NaNa有约04--my@Journey in HK(回忆我的香港年华，以行动支持小Na) [复制链接]

夏小喵
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电梯直达

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发表于 2009-10-13 23:18:42 |只看该作者 |倒序浏览

One year ago, I flied to Hong Kong, with the offer from the CUHK Law School. All my classmates who planned to pursue their LLM studies overseas got the offers from the top law schools. They began their journey, happy and proud. I knew I was a loser in the application, but I didn't know why. The only thing I realized is, if I wasted the time of the following year, my LLM study in CUHK would be the most stupid decision I ever made.

Luckily, I had a very good impression of Hong Kong. The humid whether and the mountainous city with towers embraced by mist made me feel like back in my hometown. Even so, everything began with mess. There were quite a lot of procedures to deal with, and most importantly, the PRC Bar Exam was coming. Although many friends had helped me handle my life, I felt quite unease. I tried all my best to balance the time between LLM study and preparation for the Bar Exam. I kept reminding myself that if I failed both, I would be nothing to compete with those NY Bar holders in next year's job haunting. But I wasn’t the only one who thought like this. Things got most depressed when I realized that a friend of mine had to take pills to sleep every night.
I finished my BAR Exam in the third week of the first semester, extremely exhausted. Finally I didn't have to spit myself into several parts. The time that I could be fully devoted into my new study was quite enjoyable. Professors here are great. The course of our program director Professor Wolff was very funny. We always called him ‘Wolf’, and he also described himself as ‘cold-blooded army style’. Wolf taught us international business transactions, with quite a lot of practical skills. Only up till to the time I got interviews and began my professional legal career, did I realize how helpful those skills are and that those questions in our final exams are actually exquisitely designed legal issues in practice which requires wisdom and a highly active mind to figure them out.
Another professor I should thank most is Professor Wang Jiangyu. He’s an extremely nice person, gentle and knowledgeable. Professor Wang’s class requires large amount of reading. But it seemed that most of the students preferred to ignore those boring reading materials. I became one of the very few students who raised hands every time Professor Wang asked ‘did any one of you read the materials?’
On the contrary to Wolf’s class, Professor Wang’s class was quite academic. But I also enjoyed this way of study, because there are always questions to think about and explore. In his class, you could feel free to challenge any ideas, authoritative or not. He taught us how to cultivate our own critical thinking and analytical thinking. Unfortunately Professor Want left CUHK this summer and rejoined NUS Law School.
Sometimes, I would take subways to the main campus, spending a whole day in the CUHK library. I always regard reading in that kind of huge splendid comfortable library as the happiest thing for a student. There is nothing but exposing to the best human spirit.
All the peace was destroyed with the worsening of global financial crisis. All the bad news was flying on every kind of media. People marched on the street protesting against the government and banks again and again. Huge amount of factories and companies collapsed. I felt frightened and nervous in this world financial centre. I had a bad feeling that the next year’s job haunting would be extremely tough. At the same time, I began to fight for the final exams.
At the end of 2008, I got the news that I passed the PRC Bar Exam and those CUHK professors very generously offered me four A for the total four courses. I didn't feel great joy, and only prayed for good luck for 2009’s job haunting.
Back to Hong Kong after 2009 Spring Festival, I began to apply for jobs. All the applications were sent to international law firms for a paralegal position. Only until last month, did I know that there is almost no opening of paralegal positions of international law firms for fresh graduates this year. Until the end of February I sent almost 100 application letters but got only a few rejection letters. I cried for a whole night. I began to think about the stupid idea of coming here and I felt so sad and unfair that I was encountered with such a horrible time. Several days later, in the law school celebration, I was invited as the LLM student representative to cut the law school birthday cake together with Wolf. I felt encouraged again when I stood on the shining platform, with all the students’ eyes focusing on me. I realized that if I gave up, I would disappoint those people who were watching me.
The second semester was much tougher than what I had expected to be. Busy study and busy job application, and the only difference is that I can hardly see any hope from the latter one. I even felt happy to get reject letters, because there was at least a response.

After I sent out more than 200 application letters, I finally got interviews from the Shanghai offices of two top international law firms. I failed one and succeed in another. I didn't know whether those LLM students from overseas top laws schools had find their expected jobs. But for me, this was a good result. Several days after I got the offer, I got the news that my academic results were the same as the first semester.
This is my journey in Hong Kong. I have a best understanding of ups and downs in life there. I cannot say CUHK Law School is a top law school, but I can say that professors there are great, resources there are abundant, and the environment there is pleasant. Never care too much about how other people look at your choice. Everything depends on you.