Chinese students study aboard

Recently, my language teaching teacher, Ms. Yerian, advised me to read an article named “Selecting the Right Chinese Students” This article gives me a lot of thinking. In these days, I am struggling to choose a university to continue my master degree and how to write my personal resume.

I have to say it is truth in the article that “American college recruiters in China feel overwhelmed by the proliferation of cheating, lying, and fraud”. There are a lot of transfer students, they have a 4 score GPA. But they could not keep it in the American college. I do not want to deep judge if they fake the transcripts or not. What I want to say is, the education systems in here and in China are totally differences. For American education system, it is more open. Sometimes, we do not have correct answer for the questions. But in China, there is a correct answer to every question. That is why we care about the final grade; we care to know the answer. I think that is also the reason that Chinese students do not play very well in the workshop. Because the workshop is opening to everyone to share the idea for the study guild, no one knows the “correct” answers. So it may seem not really helpful in Chinese students’ eyes. But I am not total agreed the writer’s idea, there are still a lot of Chinese students try to adapt to western life. We need more time to change our life style, also the critical thinking ways. Actually it is really hard.

I am thinking for a long time that what kinds of Chinese students could be accepted. Why every Chinese student has to adapt to the western culture, just because they are in America? I agreed that “Do as the Romans do”. But, from my observation, they are a lot of American students have the similar life styles: they do no make many friends; they stay at room for a long time and playing the computer games; they do not want to attend to any social activities. I think each person has its own life style. We could not judge their behaviors just because they do not want to change. So do the Chinese students.

I am going to apply for the master in the following months. I am not quite sure what kind of personal statement could be attractive and standout. But I want to state a real myself for my future school. I do not think personal statement and transcripts are enough, even with the oral interview as the writer said. To select good a student, is really hard. Because it is really hard to define the so-called “good”, right?

I got some inspiration from our UO President these days. He may not follow the school’s rules. But he never against his will. He believes the teachers and students deserve to get higher education. He kept his own way. I really respect to him. I want to be a person like him. Do the good things to the people, who are we believe worth to pay. Even in the adverse situation, I will try to not give up, just like him.

All in all, I just want to say that the Chinese students do have some weakness, but we are trying to change. The main reason is the traditional value and old education systems. I think the Chinese students will perform better in the foreign counties with the Chinese education system improving. So I still believe that the American college should give more chances to Chinese students to show their different sides.

Black Friday

As we know that the big discount during the thanksgiving, it is a good time to go shopping. There is an article named “ Could Every Day Be Black Friday?” written by Adam Davidson. In his article, he talks about “In some years past, big sales on Black Friday have meant a good year for the retail sector, which makes up about a fifth of the U.S. economy. (This year, retailers are predicting a so-so year, with just tiny growth in sales.) But lately, the data have been much harder to read.”

I think the reason is variable. As I am a Chinese student, I do not have quite deep American culture background. I hate waiting for a long line and spend hours to wait to check out, even there are some discounts. Also as we are living in Eugene, many friends want to travel to Woodburn or Portland to buy some cheaper products during the special time. Comparing to the real store, I think shopping online is a better choice. For example, there is no A& F store in Eugene. If you want to get the 50% off in store, we have to drive to Portland. The gas fee is around 30 to 40 dollars as the round-trip. Online shopping is 40% off, and the money you save in the real store will spend on the gas fee. Also you have to spend more time to wait the store open and check out. But if we do the online shopping, the waiting time could use to play games together with friends. Or even learn to make a turkey.

This Thanksgiving I did not travel around, I spent some money online. I learn to make a big turkey, and play with friends. I did not have something that really needs to buy. So next time, I may keep money for 364 days until the Thanksgiving discounts to buy some more. Anyway, I advice the international students do not spend too much time on waiting. Shopping online or spend more time with friends also a good choice for the special holiday. That is the way I make “everyday as black Friday”

Why we have to choose business major?

As I am going to graduate from my college, I have to prepare for the GRE exam. But most of my friends they have to prepare for the GMAT test, because nine out of eleven Chinese students are Business major. Based on the “Business Studies in the USA” International education site, the research shows that in recent years, US universities in general, and doctoral programs in accounting and business in particular, have seen a noticeable increase in admission applications from China and in the enrollment of Chinese students into graduate programs. (Cho，Robin and Robert) There are personal and social reasons why so many Chinese students choose a business major in the United States.

One of the major personal reasons is family influence. For the students who can study abroad, their parents are often successful businessmen and bosses or people who work for the government because it costs so much more than studying in China. Some of the students want to be as successful and rich as their businessman parents, they want to have better living conditions when they are independent and they also want to give a better life to their children. That is why they choose business. They thought studying business is the first step to imitate their parents. Other students choose business because of their parents more or less. Since their parents have big companies or factories, they need to find someone to take over the business when they are old. Of course the first choice is their children because there is a famous saying in China “Fertilizer does not flow outside Tin”. It means why should their parents give their business to a person that they don’t know well. They feel more comfortable to give their business to their children because children won’t lie to their parents. Under this situation, some student choose business to please their parents and some of them even reject their own wishes.

Moreover, choosing business as Chinese students’ major is a good way to take their time to think about what they are really interested in. Since business is a general subject containing many areas such as marketing, accounting and management, there are many choices for people who are not sure what they are going to focus on when they first enter college. Once they have decided what area of business to study, they can specialize their focus even more. Also, business happens every day, it is very practical. For majors such as doctor, computer science and mathematics, people need really professional words and knowledge. However, most of the words or knowledge are not often used in the daily life, and some of those may not be used ever! Business is different, the words for us are easy to understand because they are so close to normal life. Sometimes when we use some professional words in business, it helps to show that we have higher education level and literature cultivation.

Besides the personal reasons, there are also many obvious social reasons that influence Chinese people to make this choice. The main factor why Chinese students choose business in America is because America is good at it. We all know that people like to go to France, especially Paris, to learn clothing design because Paris is a fashion city and it is a paradise for designers. People also prefer to go to Switzerland to learn Hotel Management because the course is very well-known in the world and the diplomas are recognized by the world’s hotel industry. It is the same thing with business in America. We all know that America is one of the most developed countries in the world and the top business universities are all in America such as Harvard, Stanford, Berkeley and Davis. College ranking on US news shows in recent years that the best business colleges are mostly USA colleges in the top 10(US news). People always want the best, so do Chinese people. And we know that there must be something special and different in those universities so that they can keep on top for so many years

When we think of business in United States, images probably come to mind, and with good reason. America’s business sector is made up of several different types of companies. There are huge corporations, with main offices in cities like New York City or Los Angeles and with smaller branches all over the world. There are moderately sized companies with simple beginnings, like a restaurant company that was started out of someone’s house and eventually became a chain of food stores. There are also small businesses found on every main street in America, selling everything from jeweler to books to toys. An international education website says, “If you choose to come to America to study business, you will learn about each of these types of companies and everything in-between.”(Business study in USA)

Another social reason is many Chinese think that business and economy are indivisible. If a country wants to be strong, it must have a strong economy. And where does the economy come from? Business. Chinese students are naturally patriotic. From the time we are children teachers try to teach us to love our country and make contributions to our homeland when we grow up. Parents and elders always say that the hope of the country is held in your and the young people’s hands so you need to work hard and try to be a useful person in the future. Day after day, we begin thinking in that way that we must be successful and we have such strong self-respect because we believe that we can learn advanced technology and professional knowledge and then come back to China to make a difference. Since the students who graduate from universities are young and energetic our information collection capabilities and acceptance of employment in the various groups are the strongest. We can use this talent and the language advantage to build business internationally so that we can help to stimulate the economy in China.

For the reasons above many Chinese students come to the United States to learn business. However, this phenomenon may lead to many different results. For example, if too many people choose business, it is like many people bidding in an auction. The more people demand it, the higher price it will be. Same as business, the more people want to study it, the more competitive it will be. And this will make the universities raise their criteria to accept students since so many students apply for limited positions. Then it will be more difficult for new students to enter the business universities.

On the opposite side, it can also bring a good result. Since many Chinese people take business as their major, they can cooperate with each other and when they have the ability to build companies and factories, they can create hundreds of jobs for people. That will help the society to decrease the rate of unemployment. In addition, their system of operating a company can be an example to others. More business especially international business can help to increase Chinese economy by promoting import and export trade. Then it will also help to stimulate consumption so that it will have better currency in circulation to promote economy growth.

It is not a strange phenomenon for so many Chinese students to choose business in the United States. Things always happen with a reason. Whatever it is, we shouldn’t judge it as right or wrong. As a business major myself I believe there will always be business if the world still exists. Now take a minute to think of one thing, just one that has no relationship with business. I cannot. From the house you live to the transportation you have, from the clothes you wear to the food you eat, from your job to your entertainment, everything has business in it, whether it is big or small. The most important thing is it relates to our lives a lot. If you can learn business well, you will have a happy life.

Other Sources:
Chinese students in US accounting and business PhD programs: Educational, political and social considerations Charles H. Cho, Robin W. Roberts and Sherron K. Roberts
Survey: graduates employment in 2008 Xinhua – China Youth Daily
U.S. news world report. March 12, 2009

The Angel flies away temporarily

It has been two years since Xiao qiu died. He was an anniversary gift for me from my boyfriend. He was a handsome male Australian Shepherd dog with a chestnut, white, and smoky-gray coat. He loved to play with people and was really clingy. When I gaze up the lawn in front of my door, I can still see Xiao qiu’s shadow, his scamper, his cheer, his life and vitality. But since he died, my life has changed. It is he who let me understand the deep feelings between human and animals. It is he who made me experience the hardships of a parent. It is he who made me afraid of having another dog.

We had an intimate relationship from the first time he came to my house. In order to allow him to adapt to the environment we put him in a cage. However, he cried the entire night. We thought he was too young and was afraid to be alone. We did not have the heart to continue. We gave him freedom. Since then he never went back to the cage. As he grew up, he would always bark at strangers. And each time his bark was powerful, energetic and unafraid. We all knew how to communicate with each other. Each day when I wanted to go out, he used his own puppy dog eyes looking at me, telling me he wanted me to accompany him at home. Each night before I turned off the light, he used his puppy dog eyes to tell me he had selected the corner of the bed and was ready to sleep. Whenever we were going to blame him for troubles he had caused, he would look innocently at us, as if to tell us, “I am only a child.”

He also let me feel how hard it is to be as a parent. He was afraid of thunder, and of big dogs. He still needed my protection. Because we have a dog, we had to train him went to toilet outside. But in fact, Xiao qiu was a dog who really protected the property. He never went to the toilet outside. Once, I went to the laundry room to wash clothes, leaving the house door open. He ran out without being chained up. I just thought “let him enjoy himself.” A few minutes later he came back; I thought he was really a good boy. But who knew he went to the bathroom on the carpet and fled the scene immediately to continue his outdoor activities, leaving me alone with his waste, which was stinking to high heaven. I had to clean it up by myself. He made me unsure if I should laugh or cry. At that time I always thought if his digestive system stopped working, our home would not be so smelly. Today, the joke became a reality in exchange for his life.

When Xiao qiu was six months, he got the disease. The doctor told us Xiao qiu was too small to survive the canine distemper, since he did not have the strong resistance. That is the disease for a dog get through by other big dogs.We had tried to give him injections of medication, but there was no improvement. The doctor suggested that we euthanize him. However, he was only a puppy of six months. Even as a dog, he still had rights and he could also choose his rights to live. I did not know how much decision we could make for him. On that night, his breathing was so rapid. His sound was heart-wrenching. He was so helpless suffering from the disease. Under the dusky light, he was looking at me. The puppy dog eyes looking were so familiar, so reluctant to leave, so attached to us. At that moment, my heart was broken as I could do nothing for him. I never thought he would leave us. I never even felt how deeply the emotions were between us. I was standing beside the window, crying heavily watching the rain outside. I begged the doctor to do something else for him. I held him in my arms and attempted to give him some warmth. He put his fat paw on my shoulder and was breathing in ragged gasps and blinking slowly. I saw there were tears in his eyes, from pain and reluctance. He did not want to leave us. The doctor said if I kept doing this, it would only make him feel more pain. Finally, I nodded and agreed. And I never came back to that room, since I could not face the moment when the needle went into his body. I even did not know if I could still control my emotion in that room. When my boyfriend carried him out, we muttered, “Let’s go home.” We buried him under the tree which is in front of our house and was his favorite one. We can see him every day as if he never left us.

Every inch of land in this city is filled with the shadow of Xiao qiu. I always burst into tears inadvertently. During the days after we lost Xiao qiu, we have grown up. Facing the fragility of life, I believe we should even live strongly a happy life. I am now beginning to be afraid of having another dog. I believe the people who really love dogs do not need own a dog, but just give the dog freedom and make them live happily. It may be easier to love someone else’s dog from a far, than rising having another dog. It is my first time to experience the hardships of being a parent. This makes me think of my parents who are far away in China. I begin to understand their thoughts and expectation. I think I am sure how I can face my own future. For Xiao qiu, my beloved dog, he will be the most beautiful recollection in the course of my growth.

F&M Fashion House Project— the contribute part

Our memorandum is named M&F House as a short for Memory & Fashion House. The M&F House will sell the couple shirts. Not just for boy and girlfriend, also prepared for the close friends and family members. As the couple clothes are very popular in Asian countries, especially in Japan, Korea and China, it has a potential market in America. Also, our campus clothing needs some new elements. We will open the store near University of Oregon’s campus. Right now, there is no couple shop in Eugene. As a blue ocean marketed, M& F House would make the profits for our business. In our group project, I am working on “The Market” part. I really like the group project; especially it is the interesting topic I want to explore.

For the market part, I am going to explore the following parts:
1.1 Describe the market opportunity
•Target market: Our major target market is U of O students. Over 80% products are based on their requirement to design.
•Minor target market: the U of O parents and professors. Each of them may be around 10%. We provide the family clothing for them.

1.2Identify and describe the market segments
•Duct Store
•Nike
•Hollister
This part needs more explore

1.3For each segments
1.4Justify assumptions within each of the numbers provided in the chart
1.5Compute a sales projection chart using those number over time
1.6Identity possible market risks and approaches to managing those risks.

I did not finish all the research yet. I will put my research results in my blog. It will keep updating in the future weeks.

Good Blogs to Explore

I found some blogs have the similar topic with me. Also there are some very interesting blog that I am happy to share with you.

Economics:
Skillsinfo’s Blog
This blog has U.S. News and economic indicators. He expresses some comments and personal ideas for the economic changing. Also he attaches many links in his blog, which readers may be interested in. It is easier for us to explore more information.

Business:
Webman’s Blog
Webman is “Currently VP, marketing for 123Print with a passion for small businesses and making them successful.” His blog is focus on “informative and innovative ideas for growing your business, reducing your costs, learning and leveraging emerging technology.”

Effective Public Relations
This blog is focus on the holiday products. Also the business opportunities are in the holiday period. It is interesting to explore this blog to grab more information about these “special days”.

Travel:
On the Luce

I like the picture and style in this blog. The writer is Lucy. In her blog, “there are some of the regular features I hope to post on the site:
Weekending: short guides to places to escape to if you only have a few days to spare.
Travel tales: places I’ve been, things I’ve seen (and eaten and drunk most likely).
In pictures: some of my favorites photos from my travels.
Listed: I love a good top five, ten or whatever (though will try not to subject you to any top 100s).
General ramblings: other stuff, whether it’s travel related or going off on a bit of a tangent.”

It is a nice place to relax yourself and enjoy a different day.

Resume

Shi Dong
Email: sdong@uoregon.edu

Education
University of Oregon. Eugene, Oregon. 2011
Major International Study B.A. Degree
Second Language Acquisition and Teaching (SLAT) certificate
Letter of Mastery in International Business Communication (IBC)

Experience                                                                                                         Business Teaching Assistant. University of Oregon.  Eugene. OR. (2011 fall- Present)

• Advise the students for the business documents contents and format
• Work with the students for the documents revise
• Graded the business documents

Chinese Tutor. University of Oregon. Eugene. OR. (2011 spring- Present)

• Shared Chinese cultures with American students
• Communicated with non-Chinese native speakers
• Helped Chinese language learners to outcome the pronunciation problems
• Checked the non-Chinese native speakers with grammar errors

Foreign Language Assessment Rater. University of Oregon. Eugene. OR. (2011)

• Achieved the skills in ACTFL/ILR proficiency guidelines
• Comprehended the rating speaking and writing assessment
• Experienced teaching a foreign language
• Completed of CITI human subjects training
• Scored the non-native Chinese language speakers’ assessment test

Law Agency Assistant. Shenyang, Liaoning, China. (2010)

• Answered phone lines and office e-mails
• Translated customers’ English messages to Chinese
• Prepared documents for the office, sorting by category

Library Assistant.  Shenyang Library. Shenyang, Liaoning. China. (2008)

• Check out materials and books for readers
• Organized the returning books
• Aided research by identifying key words and local resources
• Researched the Library history and gave a speech about “How to be a happy reader”

Peer Tutor. Shenyang Library. Shenyang, Liaoning. China. (2007)

• Provided basic knowledge Chinese syllable to a foreigner
• Exchange culture with foreigner
• Corrected Chinese grammar for the foreigner’ writer conversions
• Addressed a lecture about Chinese Handwriting

Foreign Tour Guider. Shenyang Palace Museum. Liaoning. China (2007)

• Told mystery story about Qing Dynasty
• Translated Chinese instructions to English
• Participated actives about Court clothing show
• Constructed photo shoots for the travelers

TV Station Manager. Liaoning Experimental High School. Liaoning. China. (2004-2007)

• Published a magazine named “Feiniao”.
• Designed more than 12 short films about the campus life
• Recorded important events happened around campus such as Athletic Meeting, Military

News reporter.  Liaoning Evening Newspaper. Shenyang, Liaoning. China(2001-2004)

• Interviewed with Rose Lvqiu share the ideas about The Iraq War
• Published three articles in the Liaoning Evening Newspaper
• Collected and edited information about student study life

Skills
Technical Knowledge: Computer typing and Windows, Mac, Vista system; Basic Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Photoshop; Basic skill about Photography and film editing.
Language: Native Chinese; Fluent English; Basic Spanish

The Alarming Textbook Price

As the global economy is in depression currently, available job opportunities seem to be fewer and fewer. The unemployment rate is increasing rapidly so that several people have to struggle for one job. Obtaining a degree enhances our chances of getting a job. A higher degree requires vast time and tuition investment. However, another serious problem besides tuition we have to face is the alarmingly high textbook price.

At the beginning of the term, I was shocked by taking a glance at my receipt after purchasing all my required books. I could still remember there was one time that the bookstore charged me up to 300 dollars for my textbooks. Even though the price is amazingly high, we have no alternative but to keep buying. When the term ends, I always expect to sell back the books and get my money back but the result usually disappoints me deeply. An almost new book is not worth 50 percent of the original price. The bookstore is making a lot of profit by purchasing the same book at a low price and selling it at a much higher price. It is a simple but effective way to make profits. According to Patricia S. Schroeder, “the actual price a student pays for a new textbook at the campus bookstore, where most students buy their books, is not the publisher’s price but a store price that includes a ‘mark-up’ that may well exceed the 25 to 30 percent acknowledged by bookstores.” We are the powerless victims of their business because we have to obey their rules.

Is there any solution to avoid this and save us money? Of course there is. Persuading the store directly to reduce the price seems not efficient since no one may agree with decreasing their benefit. What we can do is to give them some pressure and force them to compromise. The reason for the high price is because the bookstore is nearly monopolizing. Although some students may choose to buy a used textbook online, it takes a longer shipping time and it is hard to find the exact book with the required edition. The majority of students will purchase textbooks in the bookstore and have to accept their prices. There is no competitor competing to the bookstore so that the bookstore can charge whatever price, nevertheless we can set up an online textbook exchanging program to solve this problem. I think there should be used textbook exchange program on campus. In this exchange program, a student will label the price they want to charge for the used book and leave it on sale. However, this old fashioned bartering in person does not allow information to be spread widely since only a few students will know it. An online textbook exchanging program may fix this drawback. Students can post their demanding and supplying information about books online. If they find what meets their requirement they can exchange with it for free or buy it at a low price. The program will be available for all local students who are taking college near Eugene, both for UO or LCC. So that it is much easier to obtain a textbook.

The other solution is to convince professors to provide more online resource such as Power Point slides and online books in order to replace traditional textbooks. Not every textbook is necessary. For instance, some mathematics classes focus more on applying the principles and definitions to solve practical problems but not simply memorizing them. Some professors do acknowledge that the cost is too high but they have no effect on it. By doing this, a textbook becomes an optional selection and students are also encouraged to attend class and be more active in class to take advantage of in-class notes.

If there are more ways for students to obtain textbooks, the bookstore has to cut down the price to attract as many students as possible. At the same time, the buyback price of used books will also depend on the quality and the markup of the “buyback” used book will not be so alarming. This may save college students average 200 dollars each term and around 3000 dollars for 4 years entire college life! Solving the textbook price problem may also encourage more high school graduates to take college courses and receive more education.

Brand effect

Recently, Wal-Mart faced a big challenge in Chinese market. From the Bloomberg News, there is an article named “Wal-Mart’s Rivals in China May Gain Ground After Pork Probe”. This news is about there are “13 Chinese outlets shut for mislabeling pork” in Chongqing, China. As one of the best supermarket, Wal-Mart was found to be labeling ordinary pork as organic. It made many people worried about the not just the quality of products, but also the image of the brand.

In the past five years, I believe that Chinese people changed their life style. One of the most important reason, I believe that is the foreign supermarket came in the Chinese market. For example, like my mother, she used to go to the food market to buy the vegetables and meats, when I was young. But now, she prefers to go the supermarket to buy eggs and meats. She trusts these brands, such as Wal-Mart. She told me that the huge market could guarantee the quality of the products. We all know that Chinese food products face many problems in these years, such as milk, oil, meat even vegetables. At the same time, the publics begin to care about the healthy more important than before.

At this special point, Wal-Mart faced not just how to apologize the mistakes. What is more, making the public still trusts this brand is the most important. As the Bloomberg News mentions that China is a big market. There are many foreign markets emerging in Chinese market. Wal-Mart has many competitors. But “Wal-Mart entered into China in 1996, less than a year after Carrefour arrived in December 1995. In the last decade, it has grown to 353 stores from eight in what it forecasts will be the world’s largest grocery market by 2014. Since 2005, its China market share has more than doubled, from 4.8 percent to 11.2 percent, making it second-largest in the country behind Sun Art.”

As many Chinese people’s idea, “Wal-Mart is still a reliable brand”. A venture is as a man. Every one makes a lot of mistakes in his whole life. But how to face and correct the mistakes are the most thing that people care about. People usually give others a chance to change their mistake, especially for the good guy. I think Wal-Mart can be considered as the “good guy” in Chinese market. So brand effect could help Wal-Mart overcome this huge challenge a lot. At the same time, good brand should pay more responsibility for people’s trusting.

how to write sensitive business topics

Recently as the iPhone 4S coming out, it becomes one of the most popular topic. With the leaving of Steve Jobs，the topic of iPhone 4S seems more sensitivity than before. The article “Comparing voice quality on the iPhone 4S” took hold of the scale proper. The writer Kent Garman shows his personal view in a very neutral way. I really enjoyed this article because of a completely different view. He broke up our thoughts of the smart phone. He tried to convince people that “Even fancy smart phones like the iPhone 4S need to have satisfying call quality. A phone can have a hundred other amazing features, but its primary purpose is simple communication.” Yes! Communication is the original and the most useful thing for us to use a cell phone.

At the beginning of his article, he mentioned, “call quality depends on more factors than just the device.” So he could change his point to the different network carriers. Then he gave three example of listening message for the Sprint, Verizon and AT&T. Even these three companies all use iPhone, there are still different call quality between them. Finally, he gave his point that he wanted to give readers “an idea of how much a carrier’s network can affect call quality.”

I like his writing styles. He tried to give the example to make readers believe that different networking could affect the call quality. His tone is fair. He does not judge which networking is better or worse. Even he did not deeper argue for the cell phone features. As the reader, I began to think that choosing a good networking is more important than choosing a smart phone. I think this way to communicate with the customers is much better. Even it is indirectly, it gives readers more room to think and judge by themselves. Mr.Garman’s writing style worth to learn, especially for the sensitive business topics.