A violin major overcame her fear while travelling alone to the US during junior secondary. She had to use English to survive. She prefers non-fiction books like My Happiness Project and Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus.

A one-month exchange in the US gave this student a rare opportunity to speak in English. She liked Tuesdays with Morrie but would have enjoyed it more if she had not been pushed to finish it quickly by her secondary school teacher.

Staying in the US for three months helped this student improve her English. She seldom reads books but prefers to talk about interesting movies.

A one-month study abroad scheme at the University of Hawaii enabled this student to communicate with people from other countries using English as a lingua franca. She read the South China Morning Post in secondary school.

An study exchange programme in the US exposed this teacher to an English speaking environment. She made many friends there and needed to use English daily.

A Geography major in the US had to use English to survive. She knew she mastered the language when she started dreaming in English. She reads the Seattle Times newspaper and course material.

Travelling to the US gave this student the opportunity to use English. She found some course material to be lively. She uses a dictionary when she discovers new words.

Immersion during a home stay in the US state of Arkansas enabled this student to learn by communicating with native speakers. She has also studied on the Mainland and Korea. She has read Twilight and course material. She plans to teach in Africa.

Starting at 15, this student travelled for exchanges to the US, Scandinavia, and Africa. She watched Sesame Street VCDs when she was young and believes that cultivated an interest in Teen Titan comics.

A student describes the interaction with a buddy during an exchange trip to the US, also sampling food and writing Chinese New Year lucky scrolls. He reads course materials and the news. He finds the English version of Harry Potter more colourful.

While studying in the US, this Engineering major courageously asked a lecturer to speak slowly. She overcame her fear of using English by being part of the crowd in Washington DC.

Speaking slowly is how this Business and Engineering major adjusted to life as an exchange student in the US. Mock job interviews during class prepared for his future career. He read a lot of articles in the South China Morning Post.

A university exchange in New York allowed this Media and Communication major to meet one of her favourite authors, Jodi Picoult. She has read Wild by Cheryl Strayed. She likes TV dramas, movies, rap music and popular magazines.

A family trip to New York and Niagara Falls provided an unexpected English cultural exchange for this Banking and Financial Services major as she had to communicate with other tourists. She has read Twilight and prefers to watch movies before starting a book to get more background.

An internship in the United States raised this Business major’s confidence in speaking English. She reads TIME, Vogue and National Geographic but also browses websites for articles on human behaviour.

A summer internship in a law firm in the US immersed this student in an all English environment. He also used English during a bike trip after the internship. He read Tuesdays with Morrie for her HKCEE studies.

This Religious Studies major stayed with an American family with whom he watched and discussed movies. He reads the Bible and course material.

Shakespeare has been central to this Geography major’s English learning. She watched a Shakespeare movie without subtitles during an exchange trip to the US. She also read Twelfth Night and watched two movie adaptations.

An international competition held in America provided this Arts major with the chance to speak with foreign students. In secondary school, sharing time let her reflect more deeply about Roald Dahl’s Matilda.

This Economics major enjoyed chatting with his university English teacher and also made many friends. He read a book written by Donald Trump in his exchange to the USA.

Staying in New York boosted this Nursing major’s confidence in speaking English. She was forced to write many book reports in secondary school. She read The Da Vinci Code but couldn’t understand it.

A university language course prepared this Business major for his undergraduate studies in the US. He finds reading textbooks in university memorable; he has to skim through the books because he doesn’t have enough time.

After a two-week immersion in the US, this Translation major found himself thinking and speaking in English. He reads Wikipedia to acquire knowledge of different subjects.

Travelling to the US and the UK made this Computer Science major value English more than before. He read Harry Potter and The Lord of the Rings.

Socialising with friends on and off campus was the highlight of an exchange trip to America for this English major. She felt a sense of accomplishment after reading Frankenstein.

Studying in America for one year made this English major think it’s better to learn the language in a foreign country. She likes Vladimir Nabokov and Friedrich Nietzsche.

English was used by this Political Science major during an internship in the US. He took part in a weekly reading project in primary school. He reads short stories and books with pictures.

English was the lingua franca for this Marketing major during an exchange programme in the US. Most reading centres on textbooks to prepare for exams.

Talking to locals during a US exchange allowed this Accounting major to polish her spoken English and understand the local culture. She valued reading about Socrates and Plato in a philosophy course.

An internship in the US gave this Accounting major the chance to speak English all the time. She likes The Fault in Our Stars by John Green.

Learning from books without words was difficult at the beginning for this Marketing major. She learnt little in an exchange to the US. She mostly reads romance novels. Her favourite is Gone with the Wind.

Going to the US with her sister and then by herself let this Accounting major learn spoken English through conversation. She learnt to appreciate and understand poetry in secondary school.

Giving a speech made this Accounting major realise that the most important aspect of speaking English is confidence. She prefers the Harry Potter books more than the movies.

Moving to the US at the age of 10, this Finance major relied on guessing, gestures and a dictionary to understand other people. Reading children’s books improved her vocabulary and grammar. Brave New World is eye-opening.

In an exchange to the US, this English major used her phone to check difficult words while talking to her American friend. Novels are easier to read than news articles. She likes the religious theme in Life of Pi.

An internship in the US Disney World was an opportunity for this Psychology major to practise English. The psychology textbooks and readings have a lot of difficult terms.

A Bible camp in the US gave this Nursing major opportunities to really use English. He reads journals for his studies.

A month long field trip in the US let this Geography major talk to native speakers and improved his English. He reads for his studies. Reading a whole book within one week was difficult.

A study tour to Los Angeles let this Urban Studies major learn English through culture, drama and sport. Influenced by her friends, she read Twilight and liked its lively descriptions.

A study tour to Orlando gave this Global Economics major a chance to talk with native speakers. Her favourite book is Cloud Atlas which she read after watching the movie.