It is my great honor to be the awardee of Sir Run Run Shaw Gold Medal 2021/22. I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to CUHK and Shaw College for all the opportunities and guidance given throughout my 4-year journey.
Since the commencement of my university life, I have been empowered to experience all sorts of horizon-widening endeavours, for instance being the President of the Society of Global Economics and Finance (GLEF), who acted as the bridge between students in our major and official parties in university, as well as representing CUHK and GLEF in exchanges with both internal and external associations. In my second year of study, I had the precious opportunity to represent Shaw College to participate in the service learning in Kazakhstan, which truly sated my curiosity in sustainability. I am also thrilled to continue my passion in sports throughout my university life. I am honoured to be drafted into the Shaw College Swimming Team, Track & Field Team, as well as the CUHK Water Polo Team in all four years of my studies, in which I forged treasurable memories by striving for the very best in competitions against other colleges or even other universities. In the final year of studies, I completed my first IRONMAN 70.3 in Spain in 2022, which is my childhood dream that would never be realised without the support of Shaw College. I am truly grateful for how Shaw College has nurtured me and shaped who I am today.
For as long as I can remember, I have always wanted to help people, so I took a step toward my dream by pursuing Biomedical Engineering at CUHK. Unlike doctors who help patients directly, we are behind the scenes creating and developing tools aiding them so that medical professionals can provide the best service possible.
With the kind help of the Biomedical Engineering Department, my summers were always busy either getting trained at the Prince of Wales Hospital or conducting research on robotics for biomedical applications. During the summer of my junior year, I was grateful for a chance to be a part of the joint research conducted by CUHK, the University of Sydney, and the Australian Cerebral Palsy Alliance.
Being one of the very few Kyrgyz students in Hong Kong, there still were times when I was struggling and felt homesick, despite the warm welcome. Knowing through my own experience what difficulties and fears a freshman hold, I have joined the Central Asian Association, a platform for Central Asian students, to help incoming freshmen to adapt to Hong Kong and CUHK. We organized various activities and gatherings within our community, but we have also actively introduced and promoted our culture through events, including Nowruz Night, film screenings, and workshops. I was extremely honoured and grateful to have an opportunity to share my traditions and culture with others.
I believe that one’s achievements do not define one. Similarly, my achievements are not simply the result of my hard work but are also a reflection of the support I received and the opportunities life presented me with, for which I am always grateful. With the tremendous help of my department and university, I have started my Ph.D. journey in Biomedical Engineering, hoping to utilize my knowledge and discoveries to help the community.
Being nurtured in a prestigious secondary school in Hong Kong, I was a guru in procrastination. I hate going to school because lectures were too boring. It was not surprising that I was not any teachers’ pet, therefore my classmates created me a nickname - the sleeping beauty of our class. I vividly felt the tension when I received an unpredicted grade from any test paper because it was foreseeably poor. It was comparable to an experience of a cliff hanger on a roller-coaster. I had diffidence whenever I had to attain any goals as they seemed to be unachievable.
My life is ordinary and mundane. However, I believe that if an opportunity appears in front of you, do not hesitate and grab it. And yet, I was genuinely grateful to meet all my friends and teachers in Urban Studies, in which I rebuilt my confidence and found my motivation to set up goals again to achieve. With a smaller class size, I was more expressive and eager to explore my possibilities, especially finding my strengths and weaknesses, undoubtedly my interest. The atmosphere of Urban Studies has given me a platform to enjoy school time and utilise all my abilities. Thus, I started to work on different projects based on my interest, which is heritage conservation. I have become a local tour guide, public engagement worker on heritage issues and even attended conservation courses during my exchange semester in Canada to gain more knowledge on different heritage conservations. At present, I still live ordinarily but vivaciously, enjoying every moment I am living. Believe it or not, when you work on something you love, you probably can always learn.
Indeed, I do not have a big motto for you. However, I have to reiterate that it is essential to find your enthusiasm for your life. It is ‘never too late to start’ as long as you set up goals for yourself to achieve. Never look down on yourself, keep your chin up, and one day, I am sure you will succeed to attain all your goals. Good luck!
As a biomedical science student, I enjoy acquiring scientific knowledge and I appreciate the complexity of the human body. Apart from basic science, I also explored the applications of biomedical science, such as disease prevention and the development of diagnostic tests as well as novel therapies. The founding aspiration of Shaw College, “learning, innovation, and benefitting humankind”, has reminded me of the purpose of learning. While striving for academic excellence, I also aim to apply my biomedical knowledge and contribute to society. Therefore, I hope I can become a biomedical scientist and develop novel therapies in the future, with the view of brining hope to patients.
Shaw students are like stem cells, which have the potential to develop into various kind of specialized cells under enough support and favourable environment. During our undergraduate studies, Shaw College has provided a number of programmes and scholarships, covering different aspects including academic performance, exchange, student activities, to name yet a few. In addition, the facilities in Shaw College, such as band room, fitness room and basketball court, support our extracurricular activities. With the support from Shaw College, Shaw students can explore different fields and develop various skills according to our own interest and strength. I am grateful for the resources from Shaw College, which have greatly supported me throughout my undergraduate studies.
As a student of Global Economics and Finance, I am always excited to equip myself with sufficient economics and finance knowledge to face the ever-changing industry and challenges in the global financial markets. The all-rounded curriculum helps me to bridge the gap between theoretical knowledge and real-world situation.
I would like to take this opportunity to encourage students and freshmen to participate in different activities and develop your own characters and interests during your time at CUHK and Shaw College. For myself, I took on multiple duties including being the Chairman and Vice-chairman of college activities like Shawlane, Shaw College Founder’s Day and Orientation Camp. I don’t want to restrict your path here as I discovered that, when I join more activities and meet more new friends, I discover there are many opportunities out there. Probably through joining different activities you will also find your lifelong companions as I do!
I think my motto guides me along my journey in CUHK – “You are way better than you think”. I always keep this in mind so that I am not afraid of trying new things, building new social circles and reaching personal goals. Trust me, a 4-year time would definitely be too short for you to achieve everything so just don’t hesitate!
Lastly, I would like to take this opportunity to thank Shaw College for providing me with a place to thrive and shine in my university life. Shaw College is a place where people from different backgrounds meet and a perfect place to kickstart your journey and I hereby wish all of you to live a colourful university life here.