Betty Chuang

Hello, I'm Betty from Taiwan, and I'm currently studying MA Applied Translation Studies. I’ve always had a deep interest in languages and cross-cultural communication. In my final year of undergraduate studies, I realised that I wanted to build a career that would allow me to bridge language and cultural gaps, which led me to focus on translation studies.

One of the most transformative experiences I’ve had was spending four months as an exchange student in Busan, South Korea. Living in a new country, adapting to a different culture, and studying in another language were both challenging and rewarding.

The reputation of the programme was one of the reasons I chose Leeds. When people think of translation studies in the UK, the University of Leeds is one of the universities that comes to mind. With the help of technology, the translation process can be much more efficient today, and the university places strong emphasis on translation technology, such as the use of CAT tools and machine translation systems. I also have the chance to explore a range of modules, such as Introduction to Interpreting Skills, Introduction to Screen Translation, and Introduction to Dubbing and Voice Over, which is the course I'm most interested in.

My experience at Leeds is more than just studying and learning professional skills. Throughout the semester, the university provides a wide variety of activities for you to join. During orientation week, there is a Global Café every day. It’s a great opportunity for students to meet new people and make friends. I personally went there five times and met people from all over the world. Getting to chat with people from different cultural backgrounds was the most interesting part for me.

To help you get to know the university and the city better, you can sign up for a campus tour and a city chase activity when you first get to Leeds. Through the campus tour, you get a basic sense of this huge campus. While joining the tour, I learned where my classes would be and where I could go for lunch between classes. You’ll pick up a lot of useful information through the tour! As for the city chase, you’ll get a mission sheet asking you to take pictures and answer questions about the city. The missions might involve a building, a statue, or any iconic place. While completing the tasks, you also get to know the city better.

Besides activities on campus, you can also sign up for one-day trips to explore different towns without worrying about transport. These trips usually take place on Saturdays, and the destinations range from vibrant cities to beautiful natural environments. Since I love spending time in nature, I particularly enjoyed the hiking trip in the Lake District and the one in Llandudno.

Leeds also has excellent amenities.

Landing in a new country and an unfamiliar environment can be terrifying, but I’m glad that the people I’ve met in Leeds have all been really nice and, most importantly, the city is very convenient to live in. You can find all kinds of international restaurants in the city – from Japanese, Korean and Chinese to Indian cuisines – so you’ll never get tired of the food choices here. In the city centre, you have multiple options for supermarkets, from local to international ones, so it’s easy to get what you need. The city also has many places for entertainment, including cinemas, theatres, skating rinks and more. I really enjoy living and studying here in Leeds.

Please feel free to get in touch with me if you have any questions via Unibuddy, or email me at [email protected].