Zoea Chen
Zoea fell in love with Auckland after taking a gap year on a working holiday visa after completing her undergraduate study in China, her home country. She has returned as a student, working towards a Master of Information Technology and connected with alumni through the Workplace Insights Programme (WIP).
“I was planning to go to Europe for my Masters degree, but after one year living and working here, I changed my mind, feeling connected to this country.
“I looked at programmes offered by different universities in New Zealand and I was drawn to the University of Auckland for its reputation. The Master of Information technology gives students the opportunity to learn outside of the lecture theatre with a semester to pursue an internship to learn about workplace culture.
“Before starting the programme, one concern was that courses would not be up to date with industry trends, but that was 100% wrong! There are courses on AWS cloud and other popular technologies that are widely used in New Zealand.”
To broaden her experience and learn more about working in New Zealand, Zoea sought out CDES, the University's Career Development and Employability Services. “In my first semester, I went to CDES workshops to help me understand the New Zealand way of doing a CV, networking and attended career expos. These services helped me feel empowered and well-prepared in future job applications and career development.
WIP is great for international students to connect with industry professionals and boost their confidence.
“I made my first public speech in English at the WIP debrief workshop. I was nervous but under the encouragement of my mentor and the CDES team, I delivered it successfully."
After living here for a year, she felt connected to New Zealand and made some great friends in Auckland. “As the biggest city in the country, Auckland has a good balance between a modern city and nature; there are always pretty beaches or mountains waiting for you."
The support from CDES helped "me take the first step, and learn more about New Zealand culture to fit in. I plan to become a software developer in New Zealand and my degree gives me an entry point to these roles."