LIU JIRAN, MIEKE (EXETER COLLEGE, 2011 - 2012)
Claiming the summer spent in Oxford being the most memorable one of their lives might appear cliché, but the influence that summer had over the course of my life obliged me to stay true with my words. In the summer of 2009, as a summer school student, I was first introduced to Oxford, to its breathtaking beauty and unchallengeable academic and cultural richness - to a new perspective.
One summer was too short to make a full display of Oxford, but long enough to motivate me to make every endeavour to further a focused academic pursuit and to increase related professional insight in order to return. On the bus from Oxford to Heathrow, I knew the ride was not a farewell, but rather the beginning of my way back to Oxford, a part that is indispensable on my way of dedication to the legal career.
Now, with the kind support from the David and Jayne Paterson Educational Trust, here I am about to catch my flight to the UK and to finish the round-trip journey. Already now, I can almost see professors and fellow students challenging each other's opinions in the halls; hear the sound of pages flipping and fingers typing in the libraries; and smell that aroma of coffee and pints from century old cafés and pubs.
My gratitude to the Trust is beyond expression. With its generous and constant support, young students with their previous legal training in China like me are offered a valuable opportunity to explore the legal culture, institutions and practice of the West - and that is from the industry's top academics and practitioners at the world's most renowned academic community.
China is experiencing a phase of transformation, where its legal institutions seek to confront its own social issues and its Western counterparts. With uncertainties and capriciousness yet remaining, rapid economic and legal developments that are clearly striding towards an internationalized model with maturing regulatory approach has also been witnessed. Legal professionals with a deep knowledge of both Chinese and Western legal workings are particularly in demand for aiding such transformation and the Trust enables the growth of exactly such a group of talents.
As an MJur candidate and the Trust's scholar for year 2011-2012, I am truly proud to be a part.
One summer was too short to make a full display of Oxford, but long enough to motivate me to make every endeavour to further a focused academic pursuit and to increase related professional insight in order to return. On the bus from Oxford to Heathrow, I knew the ride was not a farewell, but rather the beginning of my way back to Oxford, a part that is indispensable on my way of dedication to the legal career.
Now, with the kind support from the David and Jayne Paterson Educational Trust, here I am about to catch my flight to the UK and to finish the round-trip journey. Already now, I can almost see professors and fellow students challenging each other's opinions in the halls; hear the sound of pages flipping and fingers typing in the libraries; and smell that aroma of coffee and pints from century old cafés and pubs.
My gratitude to the Trust is beyond expression. With its generous and constant support, young students with their previous legal training in China like me are offered a valuable opportunity to explore the legal culture, institutions and practice of the West - and that is from the industry's top academics and practitioners at the world's most renowned academic community.
China is experiencing a phase of transformation, where its legal institutions seek to confront its own social issues and its Western counterparts. With uncertainties and capriciousness yet remaining, rapid economic and legal developments that are clearly striding towards an internationalized model with maturing regulatory approach has also been witnessed. Legal professionals with a deep knowledge of both Chinese and Western legal workings are particularly in demand for aiding such transformation and the Trust enables the growth of exactly such a group of talents.
As an MJur candidate and the Trust's scholar for year 2011-2012, I am truly proud to be a part.