"I will use my third year abroad to improve my Chinese"

Vu Tran was born in Vietnam and moved to Singapore at the age of fifteen. He introduces himself as “a social sciences person”, so when he started looking into undergraduate studies outside Singapore he saw Sciences Po as the perfect fit. Vu Tran talked to us about his life on the Sciences Po campus in Le Havre.

Can you tell us a little about your life on the Normandy Coast? What is it like to study in Le Havre?

If you are interested in history, which is my case, there are a lot of sites to visit in the region. And there are many events and activities to take part in on campus, all organised by students. For example, the Bureau des Arts (BdA) organises concerts such as Diwali Night or BdA Night. Students put on a musical production every year. There are also many clubs, like the art club, hip-hop dance, K-pop dance and sports clubs. This year I joined the badminton club, which was launched only recently and is already very popular.

I guess that you spent time with a Welcome Family when you arrived in Le Havre. Can you tell us about this period?

My Welcome Family showed me around, took me to visit various sites in Normandy including les Jardins Suspendus. They also invited me to their grandson’s birthday party, to family dinners and, as they were in a theatre club, they offered to take me to some performances. Even though the wife of the family spoke good English, we decided to speak French so I could be directly immersed in the language.

In two months’ time, you are leaving Le Havre for Taiwan to complete your third undergraduate year abroad. Why Taiwan?

I will study at National Taiwan University. I started to learn Chinese during my second year at Sciences Po and I realised that there are many similarities with the Vietnamese language. I decided to take advantage of my third year abroad to improve my level in Chinese.

And what are your plans after Taiwan?

I will maybe come back to France and pursue my graduate studies at Sciences Po on the Paris campus. I am particularly interested in the Master’s degree in International Security at the School of International Affairs. I also would like to come back to France to improve my level in French. I have been learning French for two years now, and I know that an additional year in France would be invaluable if I want to really master the language.

And eventually, I want to live the Parisian experience. I am a bit fascinated by Paris, its culture and lifestyle, Montmartre and that kind of place… I can’t really explain why, but I am attracted by Paris.