work experience before, the first job is often difficult to find. So it’s really great to get internship opportunities through Ara. It will enable me to get work experience, even if it’s for a short time.”
When she graduates, Yuhan hopes to find a quantity surveying job in New Zealand. “In this way, I can apply the knowledge I’ve learned to my work and get a better understanding of the practice.”