Li Yiwen [Photo: Xinhua]

After being accepted for enrollment by 12 of the world's top universities, six with scholarship offers, Li Yiwen, a student who graduated from the German department of the Beijing Foreign Studies University in 2006, refused the top offer – from Oxford University in England. Her move surprised everybody close to her.

The 12 universities also included the London School of Economics and Political Science, the University of Bath, Berlin HU, Berlin Freie University, the University of Washington, and the University of Vienna, among well-known schools.

Li Yiwen said  every individual is different, and there is more than one way to be successful, even though it's taken her four years to figure this out.

Li was considered a "top student" ever since elementary school, and she kept that fame through to her first year of college by spending 12 hours a day on schoolwork.

Suddenly Li noticed that not everybody wanted to be a "good student." A few of her classmates had given up their studies in China, and went to Germany. She began to realise that there are many possibilities for one's life. "What kind of life do I want?" she asked herself. Over the past 19 years, Li, a "mommy's little girl," always had high scores on exams but was never taught to think for herself.

Then Li turned full circle and decided not to be a good student anymore. She now aims to try all the new things she can.

She became an intern at Siemens company in Wuhan during winter vacation in her second year of college, and by chance became the English-German interpreter to the vice president of the company, Peter Borger, during his first visit in China. Before Peter Borger's left, he wrote a recommendation letter for Li.

Her two-week internship showed Li she had other abilities outside of writing exams, such as the ability to communicate well, and to work under pressure.

After visiting France, Belgium, Luxemburg, and Holland, studying abroad became a clear goal in Li's mind. But which field of study would she choose?

Li began to take part in various social activities such as attending scholarly lectures, visiting product exhibitions, making short films, and selling small gadgets... So she decided to focus her application to universities in the fields of media, economics, and history.

Though Li was qualified to directly enter postgraduate studies, and has been offered positions in other international companies, Li had made up her mind to study abroad.　　

With a high score of 630 on her TOEFL, 19 out of 20 on her German qualification exam, an average of 90 in every university course, and five recommendation letters, Li began her application process.　

After she was accepted by 12 universities, Li had several strained discussions with her family, and finally made the decision to say 'no' to the top offer, from Oxford University.

"For the better job prospects, I was supposed to choose Oxford, but a major in education is not my top interest – my interest is in globalization."

Finally, Li narrowed down her two top choices to the London School of Economics and Political Science and the University of Vienna. She will study world history in Vienna for the first year, and history of economics in London during the second year.

Her overseas studies are part of a project offered by the European Union, with 420,000 yuan in scholarships available. Li is one of the four Chinese students who won the scholarship.