Alicia Gina Victoria grew up in a Chinese-Indonesian family in Jakarta, Indonesia. Her parents were determined to invest in her and her sister's education. Among the thousands of girls in Jakarta, they were very privileged to receive the best education available.
The chance for a Chinese-Indonesian to get into a good school in Indonesia was much smaller in her father's generation. Perhaps influenced by her family, Victoria firmly believes in gender equality. She feels sympathy for women who are unable to support themselves financially and emotionally.
In her final year of high school, Victoria went to The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen (CUHK-Shenzhen) on a study tour. It was her first time in China. She was very excited to take classes at CUHK-Shenzhen, and was fascinated by the interactive exchanges between professors and students. Throughout her year at CUHK-Shenzhen, what she cherished most was the feedback she got from professors on her performance.
Victoria did not fail her parents' expectations and won a Half Tuition & Accommodation Scholarship at CUHK-Shenzhen in 2019. She is now a third-year undergraduate student majoring in Marketing and Communication at the School of Management of Economics (SME), CUHK-Shenzhen.
When deciding on the university, Victoria was also attracted to the overseas exchange opportunities provided by CUHK-Shenzhen. She loves travelling and enjoys embracing different cultures with an open mind. She likes group projects most because she can team up with both Chinese students and international students from Canada, Japan, Russia and many other countries.
"The difference between us is nothing, but it is something that enables us to create something that could be a boom to the class," Victoria said. She is going to the KU Leuven Brussels campus for a one-semester exchange in 2022.
To best use her spare time while studying online, Victoria started working as a junior business analyst intern at Mirae Asset in Jakarta in August 2021. Mirae Asset is a leading asset management company in Indonesia. Victoria's knowledge of business in China helped her win this paid internship.
"I know I made the right decision to study in China. During the internship, I have more evidences to prove my thoughts," Victoria said.
"The Chinese spirit somehow motivates me to do better because I believe no sky is too high. It enables me to discover my worth. In addition, it also makes me realize that being an alpha female is okay," she said.
She discovered in her internship that many Indonesian women have low financial literacy. "Everyone has their own contribution to make a better world. As for now, my focus is to develop a financial literacy campaign for women because they are more vulnerable after marriage and kids," Victoria said.
Victoria is now working with friends to raise funds for an education consulting platform.
They plan to use the interests from investment to sponsor talented young women living in rural Indonesia to receive a university education.
"I always want to do meaningful things that could benefit my society. By doing this, hopefully, there are more Indonesian women who could receive the holistic education from CUHK-Shenzhen as well," she said.
Rosemary Bai contributed to this story.
