Raiyan Sohail

Even since before high school, I was set on pursuing an engineering degree relating to computer science. I've always enjoyed the sense of thrill and accomplishment that programming provided: endlessly persisting through countless different and difficult problems, while having the freedom and creativity to build your own unique solution. HKUST’s intense academic curriculum was the perfect outlet for me to apply this problem-solving drive, both in my courses and beyond.

What drew me most towards HKUST specifically, other than its prestigious academic status in engineering & business along with generous financial aid, was the diverse array of new experiences and relationships I would gain. By moving to an entirely different and international city alone, I could push myself completely out of my comfort zone while having the opportunity to meet, connect, and learn from countless new activities and meet people from all sorts of backgrounds. To this end, the incredible experiences that HKUST generously offers, such as clubs, societies, competitions, research, internships, seminars, and exchange opportunities, has helped me broaden my horizons immensely.

While HKUST has definitely been extremely stressful and difficult at times, I have learnt so much about myself and about the huge world around me just in these two semesters. I still have eight more semesters to go, and while I am unsure about exactly what I want to do by the end other than working with technology, I am open to anything that allows me to truly participate and meaningfully contribute to this vast interconnected and advanced environment.