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What the International Students say

“I’ve loved living in Wales because the people are so friendly. Cardiff is a safe city to live and study in, which is a bonus.” Joey Lam, Macau.

Joey Lam, 19, left her native Macau as a 14-year-old to study at a UK boarding school in Kent. After her GCSEs Joey moved to Cardiff where she lived with her older sister - a fashion design student at UWIC (University of Wales Institute, Cardiff) - and enrolled as a sixth-form student at St David's Catholic College in 2005.

During her time at St David's she immersed herself in college life by using her considerable skills as a film-maker to produce digital films of annual events such as the college's Oscars night, as well as filming a promotional DVD of St David's for the college website.

Her talent and positive attitude to college life was publicly acknowledged when she won a community award at the end-of-year awards ceremony in June 2008, where her personal tutor, Barbara Thomas, said: ' Joey has been a beacon to other international students.' With extra lessons in English and the help of her subject teachers, Joey passed A-levels in Media Studies, Design and Technology and Art and Design as well as gaining a GCSE in Science.

Through her Welsh Baccalaureate lessons, Joey learned about the Welsh film and television industries. With the BBC filming series such as Torchwood and Dr Who in Cardiff, Joey was able to observe the process of film-making - watching television crews on location, witnessing the advertising campaigns for these popular series, and seeing the final episodes appearing on television, watched by millions of people.

During her final year it was a natural progression for her to apply to study for a BA in Advertising and Media at the newly established ATRiuM - the Cardiff School of Creative and Cultural Industries - part of the University of Glamorgan.