New Zealand Certificate in English Language (Academic) (Level 5)

Graduate Profile - English Language

Jingwei Xu

New Zealand Certificate in English (Level 5) / Postgraduate Diplopma in Creative Practice (Graphics and Animation)

Having already completed a Bachelor of Art and Design (Animation) and Master of Arts (Illustration and Publication) in China, most people would think ‘enough is enough’; but not Jingwei. When he moved to New Zealand in 2017, Jingwei knew that he wanted to continue studying within a Western context. To do so, he needed English. Jingwei did his Level 4 (Academic) certificate at Otago Polytechnic before moving to Auckland to do his Level 5 (Academic) certificate at Unitec.

Jingwei found the Level 5 challenging, but very rewarding; “The teachers I met were perfect and dedicated ... I learnt a lot from the English course, especially how the academic system works in Western education ... and how to do research”. In fact, it was these research skills that he found most beneficial when he moved into the Postgraduate Diplopma in Creative Practice (Graphics and Animation). “After succeeding in the English course and my postgraduate studies ... I now truly understand what academic research is, I know the scientific process of doing research”.

As a result of his studies, Jingwei created and printed his first graphic novel called Twentyfive, and secured a job at Universal Pharmaceuticals as a graphic designer. He also secured volunteering roles at IT's Accessible (which provides resources for people with disabilities), and Colour Our Story (which puts together colouring-in books using illustrations made by children all around the world).

“I learnt a lot of things when I was in China, about graphic design and making comics, but I needed something that could link all of those things, like a key – and I got that key from my studies in New Zealand.”