8 April 2020
By Yolande Pokam Tchuisseu, Duke graduate student
How does one condense a full semester, four incredible months, into one blog post? I’m not sure, but it’s a challenge I’m willing to take. I could share so much about my experience as an exchange student at Duke Kunshan. Some parts were unexpectedly challenging and some parts were simply amazing. For the sake of time and your attention, I have summarized my experience into three main sections.
Goodbye, independence
The greatest challenge was losing some of my independence due to the language barrier. I had not taken a Mandarin language course before traveling and didn’t have ample time to practice before the 2018 fall semester. Not being able to communicate in Mandarin was also particularly challenging given my love for languages.
My first school week in China showed me just how challenging it was going to be. That was when my computer stopped working and I had to go to Shanghai to get it fixed. It was one of the most stressful days I’ve ever had abroad. Thankfully, a friend in the master of science in global health program joined me on this memorable and challenging adventure.
Interestingly, the hardest part wasn’t anything to do with navigating in this new environment; rather it was learning how to navigate when you have limited language skills. I realized the key was simply to ask for help, that it was OK to do so, several times. When my friend and I asked for help, strangers always offered it. Some days we didn’t even need to ask; the facial expressions of two lost foreigners was all it took.
I’m thankful for those strangers and friends who helped me throughout that semester at DKU. They taught me that we are truly interdependent human beings and, thus, it’s OK to shed our sometimes-faulty sense of independence and ask for help.
Learning outside the classroom
Besides learning a great deal in my classes, I was also able to glean lessons from my experiences outside the classroom. Here are some of the things these experiences taught me.
Full-time study makes exploring a place challenging, but it’s better than nothing. I can’t truly say I’ve seen China, but I can say I had a pretty good peek. I had classes, late-night meetings, assignments, quizzes, exams, and case studies and papers to write, but I seized the opportunities I had to explore.
No place is perfect, but there are kind people everywhere. The plethora of sad news we often see or hear may make us believe the world is full of egoists and heartless individuals. There is cruelty and injustice in the world, but there are also lots of kind people. I’m probably biased because I met many kind souls during my semester at DKU.
This third one is cliche, but if something doesn’t work out the first time, it doesn’t mean it will never work out. Cliches like this exist because they are repeated so often, but we often forget or take for granted the important lesson behind them.
You can adapt to almost anything. There are always unexpected challenges that come with being in a new environment. Not speaking the local language can be a challenge; looking different can bring unwanted attention; and working across time zones can be tough. I could go on, but I found that accepting these challenges and embracing the opportunity of learning in a new environment helps us adapt. It certainly helped me.
New siblings
The highlight of my semester was meeting Duke Kunshan’s first cohort of undergraduate students. I enjoyed meeting all of the other graduate students, but the undergraduates were a bit more special because they reminded me of my siblings.
The first cohort comes from around the world. Some were shy at first, some energetic, some knew what they wanted to study while others were not so sure. Yet two things were true for all them: They have intelligence and bravery. I enjoyed having lunch with them, sharing my trajectory into global health, watching them perform, encouraging them, receiving their encouragement, and learning about their different cultures.
During my time at Duke Kunshan, I especially enjoyed volunteering with a newly formed freshmen-led organization called Hugather. The group’s mission is to connect the DKU and Kunshan communities through service activities and hugs. Yes, hugs are a big part of this organization.
In the semester I spent at DKU, I gained several new siblings, and I can’t wait to hear about all their accomplishments in the future. I hope to reunite with them when they come to study for a semester at Duke University in their junior year.
So that’s about it, I think. A semester condensed into a few paragraphs. Although I’m sad that it ended, I’m glad that it happened. I’m sincerely grateful to all the individuals, staff and faculty who supported me along the way, both at DKU and at Duke.
Feichang ganxie!
Yolande Pokam Tchuisseu, Duke University Class of 2019, spent the 2018 fall semester at Duke Kunshan as a graduate exchange student from the Duke Global Health Institute.
© 2025 Duke Kunshan University 苏ICP备16021093号
