Blog

  Hi, my name is Nguyen Thi Dieu, or as my professor found the name so difficult to pronounce, gave me a name that is easier to pronounce “Joe”. During the years under Vietnam National University of Sciences – VNUS, I had heard a lot about studying in Taiwan, and it is fortunate that the opportunity really has come to me.
  Naturally when coming over to study in Taiwan, I curious about what it is like to live in this country. Living in Taiwan make me every day feel like an adventure. Waking up early to catch the shuttle bus to Academic Sinica, or cycling to NTU for an experiment, rushing to cycle for part-time job, or going back to dormitory then precipitating to shower and going to the lab to analysis data, it is my one day.
Studying and living in Taiwan has helped me to cultivate a lot for myself. My English has improved a lot, can confidently present at domestic (Taiwan) and international (Japan, USA) conferences. I was taught the skills of working in the laboratory, being exposed to modern machinery and equipment, and data analysis skills were also improved a lot. Not only that, but I am also fortunate to receive scholarships for international students with high academic achievements, scholarships for graduate students with good research results.
Study is like that, how about everyday life? The Taiwanese locals are amazing, every individual is ridiculously friendly. It is impossible to not make friends here, despite I being miles away from my home, I never feel isolated or alone. The transportation, sightseeing points, night markets are good quality, safety and convenient. Now that I think about it, I am extremely grateful for the time I spent living and studying in Taiwan, in NTNU and especially in Department of Earth Sciences.
It is the teaching, not only knowledge on books but also knowledge of life, personal stories from my teacher – Professor J. Gregory Shellnutt, who always encouraged me that must not think what I could achieve is due to luck, must have more confidence in myself.
  That is the help, the dedicated instruction from the Dean, from other Professors, made me sometimes burst into tears because of emotion.
  It is full of cares when I have a stomachache every month, is a reminder to eat more in meal, is the blame for wear little clothes even though it’s cold from the lab assistant, from the assistants in the department, from labmates….
That is the help and guidance of Vietnamese students here, and my Taiwanese roommates, parties, shopping, going out, travelling, cooking together. “Thank you all for taking me in”!
  It is the shared concern of Vietnamese and Taiwanese people who are I fortunate to meet. They create conditions for me to earn extra income by part-time job but still maintain study in school. All still remain in one corner of the heart, when remembering, they feel stinging in the corner of the eye.
  For someone is seeking opportunity to study abroad, choosing to study abroad here will provide you with a strong higher education degree which reflect positively on resume and memories that will be hard to forget. Life can be great while carrying out your study in NTNU, believe me.