2024 in Review

1. Back home in China

This year I finished my undergrad. After a few small detours I made it through the defense, picked up an Outstanding Thesis award, said a reasonably complete goodbye to my teachers and classmates, and went on a graduation trip with oo. The green years on campus are over. We were all back at the same crossroads life puts you at: get a job, or keep studying. Post-pandemic, the job market was just as bad at home as it was abroad — most of my classmates didn't land anything they actually wanted.

Looking back, I'm pretty satisfied with how I spent college. I joined competitions, made good friends, met a mentor who shaped how I think, and did a few internships I genuinely got something out of. Every one of those experiences taught me something — especially the failed attempts, which clarified what I actually wanted more than the wins did.

In hindsight, college went too fast. There are regrets — I should have figured out my direction earlier, maybe joined more student clubs. But that's how it works: you only understand yourself by moving forward.

2. Going abroad

Early August I boarded a flight to Britain with a friend from the same school I'd met online. A jumble of feelings, but mostly novelty and excitement. Stepping off the plane I felt the wind first — that distinct Edinburgh airport smell — then took the bus to a little university town. Everything was beautiful. I thought to myself: I came to the right place. By the sea, sea breeze, people living in a relaxed way around me, and I started to settle in too. Of course — quick reminder to myself — I'm here to study, not to sightsee, haha.

With my broken English I stumbled through the language program, then moved to a different dorm with an even better view, haha. Then real coursework began. There was pressure — watching the career-switchers grind in the library every day was a lot — but I had my own direction. I picked up a remote job, because I learn faster from real projects, and from then on it was classes plus work. I also went to a few church events to get a feel for the local culture.

On the academic side, four courses a semester, each with 2-3 assignments. The workload felt slightly heavier than undergrad, but overall manageable. Exams were on the easier end of medium — no scope sheet (sob), all comprehension, no memorization. That style pushed me to focus on actually applying what I learned instead of just memorizing it.

3. About me

Having gotten used to being on my own during undergrad, I was OK after the move. I really enjoy spending time with computers — otherwise I wouldn't have studied CS, haha — and entertaining myself is genuinely fun. I also picked up a new hobby: drawing. Well, not new, I'd done it on and off for years and never stuck with it. Drawing and writing code feel similar to me — both are creative work, both require patience and focus, both pay you back with that sense of "I made this."

My 2025 plan splits into two tracks:

• Career:
  • Deepen technical skills, especially system design and architecture.
  • Build up project experience and a real portfolio.
  • Improve spoken English.
• Personal:
  • Keep drawing, finish at least one piece a week.
  • Build a reading habit, finish one technical book a month.
  • Stay active, get in better shape.
  • Show up to more social things, widen the circle.

4. Looking ahead

Standing at a new starting line, I'm excited to write my own story in a foreign country. The road in tech doesn't end, but it has no ceiling either. I hope a year from now I've made real leaps — both in the craft and as a person — and that I've kept the fire on the way to whatever I'm chasing.

Looking back at 2024, I'm grateful for everyone I met and everything I went through. Onward into 2025, with the dream and the courage to keep moving.