I always encourage the freshmen and sophomores to take junior and senior classes, so that they can have more opportunities to meet and talk with the older students, who have studied in college longer and experienced more. The greatest worry for the freshmen to choose these courses is that they won't be accompanied by the students of their same year and same class.

Actually, the benefits of learning with senior students are far more than of being accompanied by classmates. Most of the time, the only advantage of studying with your familiar friends is just to "help each other", or copy each other in assignments. Senior students, on the other hand, are mirrors of the future. They let us know earlier about the problems and regrets we may have when we study and graduate. We can then prepare earlier.

It is always good to work with students of different schools, different departments, and different ages.

As a senior student, I like to work with freshmen too. Usually, freshmen are more energetic and hardworking than the junior students in Tsinghua. Their thoughts and ability also let me realize the rapid change and development in China's culture and education. Besides, they are the mirrors of my past: adapting to the college life, struggling through the math and physics courses, and trying the best to refresh and fulfill their dreams. Through the mirrors, I see more clearly my changes and growth in four years of college.

P.S.

There is a "Host Program" provided to international students by Harvard's PhD programs. An experienced student will be matched with me so that I can adapt to the new environment sooner. In the application form, I checked the criteria "NOT from the same country" and "NOT from the same department."

Blog on College Life at Beijing, China
http://beijing.bestcollegelife.com
by Raymond Ko