Huaiyu Fang and Zhang Fan are quite a couple. Although they both studied at the Beijing Jiaotong University, it was only at GROUP T that the flame grew. Both continued their education as well: Huaiyu is doing Marketing Management at the Vlerick Leuven Gent Management School. And Fan is specializing in Artificial Intelligence at the KU Leuven.
Huaiyu Fang and Zhang Fan. Both studied at Beijing Jiaotong University but they need to come to GROUP T to get to know each other and become a couple.
Huaiyu and Fan both studied Electronics Engineering at GROUP T. Huaiyu went for the focus in Intelligent Electronics, while Fan opted for Internet Computing. They earned their diplomas in June 2009. They remember vividly how they arrived in distant Belgium four years ago. “It was my parents who prompted me to go abroad,” Huaiyu relates. “Europe was number 1 on the list. I learned more about the collaboration with GROUP T at the Beijing Jiaotong University and the fact that you can enroll in a program in English, which is attractive to quite a few Chinese students. That’s how I almost automatically ended up at GROUP T.”
Fan, before he started at the Beijing Jiaotong University, stayed in the UK for half a month and there he developed a great appreciation for the European way of life. “At the time, my mind was already made up to study abroad,” he confirms. “Friends told me many positive things about Belgium, so I took their advice and that’s how I ended up at GROUP T.”
Totally different
Their first impressions of Belgium and Leuven? “Small but attractive,” they agree. “At first, the completely different atmosphere took some getting used to but we soon found our way around. Leuven is a pleasant and agreeable student town full of young people. It is clean, and people are friendly and tolerant of foreigners. They are also immediately prepared to help you when required.”
“Student life, however, is completely different from China,” Huaiyu notes. “Just the fact that you do not live on a campus here but rent a room in town, makes the experience of being a student in Leuven completely different than in China where your university is your second home where you study and learn together.”
“Also studying is different,” Fan continues. “The profs at GROUP T set higher standards. You also have a more personal relationship with them than in China where everything is more detached and anonymous. In Leuven, the profs know you by name and you can speak to them or ask them questions at any time when something isn’t clear.”
Huaiyu is very happy with the lab sessions. “The lab sessions are more elaborate here than in China. In China, we just memorize our lessons for the examination. At GROUP T, by contrast, you spend much more time in the lab. These sessions also ensure that you keep up with the theory because otherwise you can’t do a good job on the assignments or experiments.”
First step
During their first year at GROUP T, international students follow a separate program but that changes in the third bachelor year. “The first year we had indeed very little contact with the Flemish students,” says Fan. “But later we did form mixed groups for projects and lab sessions. I enjoyed working with the Flemish students. They are intelligent and diligent and they have a lot of respect for foreign students. You do have to go to them to make contact. They will not always take the first step themselves. But once the ice is broken, all goes well.”
“Chinese students do indeed have the tendency to stick together,” Huaiyu adds. “Most likely this is because of the language but also because of uncertainty and cultural differences. Also the fact that teamwork is not really established at Chinese universities has something to do with it. And that is precisely one of the cornerstones of the program at GROUP T. A GROUP T engineer, by definition, is a team player. You don’t become an engineer on your own, it’s as simple as that.”
Coincidence or not, it is precisely because of the teamwork at GROUP T that Huaiyu and Fan got to know each other. In fact, they did their master’s thesis together under the supervision of Prof. Luc Bienstman, who is a great aficionado of China himself. As the work progressed, the mutual admiration grew and they became a couple.
Looking out for a job
After his studies at GROUP T, Fan did not want to return to China immediately. He first tried to find a job but when he discovered this was not all that easy, he registered at the KU Leuven in the Artificial Intelligence program. His girlfriend went to Gent to study Marketing Management. “Indeed, a completely different program, but this is exactly what I wanted,” she says. “Management really appeals to me and is a great addition to my engineering diploma. The program’s really tough, it’s hard work from morning till evening, every day of the week and also during the weekends. But the Vlerick Management School is one of the best business schools in the country and the graduates enjoy a very good reputation in the business world.”
Huaiyu and Fan do not really have a clear view yet of what they are going to do after this extra year. “We haven’t yet decided whether we will look for a job in China or here. There is a lot of competition in Belgium and the fact that we don’t speak Dutch or French is against us, particularly in jobs that involve a lot of customer contact. In China there is of course plenty of work so chances are we will pack our bags in the summer. We can already fill a whole suitcase with good memories of Leuven and GROUP T.”
Yves Persoons
