From behind the desk to around the table...

I haven't talked much about my academics on here, because usually there are more interesting things for you to hear! But nonetheless, that is of course a huge part of my life here at Cambridge. Today was most definitely a highlight, though, as I found myself seated among some of the most renowned international scholars of Chinese modern issues at a conference chaired by one of my professors. I listened to six of them deliver papers and then participated (though more passively than actively) in the following discussions on each.

There was one somewhat familiar face in the crowd. It took me back to my first year of university at GW when I had an assignment for my introductory international studies class to conduct an interview of a scholar for a group project. Ours happened to be on China/Taiwan, so I looked up one of the most published and renowned China scholars in the neighborhood and made an appointment with him. I remember sitting opposite him at his desk and asking him a few questions, which must have been so basic, so simplistic to him that he had replied politely but somewhat dismissively. I had completed my assignment, so I wasn't particularly phased by this in any way. Still, I have come across his name time and time again and am always impressed with his compelling arguments. He is one of the most respected scholars in his field today.

Fast forward five years later, and I am not behind his desk but sitting next to him at a conference. Sure, he was asking profound questions in the discussions and presenting his new, cutting-edge research, and I, on the other hand, asked one not-so-profound question and scribbled down some notes, but it gave me some sort of gauge how far I've come, so to speak. I still feel as much the lowly student as ever, but perhaps in some way I am "climbing the ranks." At least I can be a bit satisfied that there is a progression in the academic world, and I'm no longer at the bottom.