China

Graduated: May 2014
Degree: M.S., Information Technology

Best memories from your Valpo days:

The best memory is having friends in Valpo! Most people in Valpo are so nice and the international students are so close to each other. We spent the American festivals together and had fun together! Knowing friends from different countries made my life so vivid.

Graduated: August 2015
Degree: M.S., Digital Media

Best memories from your Valpo days:  

The overall friendly and safe environment here, both on and off campus, is the best thing. Valparaiso is a such lovely town, my wife and I both love it. And Valparaiso University is one of the best universities in the Midwest because of its diversity in culture and the integrity in academics.

Career path:

I worked as a UI/UX designer and coordinator for a start-up in Chicago from 2015 to 2017. Since October 2017, I’ve worked as a digital media designer for Innovative Digital Services(IDS), located in Valpo.

Upcoming plans:

I am looking forward to having my next Chinese New Year in China, because I have missed ten years of that! Every year I enjoyed the celebration here at Valpo with many other students on campus, but I still miss how it is celebrated in China, so I am looking forward to it!

Graduated: December 2015
Degree: M.S., Sports Administration

Best memories from your Valpo days:  

I joined the Valpo Men’s Tennis Team in December 2014, and we got the first tennis championship in school history together. What an amazing milestone for the tennis program! I enjoyed the enriching and memorable relationships with every single player, both during training and in the match.

My days in this big family only lasted for about 2 years, but limited time cannot limit the sense of belonging to this lovely family. And I am so grateful that I could be part of it. Here, I would like to extend my thanks to all of you for your consistent and strong support, which really means a lot to me. Especially, thanks to our coaches, not only for giving me this chance but more importantly, for helping me learn and grow. I felt like it was my second home.  

To me, the most enjoyable moments were helping the players make tangible progress every day, as well as to see all their hard work being well paid off in the matches. I have to say, they are the best tennis players I have ever met. I hope they can keep up the good work, and excel in more competitions in the days to come.

Graduated: August 2015
Degree: M.S., Information Technology

Best memories from your Valpo days:

Beautiful and fun summer days! Also, I will never forget the first time I saw snow in Valpo, watching the basketball team make it to the NCAA tournament, and getting married while in Valpo. It feels like home to me even though I am in Chicago now. After traveling several places, I haven’t found anywhere nicer than Valpo. I feel grateful that I could experience life there, and hope Valpo can keep its niceness and peacefulness!

Graduated: May 2016
Degree: B.S., International Business and Communication

Best memories from your Valpo days:

Memories from my Valpo days still vividly appear in my mind. When I first arrived in Valpo all by myself, the warm welcome from the international student ambassadors and the events that VISA and the OIP put together for all the new international students are truly so valuable to my Valpo experience. This warm welcome helped me to be more involved in the community and become a confident leader.

Now I am a Principal Business Intelligence Engineer, driving the analytics transformation for cloud migration at Atlassian; I am also passionate about community building. Previously I worked at Amazon in Seattle for 6 years after I graduated from Arizona State University with a master’s degree in Business Analytics. I’ve lived in many states since Valpo, making many great friends and memories. I enjoy staying in touch with and rekindling friendships with Valpo friends! 

I’d love to answer any questions you have regarding international student life in Valpo!

Graduated: May 2014
Degree: M.A., TESOL

Best memories from your Valpo days:  

I have tremendous wonderful memories from my Valpo days. I came to Valparaiso University planning to acquire some knowledge to fulfill my passion for teaching and I left with great university learning and working experience.

VU is a place I once studied and lived and now has become part of my best memories. There I was able to grow academically and professionally. I had exciting and valuable experience presenting at the Illinois and International TESOL Conference. I remember my first practicum and how much support and guidance I had from my professors. All my professors are approachable and friendly. I remember all their names, and I believe they would remember mine as they truly care about their students. 

I also developed a lifelong friendship at VU. I have been in touch with these friends almost every day. I had friends visiting me in Vancouver as well as meeting up with some of them when I was traveling. 

I never felt lonely as I was always being cared for and supported. Lots of exciting events were organized by OIP and various student organizations on campus gave me a diverse and lively university experience. 

VU is not a research-focused university such as Harvard or MIT, but it is a place where you can extend your knowledge and get invaluable experience and most importantly always feel being supported and remembered.

Graduated: December 2015
Degree: B.A., Finance

Best memories from your Valpo days:

Valparaiso University truly is an inclusive community where professors and students are ready to listen to new ideas with open minds. We as Crusaders embrace differences, challenge each other, support each other and grow together. We tackle tough problems and spread the Valpo spirit around the world.

When I was studying at Valpo, I also worked as a peer tutor in the Academic Success Center to further develop students’ understanding of math. It was a rewarding experience not only because students did better on exams, but also because I learned efficient ways to work with someone towards common goals. Until now, I carry these lessons through every day of my life.

Graduated: December 2011
Degree: M.S. Sports Administration

Best memories from your Valpo days:

In the summer of 2011, thanks to Professor Zhimin Lin and Coach Keith Freeman, I got the opportunity to serve as team coordinator of the Valpo Women’s Basketball team China tour. We visited two cities in China, Hangzhou and Beijing. We played 3 games,1 scrimmage game against Zhejiang University of  Technology, 2 games against Zhejiang Bulls of WCBA. This trip open my eyes and led me to the later career. After the summer, I became the Valpo team manager for 2010-11 season. That really helped me both with language and culture. The opportunity to be involved with an athletic team was my dream when I came to US.

Now I am Assistant Director of basketball operation as Chinese National Men’s basketball. My team just won gold at 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta, Indonesia. Over the last four years, I have been associated with the top level of Chinese Basketball and the NBA.

Without the experience of my Valpo Days, none of this would have happened!

Graduated: May 2016
Degree: M.A., TESOL

Best memories from your Valpo days:  

The best memory in Valpo to me is the diverse cultural campus setting. First, compared to the traditional Chinese cultural background, I experienced the constant interactions with English professors. Second, under the same classroom roof, I enjoyed the diversity of cultures from different countries, including Arabic, South Korean, American, Canadian and Chinese.

The best point learned from the diversities is to have an open sight and mind to see the differences between the foreign cultures and mother-tongue culture. Beyond only knowledge learning, the developing awareness of diverse cultures deepened my experience of studying at Valparaiso University.

Career path since Valpo:  

After I came back to China in 2017, I held a university English teaching position at the International Cooperation and Exchange College, Xi’an International University, Shaanxi Province, from August 2018 until December 2023. Now, I work as an English teacher in the Australian Education Management Group, which serves global educational cooperation with about 20 universities in China and about 20 universities around the globe. I am in the Xi’an Architecture and Technology University branch and teach Year 1 and Year 2 students who are majoring in Construction Management, Building Electricity Intelligence, Computer Science and Technology, etc. in the 2+2 Program. 

Graduated: August 2014
Degree: MBA

Best memories from your Valpo days:

It has been several years since I left the USA and the most unforgettable things remain in my memories of Valpo: laughing with my dear friends who came from different background and nations to Valpo and learning a lot not only from the classes but also from nice people I met. I really appreciated that the friendships could be long-lasting. During the year of professional life I had in the US, I worked with excellent people who taught me skills and showed their kindness. I am lucky to have all the memories and hope that these sweet memories take us all further.

Where are you now:

I worked IPO of SMEs, in venture capital, and now, I am in a fishery Industry. The company was founded in 2016 as the 1st official national fishery base.

Degree: M.S. Information Technology and Computing

Best memories from my Valpo days:  

The time when I went to Porter County Fair with my friends and had so much fun. I hadn’t been to any county or state fairs since then but I absolutely can be up for going to one anytime.

How studying at Valpo prepared me:

Many of the major courses helped better orientate my career path. I had good hands-on experiences from doing academic projects in data mining and software programming. My internship at a local American start-up company here in Valparaiso was also a great learning and practicing journey to be professional. All these together created a good focus when looking for the position that could better fit my skillset.

Recent travels:

I travelled back to my home country China in early May 2021 amid the pandemic. It was definitely not easy but everything went smoothly especially when getting tested and staying in a 14-day quarantine after landing.