This episode explores the unconventional career journey of an interviewee who, despite initial academic challenges and a major that proved difficult for direct employment, earned an Electronic Engineering bachelor's and master's degree. Their early professional experiences included an internship as a product manager at a major internet company, which they found "quite agonizing" due to its "pathological working hours" and "internal competition". A subsequent, positive internship at a foreign telecommunications firm offered a stark contrast. Ultimately, the interviewee transitioned to their current role as a college teacher in a small, "18-tier" city. The conversation delves into the interviewee's reflections on career choices, work-life balance, and the importance of gaining diverse information.

Originally posted on WeChat 公众号 @breakbarriers 《11号分享：拒绝病态内卷的18线小城大专院校老师》

And 宫师姐Chelsea's bloghttps://www.becomingchelsea.com/post/11%E5%8F%B7%E5%88%86%E4%BA%AB%EF%BC%9A%E6%8B%92%E7%BB%9D%E7%97%85%E6%80%81%E5%86%85%E5%8D%B7%E7%9A%8418%E7%BA%BF%E5%B0%8F%E5%9F%8E%E5%A4%A7%E4%B8%93%E9%99%A2%E6%A0%A1%E8%80%81%E5%B8%88

This episode presents a fascinating interview with a theoretical physicist, conducted by 宫师姐Chelsea as part of her "Beyond the Gaokao" project to broaden high school students' perspectives on life choices. The interviewee shares his unique journey: from being direct-admitted to Peking University's Yuanpei College through a physics competition, earning a US theoretical physics PhD, to becoming a software engineer in New York. This discussion offers insights into a "half-herded" high school life during SARS, the liberal arts model of Yuanpei College, and critical reflections on talent, passion, and making impactful life choices.

Originally posted on WeChat 公众号 @breakbarriers 《10号分享：竞赛保送北大元培的理论物理学博士谈天赋》

And 宫师姐Chelsea's blog

https://www.becomingchelsea.com/post/10%E5%8F%B7%E5%88%86%E4%BA%AB%EF%BC%9A%E7%AB%9E%E8%B5%9B%E4%BF%9D%E9%80%81%E5%8C%97%E5%A4%A7%E5%85%83%E5%9F%B9%E7%9A%84%E7%90%86%E8%AE%BA%E7%89%A9%E7%90%86%E5%AD%A6%E5%8D%9A%E5%A3%AB%E8%B0%88%E5%A4%A9%E8%B5%8B

This episode presents an interview with "Y", who transitioned from an electronics major to a successful brand manager in an internet company, discussing her academic and career trajectory. The interview explores her educational choices, from high school to university, and her experiences in the workplace, including her current role as a brand manager and a mother.

"Beyond the Gaokao" project's goal is to to gather diverse life stories from individuals who have completed their high school entrance exams, offering an unfiltered perspective for current students. The overall purpose is to provide varied personal narratives to broaden the imagination of high school students contemplating their future paths.

Originally posted on WeChat 公众号 @breakbarriers 《9号分享：从电子系到年薪百万的品牌经理》

And 宫师姐Chelsea's blog

https://www.becomingchelsea.com/post/9%E5%8F%B7%E5%88%86%E4%BA%AB%EF%BC%9A%E4%BB%8E%E7%94%B5%E5%AD%90%E7%B3%BB%E5%88%B0%E5%B9%B4%E8%96%AA%E7%99%BE%E4%B8%87%E7%9A%84%E5%93%81%E7%89%8C%E7%BB%8F%E7%90%86

This episode centers around an interview with Kevin, a product manager at Microsoft in Seattle, highlighting his unconventional journey from studying English literature to a career in data analysis and product management. The interview explores Kevin's high school and university experiences, including his decision to retake his high school exams and his initial misgivings about his English major, which ultimately led him to pursue a master's in marketing. He shares his career progression, emphasizing how an initial interest in traditional marketing surprisingly led him into data analysis, culminating in his current role as a product manager.

The interviewer, 宫师姐Chelsea, also outlines her "Beyond the Gaokao" project's goal: to gather diverse personal stories from individuals who have made significant life choices after high school and college, offering valuable insights for current students. Ultimately, the text presents a narrative of adaptability, self-discovery, and embracing unexpected opportunities in one's professional path.

Originally posted on WeChat公众号 @breakbarriers 《8号分享：文科复读生，从英语文学到数据分析到产品经理》

And 宫师姐Chelsea's blog

https://www.becomingchelsea.com/post/8%E5%8F%B7%E5%88%86%E4%BA%AB%EF%BC%9A%E6%96%87%E7%A7%91%E5%A4%8D%E8%AF%BB%E7%94%9F%EF%BC%8C%E4%BB%8E%E8%8B%B1%E8%AF%AD%E6%96%87%E5%AD%A6%E5%88%B0%E6%95%B0%E6%8D%AE%E5%88%86%E6%9E%90%E5%88%B0%E4%BA%A7%E5%93%81%E7%BB%8F%E7%90%86

This episode presents an interview with a Fudan University history graduate, who discusses her educational background, career trajectory, and life philosophies. The interview explores her high school experiences, including intense studying, and her decision-making process for choosing a university and major, emphasizing the challenges of limited options and parental expectations for practical fields. The interviewee reflects on her university life, the perceived utility of a history degree, and her post-graduation job search, which led her to marketing and the travel industry, a field she finds fulfilling. Throughout the discussion, she offers advice on career planning and the importance of staying informed about different industries, even when feeling uncertain.

Originally posted on WeChat公众号 @breakbarriers 《7号分享：热爱旅行、拥抱热爱的复旦历史系毕业生》

And 宫师姐Chelsea's blog

https://www.becomingchelsea.com/post/7%E5%8F%B7%E5%88%86%E4%BA%AB%EF%BC%9A%E7%83%AD%E7%88%B1%E6%97%85%E8%A1%8C%E3%80%81%E6%8B%A5%E6%8A%B1%E7%83%AD%E7%88%B1%E7%9A%84%E5%A4%8D%E6%97%A6%E5%8E%86%E5%8F%B2%E7%B3%BB%E6%AF%95%E4%B8%9A%E7%94%9F

This episode presents an interview with a doctoral student in Beijing, who shares her academic journey from high school in Hong Kong to pursuing a Ph.D. in mainland China. The discussion explores her educational experiences in various locations, including her undergraduate studies in mainland China and her master's degree in the United States, highlighting the pressures and challenges she faced at each stage. She reflects on her decisions, particularly her desire to escape intense academic competition and her regrets about not considering doctoral programs in Hong Kong due to better financial support and a more international environment.

The interviewer, 宫师姐Chelsea, states her goal of "Beyond the Gaokao" interviews is to collect diverse personal stories to provide high school students with a broader perspective on future possibilities, without imposing her own opinions or advice.

Originally posted on WeChat @breakbarriers《6号分享：从香港考学回大陆，不想再卷的博士生》

And 宫师姐Chelsea's blog

https://www.becomingchelsea.com/post/6%E5%8F%B7%E5%88%86%E4%BA%AB%EF%BC%9A%E4%BB%8E%E9%A6%99%E6%B8%AF%E8%80%83%E5%AD%A6%E5%9B%9E%E5%A4%A7%E9%99%86%EF%BC%8C%E4%B8%8D%E6%83%B3%E5%86%8D%E5%8D%B7%E7%9A%84%E5%8D%9A%E5%A3%AB%E7%94%9F

This interview presents 宫师姐's interview with "Steak" who reflects on their unconventional educational and career path. "Steak", a dual Math and Philosophy major, describes their journey from an international high school in China to universities in Canada and the U.S., culminating in a product manager role in New York. The discussion highlights their adaptive approach to career and life choices, including navigating job rejections (hundreds of them) and leveraging professional relationships.

宫师姐Chelsea's overarching goal in conducting these "Beyond the Gaokao" interviews is to provide diverse life stories for high school students, offering varied perspectives on academic and career decisions without imposing personal biases.

Originally posted on WeChat公众号@breakbarriers《5号分享者：历经休学转学的数学哲学双专业背景大厂PM，曾经投几百简历收获零offer》

And 宫师姐Chelsea's blog

https://www.becomingchelsea.com/post/5%E5%8F%B7%E5%88%86%E4%BA%AB%E8%80%85%EF%BC%9A%E5%8E%86%E7%BB%8F%E4%BC%91%E5%AD%A6%E8%BD%AC%E5%AD%A6%E7%9A%84%E6%95%B0%E5%AD%A6%E5%93%B2%E5%AD%A6%E5%8F%8C%E4%B8%93%E4%B8%9A%E8%83%8C%E6%99%AF%E5%A4%A7%E5%8E%82pm%EF%BC%8C%E6%9B%BE%E7%BB%8F%E6%8A%95%E5%87%A0%E7%99%BE%E7%AE%80%E5%8E%86%E6%94%B6%E8%8E%B7%E9%9B%B6offer

This episode presents an interview with a software engineer named Pika, who reflects on her academic and career journey. The interview, conducted by 宫师姐Chelsea, details Pika's experiences from high school in Shanghai to pursuing higher education in the US, ultimately leading to a career as a software engineer in Boston. Pika discusses her passive decision-making throughout her life, from her college major being an unexpected outcome to her decision to pursue graduate studies abroad, emphasizing the importance of focusing on learning.

"Beyond the Gaokao" project by 宫师姐Chelsea, has a goal of interviewing 50 individuals to create a diverse dataset of life stories for high school students, stressing the importance of providing unfiltered narratives to allow readers to form their own conclusions.

Originally posted on WeChat 公众号@breakbarriers 《4号分享：在EE/ME/CE工程大类中选择CE的软件工程师》

And 宫师姐Chelsea's blog：https://www.becomingchelsea.com/post/4%E5%8F%B7%E5%88%86%E4%BA%AB%EF%BC%9A%E5%9C%A8ee-me-ce%E5%B7%A5%E7%A8%8B%E5%A4%A7%E7%B1%BB%E4%B8%AD%E9%80%89%E6%8B%A9ce%E7%9A%84%E8%BD%AF%E4%BB%B6%E5%B7%A5%E7%A8%8B%E5%B8%88

This episode presents an interview conducted by 宫师姐Chelsea. The interview, recorded in March 2023, is part of Chelsea's broader goal to interview 50 individuals from diverse backgrounds to create a varied dataset of independent life stories for high school students. The purpose is to expand their imagination about the wider world without imposing subjective interpretations or advice.

The interviewee, referred to as "分享者" (the sharer) and whose name is not disclosed, shares their journey from a "happy academic overachiever" in high school to a biology PhD (a path designed by her father), and strategically shifted to become a cloud technology project manager at a major high-tech company in the American West Coast.

Originally posted on WeChat 公众号@breakbarriers 《3号分享：从学霸生物学博士到云技术项目经理》

and 宫师姐Chelsea's blog

https://www.becomingchelsea.com/post/3%E5%8F%B7%E5%88%86%E4%BA%AB%EF%BC%9A%E4%BB%8E%E5%AD%A6%E9%9C%B8%E7%94%9F%E7%89%A9%E5%AD%A6%E5%8D%9A%E5%A3%AB%E5%88%B0%E4%BA%91%E6%8A%80%E6%9C%AF%E9%A1%B9%E7%9B%AE%E7%BB%8F%E7%90%86

This episode presents an interview with "Da Xuan," an individual who made a significant transition from a science background to liberal arts and is currently pursuing an MBA in New York. The interview chronicles his academic and career journey, including being assigned to a marketing major after initially intending to study international trade, and later shifting from marketing to a product management role. Da Xuan shares insights into his high school experiences, university life, decision not to pursue graduate studies immediately after college, and his entrepreneurial endeavors during his undergraduate years. He also offers advice to his younger self, emphasizing the importance of learning English, and reflects on the pressures he currently faces while studying abroad.

"Beyond the Gaokao", 宫师姐Chelsea's project that aims to provide high school seniors in small towns in China with insights into diverse life paths beyond their immediate academic focus. The Gaokao, short for “全国普通高等学校招生考试” (National College Entrance Examination), is China's most important standardized test. Held once a year, it plays a decisive role in determining which universities students can attend — and, for many, it can shape the rest of their lives.

Originally posted on WeChat @breakbarriers 《2号分享：理转文、被调剂专业、被转岗，MBA在读》

Also on 宫师姐Chelsea's blog

https://www.becomingchelsea.com/post/2%E5%8F%B7%E5%88%86%E4%BA%AB%EF%BC%9A%E7%90%86%E8%BD%AC%E6%96%87%E3%80%81%E8%A2%AB%E8%B0%83%E5%89%82%E4%B8%93%E4%B8%9A%E3%80%81%E8%A2%AB%E8%BD%AC%E5%B2%97%EF%BC%8Cmba%E5%9C%A8%E8%AF%BB