By student of Sichuan Agricultural University
Dean of the School of Journalism and Information Communication at Huazhong University of Science and Technology (HUST) delivered a speech to the freshmen of the journalism major at the opening ceremony, in which he mentioned Zhang Xuefeng, a teacher who has recently become a hit on the Internet.
After this year's college entrance examination, Zhang, like many other teachers in high schools and colleges, provided candidates with suggestions on live broadcasting. But what made him stand out is that his suggestions to each candidate are very customized, with a very sharp and extremely realistic tongue.
According to Zhang, one shouldn't even think about finding a job at a big Internet company without a Diploma from Project 211 (a Chinese project of developing comprehensive universities and colleges, which, to some extent, symbolizes the quality of the universities and students).
"I'm going to beat my son's arse off if he wants to study journalism (in China)," he also said.
As an online tutor who focuses on practical benefits, Zhang cares nothing less than helping students find satisfying jobs and living a stable life. His words, however, are very harsh in the ears of many who have already stepped into the university or even the society, because he talks down their past choices and future paths to nothing, and also reveals the cruel reality.
In the dean's speech, he said in response to Zhang's view, "Going to university is not only about finding jobs. If it is that way, in today's highly informationized society, even without going to university people can still achieve this goal."
Many people working on journalism refuted Zhang's views before, thinking that he was too one-sided and shallow, and maliciously smeared the journalism major. At the same time, there are students of this major who agree with his views, and more are the parents of the candidates who regard his words as the Bible.
As we can see, the biggest conflict that lies in front of the young generation is the conflict between a sure future and dream chasing.
In East Asian countries, especially in China, voluntary application after the college entrance examination is regarded as an extremely important step in determining the direction of life, and everyone is afraid that their future will collapse if any mistake occurs.
Students face not only the choice between majors, but also the dilemma of huge income differences, overflow in the talent market, and, probably, the only child supporting the whole family under the influence of the abolished one-child policy.
From this point of view, Zhang is just starting from an ordinary student who has studied hard for many years, hoping to live a better life in line with his efforts. Scholars, nevertheless, talk the talk from the academic angle, which includes idealistic elements. In their eyes, Zhang is no more than a "cynic". Life also has many turning points in store for you, all of which depend on both how hard you work and how lucky you are.
Though experienced, Zhang can never ensure a student's whole future life with his words. The final decision is still in their own hands.
As far as I can see, the trial and error cost lies not only in whether you are in a well-established family, but also in how much you'd like to sacrifice the time, the pressure, and the fierce competition……every least expected incident may run over you and crush you down.
It's still ruthless to talk about dreams without mentioning their cost. However, a person who is willing to go through mature deliberation and take advice prudently, always deserves good results.
The views do not necessarily reflect those of DotDotNews.
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