Ismatullo Rahimov (from Tajikistan)
Admitted to BA(Hons) in English Studies for the Professions in 2019

When I was first recommended to apply for PolyU, I laughed it off without even giving it a second thought. I simply didn’t consider myself good enough for a world’s top 100 University. The fact that it was top 50 in my major didn’t help my confidence either. Therefore, I spent most of my time applying for Central Asian universities, and it was only because of my friends who applied that I also decided to try my luck and apply for PolyU. Out of all the universities I applied, I was the least confident of PolyU, but one thing led to another, and one day, I received not only the offer of acceptance, but also a full scholarship with it. I couldn’t believe it was real. I kept refreshing the page to confirm for myself that it was really real, I started to jump and run around from happiness. I kept hugging everyone around me, making some people give me improper looks, but I didn’t care about anything. I had been given a full scholarship by a top 100 University, after all!

The moment I arrived in Hong Kong, I could feel the warmth that was radiating from PolyU representatives. They welcomed me with smiling faces and saw me off right to my dormitory room. They explained to us everything in the orientation activities and I was already in love with the university due to the hospitability and approachability of people as well as the balance between academics and extracurricular activities. As long as you have good time-management skills, you can do so many things alongside your studies. I and my friends, for example, often cook together, play table tennis, futsal, basketball, and enjoy ourselves. We are also planning to travel around Hong Kong during winter break, although some students are finding time to do it even in the weekends. Time-management, I guess.

I also got to meet many international people and learn so many new things about their cultures and histories in Hong Kong. Everyone is so unique and top-tier that it’s impossible not to grow in such a conducive environment. Also, because I was one of the only people from Tajikistan in the Faculty of Humanities, I got to tell people about my country and culture. This pushed me to learn my own history and culture so as not to spread misinformation about it. The fact that there are so many Muslims in PolyU also helped me improve my religious knowledge by attending Muslim gatherings and talking to them in general.

The teachers and faculty are very helpful as well. It took me only a few weeks to get to know quite a number of people in authority, that I could ask for help from anytime I needed. In fact, they help me with choosing classes at the beginning of every semester, with career plans, and they even helped me apply for the “Scholarship for Prospective Teachers in Hong Kong”. The scholarship is set up by the Education Bureau of Hong Kong in order to attract students to pursue relevant local bachelor degree programmes which will qualify them to become English teachers upon graduation. Even international students can apply for it. If it hadn’t been for them, I wouldn’t have been able to apply, not to mention be chosen for this scholarship, which is one of my most cherished accomplishments.

Overall, my experience in PolyU and Hong Kong has been full of pleasant surprises. I am very happy I chose Hong Kong and would do it all over again if need be. I will hopefully continue studying here and utilize all the relevant opportunities for my holistic improvement, so that I become a better person and professional who will help make the world a better place.