Xueba said|With offers from two world-famous universities, she chose gap year for one year, and in the end...

Cui Xiwen, who graduated from Nanwai Chinese School in junior high school and has been admitted to the Tianyou class of Shimen Middle School, chose another path and entered Meilun International to study abroad to fulfill her childhood dream. "When I was in elementary school, I thought about going to Cambridge, but at that time I had a vague concept of university." Cui Xiwen said that after entering junior high school, the academic pressure was relatively high, and she felt that it was difficult for her to balance her interests and studies. "In the third year of junior high school, Meilun International was preparing to build opposite the school, and I had the idea of going abroad to study at university."

In the three years of high school life in Meilun International, Cui Xiwen feels that she has gained a lot, in addition to excellent academic performance, rich club activities, but also exercised her ability in all aspects. In her first year of high school, she joined Meilun International Television. "My main responsibility at TV is to write press releases, sometimes make guest appearances as anchors, and learn video recording and editing, including material collection, which is fun and rewarding." During her tenure as vice president of the student union, Cui Xiwen was responsible for planning activities, science and technology festivals, literary evenings, subject knowledge competitions, etc., and she appeared in many activities in the school.

"These jobs require coordination of each department, which is very good for communication and coordination." Rich club activities and a relatively relaxed and free campus atmosphere make Cui Xiwen feel like a fish in water, and after finding her own learning rhythm, she has more time to develop her interests and hobbies, and explore her areas of interest.

In fact, as a 2020 graduate, Cui Xiwen's admission results have been very good, she received offers from Nanyang Technological University in Singapore and Imperial College in the UK, but still chose Gap Year.

"Maybe I have an obsession with Cambridge." Ms. Choi said that although her parents and teachers were conservative at the time, believing that there might be some risks if she continued to storm Cambridge, she still insisted on her choice.

"At that time, I also thought that if the epidemic conditions permitted, I would go to Nanyang Polytechnic to study, but the epidemic situation is a bit serious, and if I go abroad to study or take online classes, it will have an impact on my coursework and university life experience." Another reason she decided to try another year was when she joined the Winter Pool while interviewing for Cambridge University. "This result gives me more confidence in my academic performance, which means that I may be just a little bit away from Cambridge."

In the year of Gap Year, Cui Xiwen analyzed her strengths and weaknesses with the help of Teacher Meilun, and she spent her energy on improving her abilities in two aspects. "I read a lot of school-recommended books to improve my academic skills." For the Cambridge University interview, she felt that she should further improve her stress resistance and psychological quality in a high-pressure environment. "School teachers and parents are also well aware of my situation, and in high-pressure situations, I will have stage fright and be nervous." Cui Xiwen said that she is also grateful to the school's mentorship system for providing a lot of help and guidance for herself.

"In the first half of the year, I helped my juniors at the College Guidance Center to share their further education experience with Nanyang Polytechnic and Imperial College, and also helped them contact universities." Sometimes one-on-three, sometimes one-on-one or group discussions with fellow students who are also applying to Cambridge, in this process, Cui Xiwen is both a mentor who imparts experience and a partner who works hard together. "The real restoration of the interview scene, mutual communication and collision, these experiences have fully exercised my communication skills and made me more confident."

Compared with academic improvement and finally the favor of the ideal university, the year of gap year, Cui Xiwen Jue gained a better mentality. "I used to worry that I didn't have the ability and courage to apply successfully, but the pressure I faced during the gap year was very, very great, and through my own efforts and the help of my teachers, I was able to face it more calmly and reconcile with myself."