In 1997 Nadia Chan Hai-chia faced an intriguing and challenging prospect: she was about to begin two years of sixth-form studies in a European country she knew little about with a group of students from all over the world. Then 17, Nadia had applied to go to the Red Cross Nordic College in Fjaler, Norway, and after a series of assessments, she became one of about 15 Hong Kong students to study abroad each year as part of the international United World College system.
The network, which now has 10 sixth-form boarding colleges around the world including Li Po Chun United World College in Hong Kong, was the brainchild of German educationalist Kurt Hahn. In the 1950s, he suggested bringing young people from different countries together at a pre-university stage to help overcome the hostility of the Cold War. .
The first United World College opened in Wales in 1962 and was later joined by others in Britain, Europe, Southern Africa, Canada, the United States and Asia. Today, the United World College international council is presided over by Nelson Mandela.
Students from more than 80 nationalities study at the colleges, which offer the international baccalaureate diploma programme and place great emphasis on extra-curricular and community activities tailored to each college's local environment. The main language of communication at the colleges is English.
Nadia, a former student of Good Hope Secondary School, first heard about the United World College network at a seminar for HKCEE candidates. Her two years in Norway proved a turning point. She took Nordic studies, stayed regularly with a host family and learnt to speak some Norwegian. She did voluntary work with the mentally disabled and helped organise a Chinese society at the college.
Most importantly, she said, she learnt how to get along with people from all over the world. During her stay in Norway, she shared a room with students from Ethiopia, Yugoslavia, Sweden and Belgium. 'You learn there is so much more to life than just getting good grades in exams.'