Many outstanding students graduate from SUIS Gubei each year, and this year is no exception. Here, we have specially interviewed outstanding graduates: Harold Wang. We asked him to share his own experiences and ideas with you.
协和古北每年都会涌现一批学有所成又各有所长的优秀毕业生，今年亦不例外。为了深入了解他们，本期我们特地邀请了优秀毕业生：Harold Wang，与大家分享他的独特经历和宝贵经验。
Harold Wang
Motto: What can I say?
★ Admitted universities ★
University of Oxford, London School of Economics and Political Science, University College London
★ Awards ★
Captain of Shanghai Youth Ice Hockey Team (U18)
National 2nd Place in Chinese Secondary School Ice Hockey Tournament representing the Team of Shanghai, individual award as National Best Defender, Dec 2020
TOEFL 119ibt, ACT 36
Stanford Summer Humanities Institute Course, Pioneer Research Program
National Champion, Impromptu, High School Division, TOC Winter Invitational, Feb 2023; National 3rd Best Speaker in British Parliamentary Debate, High School Division, TOC Halloween Cup, Oct 2022
USAD 2023: the 7th Place, National Overall Team Award (as Captain); National Individual Event Award-Essay: Gold; Social Science: Silver; Top Scorer by Team
National Gold Award in the 2022 BioOlympiad Initiative USA-China as top 10% of all participants; Global Gold in the British Biology Olympiad 2022 as top 5% of all participants
Conrad Challenge China 2022-2023: Best Innovation Award in China Finals, Ocean issues & Threats (as Captain of Team SeaCleaner)
★ 录取大学 ★
牛津大学，伦敦政治与经济学院，伦敦大学学院
★ 获奖情况 ★
上海市U18冰球队队长
2020全国学校冰雪运动竞赛中国中学生冰球锦标赛（U14组别）亚军，以副队长身份荣获全国最佳后卫
托福119，ACT 36
斯坦福人文夏校，Pioneer Academics夏校
TOC即兴演讲比赛全国第一，TOC British Parliamentary (BP) Debate全国第三辩手
USAD学术十项全能社会科学（历史）金牌，经济学金牌，写作金牌，团队全国第七（以队长身份）
美国生物奥赛（USABO）与英国生物奥赛（BBO）金牌
康莱德创新挑战赛全国轮Best Innovation Award（队长）
QUESTION：Your most memorable stories or moments at SUIS Gubei.
Harold：I have had many memorable moments at SUIS Gubei, including my Global Perspectives individual project, the TOK exhibition, and staying up until midnight to research for my Extended Essay… The list goes on. I especially cherish memories from participating in ice hockey competitions representing the school. I rigorously maintained my schedule, training for over 20 hours every week despite the heavy workload I had to face in my IB studies. During every practice session, I pushed myself to the extreme, fighting through tiredness and injuries. These memories will be cherished forever.
Have you overcome any challenges in your school life that you are proud of?
Harold：Stepping off the rink at 0:30 am, I start writing my history essay on the drive home. At 2:00, I drift off into my dreams, only to wake up at 6:30, grab an espresso, and rush off to school. Just another day for me playing ice hockey—ten years of passion burns bright even in the toughest of conditions. This reflects a significant challenge that I faced, balancing my passion for ice hockey with my academic learning. Proper time management was essential for me to be able to maintain both simultaneously.
QUESTION：Describe your thought process when making decision on your destination university. How did you decide which one to go for?
Harold：The process of selecting universities fell into two major criteria: the study of history, and the presence of a strong ice hockey community. In the universities that admitted me, Oxford stood out as the obvious choice. The most striking thing about History at Oxford is its extraordinary range and the enormous amount of choice. There are over 150 academic historians in the faculty, offering undergraduates more than 100 different options, which deeply engage my diverse interests.
QUESTION：What advice would you like to give to our lower grade students on the preparation of future study?
Harold：I advise following the motto “Dream Big, Set Goals, Take Action”, as explained below.
- Dream Big: This involves outlining your future major, the universities you are aiming for, and even potential future career paths. Aspirations are there to motivate you on your journey to college and beyond. Don’t be deterred by negative comments from the outside world. Of course, one also needs to be realistic—the key is to find a balance between pragmatic considerations and chasing your dreams.
- Set Goals: A well-planned set of short-term and long-term goals can play an instrumental role in supporting your academic studies. This should be highly prioritized once you understand what you are aiming for.
- Take Action: Strive to achieve the goals you have set for yourself. It’s okay to fail at some—reconsider the goals and their difficulty as well as the effort you put into this endeavor, and reorganize your plans accordingly.
In addition, one should also balance academic activities with extracurriculars, such as sporting or artistic talents.
问：在协和古北就读期间，你最为难忘的经历是什么？
Harold：在协和古北度过的时光充实而难忘，期间我参与了全球视野个人项目、TOK展览，以及深入至午夜时分的扩展论文研究等诸多活动。尤其值得一提的是，我代表学校参加冰球比赛的经历，那段时光对我而言意义非凡。在应对IB学习的繁重任务之余，我严格遵循个人日程安排，每周坚持冰球训练20余小时。每一次训练，我都竭尽所能，挑战自我极限，与疲劳和伤病抗争。这些宝贵的记忆将永远铭刻在我的心中。
问：求学过程中你有遇到过什么挑战吗？你如何克服它的？
Harold：在凌晨00:30我走出冰场，在开车回家的路上开始写我的历史学科论文。凌晨02:00，我迷迷糊糊地进入梦乡，直至清晨06:30醒来。我饮喝了一杯浓缩咖啡，随即赶往学校。日复一日，我的生活交织着冰球训练与学术学习，尽管面临着重重困难，但我对冰球的热情始终如一。然而，如何在热爱冰球的同时，兼顾我的学术追求，成为了我面临的一大挑战。为此，我深知合理的时间管理对于保持两者之间的平衡至关重要。
问：描述一下你选择目标大学时的思考过程。你又是如何决定最终去往哪一所院校的？
Harold：在选择大学的过程中，有两个核心标准起到了决定性的作用：学校在历史这一学科中的学术底蕴，和冰球运动的存在感。经过综合考量，牛津大学成为了我心目中的理想选择。牛津历史学院之所以备受瞩目，在于其宽广的研究领域和丰富的课程选择。学院汇聚了超过150名专业的学术历史学家，为本科生提供了超过100种不同的学术路径，这完全符合我多元化的学术兴趣。
问：你对我们低年级的学生在学业方面有什么建议？
Harold：我建议遵循座右铭“梦想远大，设定目标，采取行动”，具体如下所述。
- 梦想远大：这涉及到你未来的专业领域、目标大学，甚至是潜在的职业生涯。远大的抱负能够激励您在大学及以后的人生道路上不断前行。尽管外界可能会有负面评论，但请不要因此气馁。当然，现实的态度同样重要——关键是要在务实的考量与追逐梦想之间寻找恰当的平衡。
- 设定目标：一套精心策划的短期和长期目标对于支持你的学术学习至关重要。一旦明确了自己的目标，就应该将其视为重中之重。
- 采取行动：这意味着你需要着手实现为自己设定的目标。在某些方面遭遇失败是可以接受的——此时，你需要重新审视目标及其难度，评估你为达成目标所付出的努力，并据此调整计划。
此外，还需要在学术活动与课外活动之间保持平衡，例如参与体育或艺术等活动以丰富个人才能。
