Rui Xing (2020)
By Scarlett McLean
Like many students leaving home to become boarders, Rui was excited to embark on a new adventure and curious about life on campus. Moving to Ballarat from Jiangsu in China, Rui prepared for the additional challenges of navigating a new language, unfamiliar social dynamics and different daily routines. However, after the initial excitement had faded, she felt pangs of homesickness, longing for family, familiar food and the culture of home.
In those early weeks at Hayhoe, finding anchors became paramount. Small rituals provided some comfort, such as regular calls to family at home, cooking traditional meals on weekends, and journalling in Chinese as an outlet for reflection and grounding. Over time, Rui found the friendships formed in Hayhoe were the catalyst to forging a sense of connection with her new home in Ballarat. Welcomed wholeheartedly by her new friends in Hayhoe, these young women helped Rui navigate the nuances of language and culture, foster a sense of belonging, and offered her genuine acceptance.
Rui’s three years within the welcoming walls of the boarding house were marked by an overwhelming sense of generosity. Invitations to spend holidays with newfound friends saw families open their homes to Rui, sharing their unique customs and traditions, and allowing her into the heart of a once foreign lifestyle. Through these connections, Rui formed a deep bond with Australian culture, the land, and the community that welcomed her.
Navigating a new social landscape and the demands of an academic schedule, Rui sometimes felt she should be connecting with her family at home more than she was. On reflection, however, Rui has recognised that the challenge of settling into a foreign environment parallels the difficulty her parents faced in giving Rui the opportunity of an education in Ballarat.
Rui continues to navigate the balance of feeling connected to her roots and engaging in university life. She is studying medicine at the University of New South Wales, and is undertaking a research project in the area of Artificial Intelligence and cardiac transplant rejection surveillance. Maintaining ties to home requires a conscious effort on her behalf, but it is an effort that keeps Rui anchored and is just as important to her as succeeding in her studies.
While Rui’s current life has led her away from Ballarat, she still feels deeply connected to her boarding community. Her friendships with past students remain strong, and she acknowledges that those shared memories and experiences still shape the way she builds relationships and adapts to new environments.
“Being an international student taught me that ‘connection to place’ isn’t just about geography—it’s about emotion, memory and shared experience. It’s found in the people around you, the routines that keep you grounded, and the parts of yourself you carry into each new setting.”
Rui’s advice to those embarking on their own international student journeys is that “connection takes time. It grows from small moments—shared meals, quiet conversations, familiar routines. Be patient with yourself. It’s okay to miss home or feel out of place at first. Keep pieces of home close but stay open to new relationships and experiences. You don’t have to choose between staying connected to where you came from and immersing yourself in where you are—you can do both. Embrace your culture, share it proudly, and be curious about others.”
“Looking back, I have come to understand that ‘connection to place’ means recognising that home can exist in many places at once. It lives in your upbringing, your friendships, your traditions, and the new spaces that shape you. Hayhoe and the rest of the community at Ballarat Grammar did not just give me a second home—the experience taught me that home is something we carry within us, built through people, values and memories that stay with us wherever we go.”
Acknowledgement of Country
Ballarat and Queen’s Anglican Grammar School acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of the land on which we learn, live and work, the Wadawurrung People, and recognises their continuing connection to the land and waterways. We pay our respects to their Elders past and present and extend this to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People.
Commitment to Child Safety
Ballarat Grammar maintains a zero-tolerance approach to all forms of child abuse and actively implements measures to identify and manage any risks of harm to students within our school environment. The care, safety and wellbeing of children and young people are central and fundamental responsibilities of the School. We are firmly committed to fostering a child-safe culture that provides an environment where students are safe and feel safe, where their participation is valued, their views respected, and their voices heard in decisions that affect their lives. Ballarat Grammar values diversity and strictly prohibits any racist or discriminatory practices. All members of our school community share the responsibility to care for children and young people by promptly raising any concerns regarding their safety, promoting their wellbeing, and protecting them from all forms of harm or abuse.
