Written by the Class of 2022

As people, we seek help when we are uncertain. 
As students, we seek help about our future university and education.
As DVGS-ers, we seek help from our alumni about our challenges beyond DVGS. 

In the fall semester, we have been inviting many alumni, including Jennifer Dede, Peishia Liu, Suzanne Zhang, Grace Yang, Angela Green, Denise Cao and Leanna Duong, to share their accomplishments and challenges.

Leanna Duong was the very first alumnus who came to talk to us about career planning. She talked about Vanderbilt University in Tennessee. We learned more about financial aid, majors, scholarships, and many insights into college life. From there, we became more interested in listening to even more from DVGS alumni.

As one of the many frontline workers facing the risks of COVID-19 and many other illnesses, Angela Green was an admirable and memorable alumnus. She told us the details of being a nurse on the job and the challenges she encountered. Angela shared that while working in a hospital, one can never know what will happen next. In a fast-moving workplace like her’s, you should always stay on your feet and think fast. Furthermore, she also informed us of ways to protect ourselves from COVID-19 and advised us to be careful in maintaining our health.

Afterwards, we heard from Grace Yang, who was the ASB President of the 2015-2016 school year, and Suzanne Zhang, ASB President of the 2016-2017 school year. Grace is in the engineering field and Suzanne is pursuing her PhD in astronomy. They talked to us about their experiences, including the difficulties they encountered transitioning from sheltered life in DVGS to the undefined boundaries of adulthood. Then, they shared the dorm and school lives they’ve experienced as DVGS students and compared it to dorm life in college. It was very fun and entertaining to connect to alumni of previous years through our shared experiences at DVGS.

Denise Cao was also invited to mentor us about college life. She talked about her current lifestyle at UC Irvine and provided tips and a basic understanding about her major, nursing. She told us about the day-to-day classes of a student in the medical field and primary requirements a student pursuing a nursing field should have. Narrating her experience, Denise told us that college is unpredictable, a platform to explore possibilities and to develop skills. 

A graduate from UC Irvine, Jennifer Dede, was also invited to talk about her transition from college to work. She told us her process of applying to many research apprenticeship programs. Moreover, she gave us the hint to prepare earlier in college by having more experiences so we can achieve greater opportunities in the future. Learning is a continuous process, and through learning, you will advance. Jennifer also introduced us to the “triangle,” made up of three components: social life, sleep, and academics. She mentioned that a college student can only obtain two of the three, and sacrifice the other. Thus, this triangle allows us to prioritize our needs and make distinctions of what we as students should do.

Just last month, Peishia Liu, Class of 2004, who now works as a full-time sector manager for Alaska Airlines, shared her experiences in her field. We found her career path very interesting and inspiring. Although her past major was filming, a completely different field from her current job, she is still living happily and peacefully. We also talked about the difference between the dorm and school life in 2004 and the present. It was very surprising and mind-blowing. We didn’t expect to listen to such extreme differences, where they didn’t even have access to the internet. 

Veronica Tee (Class of 2023) recounts, “According to Peishia Liu, networking is important. To find jobs, to find schools, or anything in general, you need friends to help and accompany you. She also gave an example where she found a friend who works inside the company and it’s easier for her to get the job.” Additionally, Thuy Nguyen (Class of 2022) remarked, “It helped me broaden my horizons to possible career fields. The speakers gave very helpful insights and advice.” 

“Learning more about the behind the scenes of the aviation industry really clicked with me in Peishia Liu’s Q&A session as I never gave much thought about it.” said Iris Ng (Class of 2020). Another student, Jaimie Yu (Class of 2022) also expressed her thoughts: “It gave me insights on how to choose my major, to look for internships and to look for research opportunities. It also broadened my career lookouts and widened my choices of universities.” Before we said goodbye, Peishia also introduced us to her newborn son. It was exhilarating to meet her baby boy. 

A big thank you for all the alumni for giving us your unconditional guidance during these difficult and uncertain times. We wish you happiness, jolliness, and bliss!