Newsletter No. 425

10 No. 425, 19.10.2013 香港中文大學研究生會會長 徐冰 請談談你的背景，為何選擇到中大唸書？ 我是山東濰坊人，一直在家鄉唸書，但父母希望我能在香港這個國際都市接受多元化的教育。 當時我對中大了解不多，但對香港十分嚮往，所以在2008年入讀數學與信息工程雙學位課程。 為何決定留校唸博士？ 三年級開始當系統工程與工程管理學系 林偉 教授的研究助理，跟博士生一起合作做人工智能、 機器學習的研究，感覺非常有趣，會做得廢寢忘餐，連畢業專題研究也是以相關的領域為題， 老師亦認可我的科研能力。有感自己尚未做好踏入社會工作的準備，且又喜歡研究工作，於是 決定留校修讀信息工程博士課程。 對於香港的研究環境有何看法？ 以我的體會來說，待遇、科研氛圍、經費和設備等，都很不錯。平素甚少干擾，可專心研究。不 過，要是計劃畢業後從事科研工作的話，香港出路較少，大學職位亦不多，從就業角度來看，與 本科畢業生相比，沒有明顯優勢，這不利香港的科研持續發展。 除知識以外，在中大唸書最大的得着是甚麼？ 在這個自由、開放、多元的環境下，給我很多創造知識的機會，而擔任研究生會會長，擴闊了我 的視野、社交網絡，並提升個人能力。學生會的工作有點類似創業，我們有百分百的決策權，但 也意味遇到困難要自己克服，過程帶來的收穫是難以估量的。 大學生活如何？請談談難忘的事或是特別的經歷。 大學生活很簡單，主要在摸索各種學習模式和做研究。比較難忘的，是大三時來個大膽嘗試， 挑戰自己的極限，想要看一個學期能做多少事情，修讀了八門主修科共二十一學分，並同時兼任 研究助理。將自己的時間分配到了極限，雖是辛苦，但是經歷很有趣很充實。 請簡介香港中文大學研究生會。現有會員多少？籌辦哪些活動？ 香港中文大學研究生會成立於1997年，旨在為研究生爭取福利，維護權益，促進他們與校方的 溝通。一萬三千名研究生中有五千四百多人是會員，而人數每天都在增長。我們採用自願會員 制，故每天都會有同學上網或到研究生會辦公室註冊入會。籌辦的活動分四類：一、文娛體育； 二、就業服務如就業講座、參觀公司、模擬面試；三、迎新及畢業；四、聯校交流，我們今年促成 了亞太地區研究生會聯盟，並舉辦為期五天的就職典禮及首屆年會，邀請了來自香港、澳門、內 地、台灣、馬來西亞及新加坡等地的大學研究生會代表參加。每年大小活動有逾百個之多，基本 上每周都有活動。 研究生上課和做研究時間各有不同，怎樣組織及動員他們？ 我們主要靠三百多名幹事向同學推介和宣傳，鼓勵入會，並利用電郵、臉書、微博等網絡聯繫， 這些媒介效用很大，活動宣傳一經發布，短時間內報名的超過數百人。 籌辦活動最大的困難是甚麼？ 經費是最大的困難。我們的經費來源主要來自會費，大學也有些補助，另加少量的校外機構贊 助。可是研究生會有二十六個屬會，會員數目與日俱增，籌辦活動數量又多，定要想盡辦法開源 節流。 希望為會員做些甚麼？ 研究生會是一個正在成長中的團體，我認為它有很大的發展空間，可給自己再次挑戰，而且我 也希望服務研究生群體。一年過去，會員的數目和多元性、活動的次數和規模、會員福利，以及 與校內外團體的交流和合作等，都有長足的發展。 未來有甚麼計劃？ 我將於12月卸任，但還會抽空指導來屆幹事發展會務。2016年畢業後，計劃在香港工作或創 業。經過當會長的鍛煉，我已經充分準備踏進社會，開啟人生的新階段。 Xu Bing President, Postgraduate Student Association of CUHK (CUPSA) Please tell us about your background. Why did you choose to study at CUHK? I came from Weifang, Shandong Province, where I had studied for all the years before coming here. My parents wanted me to receive a diverse education in a global city like Hong Kong. I didn’t know much about CUHK but I was attracted to Hong Kong. I was admitted to the Mathematics and Information Engineering Double Degree Programme in 2008. Why did you choose to pursue doctoral studies here? I was a research assistant of Prof. Lam Wai of the Department of Systems Engineering and Engineering Management in Year 3 and worked with PhD students on the studies of artificial intelligence and machine learning. I was fascinated by the topic and devoted all my energies to it. It’s also the theme of my final year project. My research ability was recognized by my teachers. Since I am interested in research and not yet prepared to work, I decided to stay for the PhD Programme in Information Engineering. What do you think of Hong Kong’s research environment? I find that the salary, research ethics, funding, and facilities are decent. There is not much interference from outside which allows me to focus on research. But if you plan on taking the research path after graduation, there aren’t many jobs available whether academic or non-academic. In other words, Master or doctorate graduates do not seem to have an edge over undergraduates. This is not beneficial to the sustainable development of Hong Kong’s scientific research. What’s the greatest benefit you got from studying in CUHK? The University’s free, open and diverse environment offers many opportunities for creating knowledge. As the president of CUPSA, my vision and social network are widened, and my competence enhanced. The work of a student association is similar to that of an enterprise. We have total autonomy, but we also have to grapple with problems ourselves. You can’t imagine what you learn through the process. How is your university life? Any unforgettable experiences? My university life is rather simple, focusing on exploring different modes of learning and research. A relatively unforgettable experience took place in Year 3—I decided to challenge myself by taking eight courses with a total of 21 credits and working as a research assistant. It pushed my time management skills to the limit. Tough but most rewarding and fulfilling. Please tell us about the CUPSA. How many members are there? What are the activities being organized? Established in 1997, the CUPSA strives to promote the welfare of some 13,000 postgraduate students, and facilitate communication with the University. We have over 5,400 members and the number is increasing as we speak. Students register for CUPSA on a voluntary basis either online or by visiting our office. Our activities are divided into four categories: i. recreation and sports; ii. career services such as career talks, company visits, mock interviews; iii. orientation and graduation activities; iv. exchange activities. We established the Asia-Pacific Alliance of Postgraduate Student Associations recently and organized a five-day inauguration ceremony and the first annual forum which invited representatives from postgraduate student unions from universities in Hong Kong, Macau, mainland China, Taiwan, Malaysia and Singapore to attend. CUPSA organizes over a hundred activities annually and there are activities every week. Postgraduate students all have different class-times and research schedules. How do you organize and mobilize them? We rely on some 300 officers to promote and encourage their classmates and friends to join the association. We utilize platforms including e-mail, Facebook, Weibo to communicate with members. These tools are very effective. Shortly after an announcement of an activity is released, we receive hundreds of enrolment requests. What is the major difficulty in organizing activities? Funding. Most of our funding comes from membership fees. On top of that, we receive subsidy from the University and a bit of sponsorship. The CUPSA has 26 clubs, a growing membership, and organizes a large number of activities. Therefore we have to do our very best to save costs. What would you like to do for your members? CUPSA is still in its infancy and there is huge potential for development. Taking up the presidency is challenging and I like to serve the postgraduate student community. In fact, the CUPSA has grown considerably over the past year in terms of the number and composition of members, the number and scale of activities, members’ welfare, communication and exchange both inside and outside campus. Any plans for the future? I’ll step down from the presidency in December but I’ll take time to advise the succeeding cabinet on CUPSA’s development. After graduating in 2016, I plan to work or start a business venture in Hong Kong. Having gone through the presidency of the CUPSA, I am well-prepared to enter society and a new stage of life.