Student Wins Second Place in Chinese Proficiency Competition
Student Stephanie Arriaga won second place in the intermediate division of the Chinese
Proficiency Competition for Foreign College Students, Southwestern U.S. Preliminary
Contest.
“The competition helped me overcome the fear I had in communicating in a language I had only practiced with professors and classmates. It encouraged me to meet many other students who were once at my level and talk about struggles learning Chinese,” she said.
Stephanie began studying Chinese because it is often designated as the most widely spoken language in the world. She decided to pursue an associate degree in Chinese to complement her business degree. Stephanie won the College’s Academic Excellence Award in Chinese this year. “She is a role model for her peers in promoting cross-cultural understanding and communication,” said her Chinese instructor Yiran Zhou. Stephanie plans to participate in the College’s study abroad program in Taiwan this summer to further her Chinese language skills and interact with local students. She is active on campus, and volunteered to perform the traditional Chinese lion dance at the College’s Festival of Asian Cultures in April.
Stephanie plans to earn an associate degree in Chinese next spring and plans to complete a certificate in network/systems administration. She will pursue a business information systems degree at a California State University. “I plan to use Chinese as an asset for my career goals in business information systems because I believe it will open doors for many opportunities overseas,” said Stephanie.
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