Kunkai “Kyle” Ye is an international exchange student and an English major from Xiamen, China, who came to Washburn for a semester as part of a new program offered for the first time by his home University in Shanghai. Ye has just three semesters left at his home university to earn his Bachelor’s degree and he is hoping to attend graduate school in the states.

     While at Washburn for one semester, which his professor in Shanghai recommended to him, Ye took a full class load heavily paved with English. His courses included American Literature 1, Multi-cultural Literature, English Literature, Fantasy Literature and Political Science.

     “I would say with this university, the most impressive thing is the study environment here; professors are very nice and very caring about students. It’s good to feel that your professor really cares about your problems and your studies and your difficulties in the studies.”

     Ye said he chose his major because he felt an English degree would help him see the world and broaden his horizons. He also stated that he is hoping to get into business marketing with an international company after he obtains his degrees. Ye is considering changing his major once he goes on to graduate school.

     As an only child, Ye has had a good example set for him by his parents, both government employees and college educated.

     Ye’s home University is one of the top three Universities in China, with a very large population. The class size for work in a major is about the same as Washburn, but general education classes can have as many as 200 people in attendance at one time.

     Being here for only one semester and taking such a heavy class load, Ye was unable to become involved with any groups on campus; however, he did find time to hang out with friends. “I made a lot of friends, but most of them are international students and also, I knew a lot of American students from Kansas and from the University,” Ye said. “Most of my friends are from Europe and some are from Korea and they’re international students. We had orientation week together so we knew each other longer.”

     Ye said when he wasn’t too busy studying, he enjoyed would going to the gym to do training, playing basketball and hanging out with friends, which included a road trip to Oklahoma City during fall break.

     This was the first extended stay for Ye in the U.S. although he has visited before. Ye lived in the University Village and was impressed with Washburn and the Topeka community. “It’s a very nice place,” he said.