The subject of today's "We're Sino-German" interview is Zhu Mengqi from Sino-German Branding Department's Visual Communication Design (Sino-German 2+2 Dual Degree) Class 19. The University of Melbourne (QS World University Ranking 33), including six internationally renowned institutions.
"I want to be able to apply what I've learned to reality."Zhu Mengqi summarized the rules she applied to her studies that worked best for her."It's important to find your own interests in your studies and talk to your professors more during your studies; they will be able to make suggestions to help develop your program from a professional perspective."Mengqi Zhu has been steadily moving forward, refining herself through experience and practice.
Enriching the "spiritual soil
Thanks to her study abroad experience in the second half of college, Zhu Mengqi believes she has gained more information about art around the world.This helps her to be exposed to people from different cultures and art exhibitions, and constantly replenish her "think tank".Mengqi Zhu has built a "think tank" in her head that contains multidimensional thinking, and she updates and draws on the content from time to time. By constantly applying it to her courses, she is often able to gain new perspectives on issues and explore more uncharted territory.
Expand your "folder"
The use of free time outside of class is also an avenue for Zhu Mengqi to improve herself."There are very many art events and museums to explore in Hamburg, and the professors take us on field trips to some very interesting exhibitions during the classes."Last year, Zhu Mengqi went to Documenta fifteen with Prof. Claus Mewes, and this experience inspired her to follow up her curatorial studies. Zhu Mengqi exclaims."Europe is rich in art and you can use weekends and holidays to travel around and visit fine art museums, there are very many masterpieces that are well worth seeing."
Find a "safe house" of interest
When applying to her preferred institutions, she found the learning model of the Sino-German Brand School to be very beneficial, and the four years of intensive training in English language skills were also very helpful in the interview part of the application. In terms of portfolio, Zhu Mengqi said that generally speaking, it is difficult to balance schoolwork and portfolio production.However, the choice of topics in the courses at the German Brand University of Applied Sciences is relatively free, and in many cases you can choose a topic of your interest to study.Thanks to this, the direction of her portfolio research could be put into the course for in-depth study. In the Design Thinking & Sustainability course, Zhu Mengqi chose to work on portfolio-related content, and the professor provided her with very interesting and relevant case studies and sustainable research methods in the class, which extended her portfolio. Her relevant case studies in the interview were also approved by the examiner.
Entering the real "curatorial battlefield"
During the second two years of study in Germany, it is worth mentioning that Zhu Mengqi was responsible for the photography exhibition of filial piety and German culture and the exhibition "50+50: 50 years of diplomatic relations between Germany and China", an exhibition of brand design and cultural exchange between young people from Germany and China.These two experiences gave her hands-on curatorial experience and broadened her international professional perspective. During the curatorial process, Zhu Mengqi felt that her studies in Germany gave her easier access to international art information and helped her to build a cross-cultural buffer during her graduate studies. Studying in a cross-cultural environment often stimulates diverse inspirations, which in many cases are valuable additions to her projects. This rich curatorial experience has not only enhanced her cross-cultural communication skills, but has also helped her later in her education. In the curatorial process, Zhu Mengqi put some methods and models into practical application, which was supported and encouraged by her teachers. Such practical opportunities are hard to come by in China. These two internship experiences became a bright spot in her resume and provided her with strong support for her interdisciplinary application to the graduate level in the UK.
Mengqi Zhu provided some valuable advice for students to choose their preferred college.In her opinion, when choosing a target institution, it is important to focus on the direction of each school and the school's resources. Even if the name of each school is the same, the specific content of the course will have a different emphasis; secondly, you can see if the school has cooperation with some art institutions or companies that can provide internship opportunities.
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