My Rewarding Experience in Harvard Summer Research Program

Micky Chan Chi Yee, final year student of Computer Engineering Program, was one of the first participants of the HKUST-Harvard Undergraduate Summer Exchange Research Program, which was pilot run in summer 2014. A total of eight students (four from each university) spent one month each at HKUST and Harvard to work on joint research projects on visible light communication. He shared his rewarding experience in the program.

“I applied for this program because I believed it is a great opportunity for me to learn about cutting-edge technology and make new friends. I feel fortunate to be selected because I didn’t expect to have the chance with many smart students in the School. I am not very good at getting good grades in my studies, but I love working in group projects. I don’t like to study on something first and then work on it. Instead, I like to get started to work and from there I learn. That’s my motivation. Doing research is one of my interests, because I get to explore some latest technologies. I used to apply some programming for fun, such as database and indoor localization. So this program which offered me the chance to work in a multi-cultural team on a research project appeals to me a lot.

“In this two-month program, we first spent one month in Hong Kong and then one month in United States. There were two projects in this program, namely door lock and mining, and I worked on the mining project. While we were in Hong Kong, we mainly focused on learning design process and brainstorming. Other than work, we also had some leisure time and travelled around. After spending one month in Hong Kong, we arrived in United States on 2 July. At Harvard, we mainly worked on prototype. We did a lot of testing and debugging. We encountered a lot of failure and we got stuck on technical problems quite often. When we came across this, we would have a cup of coffee, discuss and start over to try again. I enjoy this learning process and I really love working in a team! During weekend, we always go out. We travelled around Boston and we even went to New York by a 4-hour bus ride. We visited many places in New York, like Brooklyn Bridge, China Town, Statue of Liberty, and Top of the Rock.

“After this summer research program, I really learned a lot from other students, especially one thing – passion. In these two months, I saw that they have passion in everything. They are enthusiastic about everything and they are not afraid of new things. Actually our research project is much more suitable for electronic engineering students, but most of the Harvard students came from mechanical engineering and they just have basic knowledge of electronics. I saw that they put a lot of time on doing research, learning about circuit, and testing. They failed many times, but they didn’t give up learning and studying. Finally we accomplished two amazing projects.

“Doing great things is not about how smart you are, it is about not giving up at last. A lot of people achieved great success in their own field in this world, like Steve Jobs, Michael Jackson. Everyone comes across failure in their life. Nevertheless, failure is not the end, it is just a process. People always say life is like gambling and we only win or lose. I highly doubt it. I think life is just like the process of working on projects. Even though you may fail, you still learn something which you can make use of later. The key point is that you have to get involved. Talent is an important element, but it is not the most important thing. We also need execution, organization, teamwork and people skills. If one element is missing, the whole thing can be destroyed. Each of us has our own limitation, so we need to work with other people. When people work together, synergy can be created and the world will be better off. I believe that not only engineers can build a better world, everyone can. “I really want to thank all the people involved in this summer research program. I learned a lot from all of them – the staff, students and professors. As I said, I don’t get outstanding grades in my studies, but I will be a good engineer! Because I believe that I am one of the parts in the world, I can use my ability to build this world, and even change the world! Although I am still young, my passion and motivation will lead me to the place where I can devote myself to the world!”