Getting the Most from Every Moment at the University of California San Diego

 

Luyanda Mdanda is someone who likes to be busy.

The 19 year-old South African led a very active life long before becoming an international student in the United States. Born in Johannesburg, he enjoys outdoor activities, such as playing a game of golf and surfing.

But Mdanda says he never thought his life could be as busy as it has been since coming to the University of California San Diego in 2016.

The University of California San Diego, or UCSD for short, was established in 1960. It is about a two-hour drive south of Los Angeles on the California coast. The school is a public research university, and currently¹ serves over 36,000 students.

UCSD is well known for its research programs. Several researchers, professors and former students have been recognized for their work. They have won major awards, including the National Medal of Science, the Fields Medal and the Nobel Prize. And that is why Mdanda wanted to earn his undergraduate² degree at UCSD. He learned³ of the school through a State Department program called EducationUSA.

Mdanda chose to study cognitive⁴ science, which combines different subjects, such as computer science, psychology⁵ and social science. He knows that, by choosing this study program, he is required to learn many different skills. But he feels it is the best way of solving the world’s biggest problems.

“I really believe through the power of programming, through the power of understanding how the mind works⁶, through the power of understanding how social sciences works, we’re able to create solutions … for underrepresented communities in the world, and provide them with the resources they need.”

However, getting the chance to work on these sorts of problems was not easy, Mdanda recalls⁷. UCSD does not provide him with financial aid. So he has asked several South African companies to donate money to help pay for his college education. It also means he has had to work very hard on his own.

“That’s really pushed me to seeking internship⁸ opportunities, seeking campus⁹ jobs, seeking other opportunities to find people who are willing to support me. And I think if it wasn’t for that challenge I wouldn’t have to necessarily¹⁰ push myself as hard as I have in the past.”

Mdanda has worked three jobs since starting classes at UCSD. But luckily for him, these jobs have involved work he finds interesting.

The school is home to the San Diego Supercomputer Center, which houses very large, very powerful processors. And Mdanda was able to get a position in the center as an undergraduate researcher.

Many of the world’s top technology companies operate their own supercomputers. Last summer, Mdanda put what he learned in his research position to use by getting a paid internship at the Microsoft Corporation¹¹. And he will be returning to the company for another internship this summer.

But it is at yet another job that Mdanda truly seems to shine. In 2017, he became a resident¹² assistant, or RA for short. At most U.S. colleges and universities, many students live on-campus in school-operated student housing¹³. In exchange for a free place to stay, students chosen as RAs act as a representative of the school in the student housing. They make sure students follow rules and have a safe and welcoming environment to live in.

RAs also can act as a guide to other students, something which Mdanda says he loves doing. He personally is involved in several student organizations, including a group that helps students develop business ideas. And so he loves helping¹⁴ others, telling them all about campus life and the groups in which they can be involved. That way they can get the most out of their time at UCSD, he adds.

Getting the most out of life is exactly what brought 32 year-old Olesia Altynbaeva to UCSD. Altynbaeva is from Nizhnevartovsk, in Eastern Russia. She earned her undergraduate degree at the opposite end of the country. She received her degree from the Saint¹⁵ Petersburg State Chemical Pharmaceutical¹⁶ Academy¹⁷ in 2011.

Yet Altynbaeva knew she would have to travel even further to learn and experience everything she felt the world had to offer her. So she began looking for schools where she could earn a graduate degree in business administration¹⁸. California’s many technology companies and mild weather led to her to decide to continue her education overseas. She began attending UCSD in 2017.

UCSD’s Rady School of Management chose Altynbaeva for a fellowship¹⁹, meaning the school agreed to pay the full cost of her education. So unlike Luyanda Mdanda, she does not have to be as concerned about money and has more free time.

But from the beginning, she says, she had to face a different kind of issue: having many more things to do than she has time for.

“The university gives you so many nice opportunities. They organize different social events … as well as workshops where you can learn something more in addition to your program. … So for me it was a challenge to … find time for each activity that I really enjoy … and … stay on track with my MBA program.”

It has taken Altynbaeva time, but she says that she has been able to organize her time better. She says the important thing has been to decide which activities are the most helpful for her education and career, and which are the most fun. Then she can decide the best uses of her time.

Altynbaeva really likes the activities that relate to her field of study. For example, she has helped organize a student group, called the Design Innovation²⁰ Club, which is interested in design-based thinking.

Also, she says she loves San Diego’s warm weather, much more than the cold weather of the part of Russia called Siberia, where she grew up. So, like many UCSD students, she spends much of her free time doing outdoor activities, like swimming.

Both Olesia Altynbaeva and Luyanda Mdanda agree that, in the end, it does not really matter what one’s interests are. For them, life as an international student in the United States means always having something worth doing.

I’m Pete Musto. And I’m Dorothy Gundy.

Words in This Story

surfing – n. the activity or sport of riding ocean waves on a special board

undergraduate – n. describing a degree that is given to a student by a college or university usually after two to four years of study

degree – n. an official document and title that is given to someone who has successfully completed a series of classes at a college or university

cognitive – adj. of, relating to, or involving conscious mental activities, such as thinking, understanding, learning²¹, and remembering

internship – n. a position as a student or recent graduate who works for a period of time at a job in order to get experience

opportunities – n. amounts of time or situations in which something can be done

campus – n. the area and buildings around a university, college or school

challenge – n. a difficult task or problem

graduate degree – n. a degree that is given to a student by a college or university usually after one or two years of additional²² study following a four-year undergraduate degree

workshop(s) – n. a class or series of classes in which a small group of people learn the methods and skills used in doing something

1 currently   

adv.通常地，普遍地，当前

参考例句：

• Currently it is not possible to reconcile this conflicting evidence.当前还未有可能去解释这一矛盾的例证。
• Our contracts are currently under review.我们的合同正在复查。

2 undergraduate   

n.大学生，大学肆业生

参考例句：

• Mr. Stone spent his undergraduate days in Columbia University,majoring in economics.斯通先生在哥伦比亚大学度过了他四年的大学生活，主修经济学。
• During this time,they are called undergraduate students.在此期间，他们被称为大学本科生。

3 learned   

adj.有学问的，博学的；learn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He went into a rage when he learned about it.他听到这事后勃然大怒。
• In this little village,he passed for a learned man.在这个小村子里，他被视为有学问的人。

4 cognitive   

adj.认知的，认识的，有感知的

参考例句：

• As children grow older,their cognitive processes become sharper.孩子们越长越大，他们的认知过程变得更为敏锐。
• The cognitive psychologist is like the tinker who wants to know how a clock works.认知心理学者倒很像一个需要通晓钟表如何运转的钟表修理匠。

5 psychology   

n.心理，心理学，心理状态

参考例句：

• She has a background in child psychology.她受过儿童心理学的教育。
• He studied philosophy and psychology at Cambridge.他在剑桥大学学习哲学和心理学。

6 works   

n.作品，著作；工厂，活动部件，机件

参考例句：

• We expect writers to produce more and better works.我们期望作家们写出更多更好的作品。
• The novel is regarded as one of the classic works.这篇小说被公认为是最优秀的作品之一。

7 recalls   

回忆起( recall的第三人称单数 )； 使想起； 使想到； 勾起

参考例句：

• The sight recalls the days of childhood to me. 那情景使我想起了童年。
• Moreover, extensive use of voluntary recalls can undercut agency accountability. 此外，大量利用自愿撤回会削弱行政机关的责任心。

8 internship   

n.实习医师，实习医师期

参考例句：

• an internship at a television station 在电视台的实习期
• a summer internship with a small stipend 薪水微薄的暑期实习

9 campus   

n.大学校园，学校校园；大学　

参考例句：

• They spoke of the old days on the campus.他们谈起昔日的校园生活。
• The campus covers an area of twenty square kilometres.这个校园占地二十平方公里。

10 necessarily   

adv.必要地，必需地；必定地，必然地

参考例句：

• More work does not necessarily call for more men.增加工作量不一定就要增添人员。
• A voter must necessarily be no younger than eighteen.选民必须在18岁以上。

11 corporation   

n.公司，企业&n.社团，团体

参考例句：

• The company has gone into partnership with Swiss Bank Corporation. 这家公司已经和瑞士银行公司建立合作关系。
• The inflation did the corporation up. 通货膨胀使这个公司破产了。

12 resident   

a.居住的，居留的；住校的，住院的

参考例句：

• I've been resident in this place for five years. 我已经在这个地方住了五年。
• They engaged a resident tutor. 他们聘用了一名住家的家庭教师。

13 housing   

n.房屋，住宅；住房建筑；外壳，外罩

参考例句：

• Do you think our housing sales will turn around during this year?你认为今年我们的住宅销路会好转吗？
• The housing sales have been turning down since the summer.入夏以来，房屋的销售量日趋减少。

14 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

15 saint   

n.圣徒；基督教徒；vt.成为圣徒，把...视为圣徒

参考例句：

• He was made a saint.他被封为圣人。
• The saint had a lowly heart.圣人有谦诚之心。

16 pharmaceutical   

adj.药学的，药物的；药用的，药剂师的

参考例句：

• She has donated money to establish a pharmaceutical laboratory.她捐款成立了一个药剂实验室。
• We are engaged in a legal tussle with a large pharmaceutical company.我们正同一家大制药公司闹法律纠纷。

17 academy   

n.(高等)专科院校；学术社团，协会，研究院

参考例句：

• This is an academy of music.这是一所音乐专科学院。
• I visited Chinese Academy of Sciences yesterday.我昨天去访问了中国科学院。

18 administration   

n.经营，管理；行政，行政机关，管理部门

参考例句：

• Who is in charge of the administration of your company?你们公司的行政工作由谁负责？
• The teachers are responsible to the school administration.教师向学校行政负责。

19 fellowship   

n.伙伴关系，团体，奖学金，研究员职位

参考例句：

• You'll lose your fellowship if you do that.你如果做那件事就会丧失研究员职位。
• It looks that they'll be admitted to the fellowship.看来他们要被吸收入会了。

20 innovation   

n.改革，革新，新观念，新方法，新发明

参考例句：

• There are all sorts of possibilities for technical innovation.技术革新的门道很多。
• An enterprise should encourage innovation.企业应鼓励创新。

21 learning   

n.学问，学识，学习；动词learn的现在分词

参考例句：

• When you are learning to ride a bicycle,you often fall off.初学骑自行车时，常会从车上掉下来。
• Learning languages isn't just a matter of remembering words.学习语言不仅仅是记些单词的事。

22 additional   

adj.添加的，额外的，另外的

参考例句：

• It is necessary to set down these additional rules.有必要制定这些补充规则。
• I think we can fit in an additional room.我想我们可以再加建一间房子。