She was impressed by learning experience

A picture of a snow-flanked campus in Austria fascinated 23-year-old Cherill Peng so much that she decided to spend a semester there in 2012.

The third-year business management student at Nanyang Polytechnic (NYP) had seen the images during a school presentation, which introduced overseas exchange opportunities.

In September 2012, Cherill was at IMC Fachhochschule Krems in Austria, a university located 40km from Vienna for five months.

It was an unforgettable experience for Cherill. She was joined by another student from her course.

When she was there, she was impressed by the learning culture at the university.

"The students were so immersed and motivated in their studies. The lessons were conducted tutorial-style and they were engaging and interactive," said Cherill.

The School of Business Management at NYP currently has overseas exchange programmes with 37 universities in Europe, the US, Canada and Asia.

Another part of the experience she loved was travelling around the region.

During school breaks, she travelled to countries such as the UK, Spain and Germany.

Cherill said she learnt to be more independent and street-smart from her travels.

"I gained a wider perspective, of how it is like to live in a globalised world, with different cultures.

"I think it will give me a competitive edge in the workforce in future," she said.

Her exchange experience has inspired her to pursue more overseas opportunities - she plans to work abroad in future.

"I really enjoyed the experience of living in a foreign land. I became more open-minded and adventurous as I made full use of the opportunities to be exposed to new cultures," said Cherill.

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