HE Zhiyin (from China Guangdong)
Admitted to BA (Hons) Linguistics and Translation in 2021

PolyU provides me with different opportunities to explore my future career during my 4-year university life. I took Finance and Psychology courses at Fudan University International Summer Session, worked as a Marketing intern in Singapore, presented a linguistic research project at the International Symposium on Chinese Language and Discourse, and served as a Chinese and English instructor for Hong Kong underprivileged students, non-Chinese speaking (NCS) students, and students from Mainland China and Taiwan. After experiencing various domains, I realized that I am not suitable to work in the financial and research domains, and my experiences and interest assisted me to plan my career path -- being a Chinese teacher in a Hong Kong primary school.

I am passionate about children’s service. My journey towards desiring to be a Chinese teacher began in my second year of university life when I engaged in the C-for-Chinese project (賽馬會友趣學中文) which was created by the Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust in collaboration with PolyU and other local universities and organisations. I served as a part-time Cantonese and Mandarin instructor for NCS in kindergartens and primary schools for three years. This job not only helped me gain insights into the challenges faced by NCS students in Hong Kong but also gave me a chance to practise developing teaching kits and teaching plans, transferring knowledge, and writing feedback. This year I joined one more project titled “A Project on Designing Audible Picture Books and Paired Reading to Facilitate Chinese Reading Development of Non-Chinese Speaking (NCS) Primary 1 to 3 Students” led by the PolyU Chinese Language Centre (CLC) team. A lack of proficiency in Chinese language will hinder NCS students’ future career, and so I want to join more projects to support their Chinese language learning and bring them a prospective future.

Moreover, I participated in a voluntary teaching activity in Guangxi Province through a PolyU Heartfire Education service team. I witnessed the challenges faced in teaching (e.g., no air conditioners, high turnover of teachers) in some remote schools in Mainland China. I went to Taiwan to conduct a voluntary English-speaking workshop through a PolyU service-learning project, and I learned more about the local culture and education system.

Since 2023, I have been assisting an underprivileged Hong Kong new immigrant. I am a volunteer English tutor at Principal Chan Free Tutorial World (陳校長免費補習天地) and provide free English lessons to a primary school student who immigrated from Mainland China. His scores improved from 30 to 55, which reinforced my dedication to educational support. In 2024, I was awarded the PolyU Presidential Student Leadership Award of Faculty. It acknowledges my contributions and efforts in leadership and community service, and this award inspires me to continue my service to these communities.

I was confused about my future career opportunities before studying at PolyU, but I am grateful to be a PolyU student and enjoy the numerous resources the university offered to me to try and explore different positions. I appreciate the rich university life at PolyU and the experiences I had with diverse student groups, knowing their needs and learning obstacles first-hand. They will be my service targets if I become a frontline teacher in a Hong Kong school in the future. I hope that my contribution can make a positive change in the lives of the students I serve.