Today is my last day as a graduate student at UCLA. The feeling is surreal. Sometimes, when you are at a place for so long, it is hard to imagine that you are finally leaving. To be perfectly honest, I cannot say that I enjoyed my graduate career as much as others enjoyed theirs, but I have definitely learned a lot and have grown more than I realized. I think I can say this confidently that I would not change any of it. I have developed great friendships that would last, and I have acquired various skills that would be useful for the rest of my life. So, the answer is no. I do not regret going into graduate school and I do not regret spending my last 5 years here.
I am sure you guys all heard of the butterfly effect. Life is all about decisions. One decision leads to another, and to another. You never know what would happen if you actually made another choice in any point of your life. I made a decision to come to the States for my college education, and I cannot imagine how different my life would have been for the past 10 years if I chose to stay in Hong Kong. I would not have accomplished what I accomplished, and I would not have met the people I met. I would not have seen and experienced the world as much as I have. I would probably not have a PhD. I would probably not have met my husband. I might even be a completely different person. Coming to the States all by myself at the age of 18 changed me, and I like who I have become. I was timid and lacked self-confidence. When I was in secondary school (like middle school and high school in the US), I was always quiet and anti-social. The teachers thought I was a bad student. The classmates thought I was weird. Nobody liked me. I don't even think I liked myself. It is really hard to imagine that I have become an assertive, strong and independent person. Obtaining a PhD is certainly a big accomplishment, but my biggest achievement is becoming the strong individual I always wanted myself to be. I am truly proud of that.
This journey has ended, but another begins. I got a job offer in a boutique life sciences consulting firm as an associate, and I am very excited to start this new path. I am not entirely sure where this new path is going to lead me, but I cannot wait to find out.