2020/09/26 Saturday
“Hi, my name is Anita Zeng! I am a first-year graduate student in Northeastern’s College of Arts, Media and Design this fall, as major in Creative Practice Leadership (Music Industry Specialization). I was raised in Chengdu, China, and now I am living in the Boston area to pursue my master’s degree.”
(Photo Credit to Anita Zeng)
Anita Zeng completed her bachelor’s degree in music composition in a college near Seattle, WA. After that, she applied for a one-year OPT and did her internship in a symphony orchestra in Washington. To broaden her understanding of the music industry, she decided to pursue a graduate study in music management. However, there are not many schools setting up graduate programs in this specific field. She submitted her graduate application to three different schools. Northeastern is one of them.
“The place where I live now is only ten minutes’ walk from the school. When I have not decided on my current apartment, I also considered living in other areas. But my family hopes that I can live closer to the school because they may worry about me if I need to take transportation frequently during this pandemic period”, Zeng said.
Zeng has a class that her professor would prefer to teach in person, so that she will go to school at least once a week. To ensure that she is eligible to take the class in person, she needs to take COVID-19 tests twice a week. Zeng tells me that she can not sit together with her classmates. Everyone needs to keep a social distance. If they need to discuss something in class, she will try to speak louder to make sure everyone can hear her.
“For me, it’s good to have the opportunity to go to school every week. I have three online classes on Friday, so I need to stay in my room all day to take my courses. Because of staying in my room for a long time, I feel like my brain cannot get enough oxygen,” Zeng said.
Zeng’s current graduate program is a one-year program. She has the idea of pursuing a double degree. It is also possible for her to apply for an OPT if she does not get the offer she wants to go to in the future. Due to COVID-19, she tends to stay in the U.S. until she completes her studies. She agrees that leaving the United States now will involve many uncertainties, and she is not sure if she can successfully enter the U.S. again if she chooses to return to her own country.
Shiyun Li (Sharon) 