Ladies and gentlemen, honoured guests, staff and students,

Good morning to you all!

My name is Imogen Page-Jarrett. I’m delighted to represent the international student body here at the opening ceremony today. I come from the United Kingdom where I graduated from the University of Cambridge in June. Over the next two years, I will be undertaking a master’s at Peking University’s School of Government.

I previously came here on an exchange programme from 2014 to 2015. As a result, Peking University already feels like a home to me. Many of you sitting here today have left behind your families across China and the rest of the world to come and study here. I hope that Peking University can become a second home for everyone. Regardless of where you come from, here, we are all members of the PKU family.

Every student has their own story to tell of how they got to Peking University. My dream of studying here started when I was 15 years old. Thanks to a fund set up by Tiger Woods, my high school was lucky enough to be sponsored to undertake a sports exchange programme with a school in Chongqing, China. This was an extremely eye-opening experience for a girl who grew up in a sleepy rural village and who had never left Europe before. Nine days were enough to make me curious about China, especially people’s hospitality and the fast-pace of the cities I visited. I would also like to mention that the girl who acted as my translator during my time in Chongqing is still in contact with me today. I consider her one of my best and oldest friends. Coming to China and making Chinese friends for the first time was such an amazing experience. From then on, I was determined that I would learn Chinese. It was in that moment that I knew that this country would be a part of my future.

However, if someone had told me at the age of 15 that I would later have the opportunity to participate on an exchange programme at the top university in China there is no way I would have believed them. Back then, it would have sounded like a distant fantasy, let alone studying a master’s programme. I must thank Peking University for the programmes it has established with famous institutions all over the world. Without such exchange programmes as the one set up with the University of Cambridge, I would not be standing here today. Peking University was able to shorten the distance between the UK and China. It also changed my life’s trajectory.

I gained so much from my exchange year here at Peking University. As soon as you walk onto the campus you are aware of its rich history. At the same time, the students in every classroom are engaging with the leading professors of every academic field of research. This said, life at Peking University is so much more than the knowledge gained inside the classroom. There is also a whole range of activities to take part in here, such as going to the Beautiful Time Cafe with your teacher after class to discuss topics in further detail, eating everyone’s favourite fried chicken at Kangbosi restaurant with classmates at lunchtime, listening to all kinds of talks in the lecture halls and of course the International Culture Festival held annually. The campus always has so much happening. Every member of the university strives hard for what they love the most. Peking University feels like the kind of place where any dream can come true. I wrote my Cambridge dissertation on China’s comic xiaopin performances on CCTV’s New Year Gala broadcast. I utilised a vast number of resources collected from the Peking University library and received a lot of help from my teachers and classmates here. This experience made me realise that Peking University is the best academic institution there is if you want to really understand China. I came here on an exchange programme because I was interested in China. Later, it was because of this place that I came to love China even more. This is what gave me the impetus to return and pursue a masters course here.

I hope that during my second time here at Peking University I can improve my understanding of China’s history, culture and society. After I graduate, I would like to share what I have learned with more people from the UK so they realise just how great a country China is to explore. I would like to encourage more people from the UK to travel, study and work here in the future. I also hope that our generation of young people will one day usher China’s relations with the rest of the world into a new era of international exchange and cooperation.

I am full of hope and excitement for the next two years. I am ready to work hard, to learn from my teachers, to help my classmates and progress together. Of course, I am also looking forward to hanging out with you all outside of class, whether we are on the sports field, going out for dinner or spending an evening at KTV! Let’s strive together to be the best we can be!

Finally, I wish everyone a very happy and successful first term here. Peking University, I’m back!

Thank you everyone.