Vivien Ma & Evelyn Ma

Vivien Ma and twin sister Evelyn have both enrolled for BBA studies at the OUHK. Before her graduation in 2008, Vivien’s good grades in her honours degree in accounting have earned her a position of ‘Associate – Audit and Assurance’ in PricewaterhouseCoopers. Vivien found her full-time studies at the OUHK very fulfilling and the teachers caring. Apart from knowledge gained from the courses, she also learnt about the importance of personal integrity and built up social and communication skills. Evelyn now works as a Business Executive at the Publications Department of the Trade Development Council and has planned to finish her studies in 2010. She said the OUHK’s distance learning study mode gave her the flexibility to balance her career aspirations and academic studies. Evelyn is delighted that what she learnt has been applicable in the work place.

Martin

OUHK translation student Martin Merz has been asked by publisher Penguin to translate a novel of Chinese writer Wang Gang into English. A Hong Kong-based Australian businessman, Martin majored in Chinese at university and had translated magazine articles when he was a translator in Taiwan. He said he might not have the confidence to translate a novel if he had not taken up part-time studies for an MA in Applied Translation at the OUHK, which allowed him to learn from very knowledgeable and experienced translators.

Andrew Chiu

At 22 years of age, OUHK graduate Andrew Chiu is the youngest in the latest cohort of elected District Councillors. Andrew joined the University after Secondary Six and was among the first batch of graduates of the University’s full-time social sciences degree programme last year. He was the Founding Deputy Chair of the Society of Social Sciences (Full-time programme), through which he learnt a lot about how to deploy resources in organizing activities. He said what he treasured most was the strong bond he had developed with several teachers. Andrew is an accredited community mediator and is studying part-time for a Master of Public Administration at Baptist University.

Susanna Li

Susanna Li has determined to become an auditor since her late teens. But she had to overcome more obstacles than others to make her dream come true. Coming from a poor family, she started working in a factory at 14 and was five years older than classmates when she finished secondary school and started her secretarial course. Upon graduation she worked as a bookkeeper and has since stayed in the field. After spending eight years to get a BBA in Accounting (Hons) degree from the OUHK in 2001, Susanna could finally proceed to work towards her goal. The mother of two passed the final exams and qualified as a Certified Public Accountant in 2007, at the age of 52. Her eldest son – who obtained a first class honours degree at the Baptist University – is now working towards a BBA at the OUHK through distance learning, while her younger son is studying at the Chinese University to become a doctor.

Gary Chan

Gary Chan has wished to become a physical education teacher since childhood. He worked as a primary school teaching assistant after F.7, but realized that he needed a degree to become a qualified teacher. So he enrolled at the OUHK and tried to finish his degree studies in three and a half years. But his salary was so meagre that without the bursaries from the OUHK, he would have given up. Gary then went on to study for a Postgraduate Diploma in Education at the Hong Kong Institute of Education. He is now teaching physical education, mathematics and computing in a primary school.

Pinky Wong

Among the first batch of female police officers to carry firearms, Pinky Wong has served in the Special Duties Squad, Task Force, Police Tactical Unit and Patrol Sub-unit. With her physically demanding work and night shifts, Pinky would not have been able to get a degree had it not been for the OUHK’s flexible mode of study. She obtained a Diploma in Law Enforcement and Security Management in 2003 and a Bachelor’s degree in General Studies in 2007. Studies have made Pinky a more confident person; she now finds it easier to handle difficulties at work. Pinky also volunteered to provide counseling for colleagues in the police as a Carelink Cadre.