On May 30th, all of the fifth-grade students attended a wonderful series of lectures presented by professionals who shared information about their careers and lives. This was the second part of our career day event.

During the first part of the event, the students visited different places of work last Thursday. 5(1) went the Tongji Architectural Design Group labs and learned a lot about new technologies. 5(2) students learned more about TV show programming at the iQIYI studio. 5(3) and 5(6) studied various scientific research methods at the Institute of Plant Physiology & Ecology CAS. 5(4) paid a visit to the former residence of Sun-Yat-sen to learn about this politician’s life. Meanwhile, 5(7) students tried to become real architects in a design studio by designing ideal schools, homes, and hotels. These in-person interactions with professionals helped the fifth graders gain a deep understanding of what those careers entail.

In the Career Day lectures, the four speakers were all experts from different fields. First, Mr. Zheng Jun, a computer fraud expert, introduced how they employ AI as an anti-fraud measure in E-business. He spoke about the hard work needed to satisfy the high demand of network transaction safety control.

Ms. Wu Yi talked about the qualities of a successful entrepreneur and how students need to prepare if they would like to start a project or a business. She introduced the idea of a “social entrepreneur,” one who establishes an enterprise with the aim of solving social problems or effecting social change. Students realized that they were not just entrepreneurs, they were also business people seeking to make a difference in the world.

In Mr. Jimmy Yu’s presentation, students developed a greater understanding of what people can do through the internet. Fortunately, they had a preliminary understanding of how E-commerce worked and the future of E-commence in China due to the lecture given by Mr. Yu. In the Q&A portion, students asked Mr. Yu a variety of questions they were interested in.

Finally, Mr. Shen Wei Bo delivered a speech on supply chain management. The fifth graders, and even some of the teachers, were so surprised to learn about the great journey raw ingredients travel to become McDonald’s hamburgers and French fries.

The speeches were short and concise but helped give students a more concrete idea of real careers they could pursue. Through these presentations, the fifth graders learned a lot about the Internet, supply chain, entrepreneurship, and many other things regarding careers. They realized that no matter what job they choose, it will always require time and devotion. After this two-week event, students began to ponder about their own future occupations. Fortunately, the future's not set in stone yet for these students. We hope every student follows their heart and pursues their dream career.

（Written by Lily Yao       Pictures by Lily Yao）