1.	What emphasis do work, study and family life have in your country or in your culture?  Which of the 3 is most important in your country or in your culture?
(DONE)

2.	Is your personal emphasis  the same? (DONE)

3.	As a new student, what support and understanding have you received from your family, friends, work place and colleagues? (DONE)

4.	If you are not receiving support and understanding, how might you work around the problem(s)? (DONE)

The Different Aspects of Life
     Study life is the biggest aspect in Taiwan. Every student has to go through at least two national exams for their senior high schools and colleges. The whole society also takes these exams seriously. What universities students graduate from becomes one of the indicators to decide whether they are competitive and intelligent either at work or in academia. However, this test-oriented education system has been criticized that it hinders students’ critical thinking and fail to boost students’ interest in learning (Taiwan’s Education System is Failing Its Youth, 2016).
    Work life and family life in Taiwan is usually in conflict. Many jobs with high salaries often come with overwork. According to the article done by BBC (Sui C., 2012), Taiwan employees work about 2,200 hours per year which is 20% more than Japan and the US. With more time spent on work, there leaves little time for family life.
     Family life in Taiwan also surrounds around study life. Parent value education to the fullest since study life is a big part in Taiwan. Parents want their children to become competitive enough in school and after school. Therefore, while both parents work, their children will be taken care of by their grandparents and teachers both in schools and cram schools. The reason why parents consider education so important is very clear. Without proper education to own profession, students will end up working low-paid jobs and even have to work overtime to make both ends meet.
    My personal emphasize lies in work life for now. I want to hone up my programming skills. Since I want to work abroad, especially in the US. I need to equip myself with competitive computer skills. As a result, I would have a higher chance to get admissions from top universities for my master program in Computer Science. Then, after graduation, I would have more opportunities for interviews offered by promising companies.
     As a new student, I got full support from my family. They encourage me to make good use of my time and earn a degree online. I’m grateful for their support and understanding. I might not visit my parent as often as before but they know I’ve been doing. I won’t let them down and do my job well.
     If I cannot get someone to understand what I’m doing, I will choose to avoid confrontation first. Later one, when I have some achievement, I’ll show them the proof and express my thinking process to them again. In this case, what I said might be more convincing so that they can understand the value of the things I’ve been doing.

References
Sui C. (2012). Deaths spotlight Taiwan's 'overwork' culture. Retrieved from https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-16834258
Taiwan’s Education System is Failing Its Youth. (2016). In TheNewsLens. Retrieved from https://international.thenewslens.com/article/46431
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