New country, abundant resources, aptitude for research help undergrad build confidence

A year ago, Fengxu Li says, the idea of talking to a stranger on Zoom about himself would have simply felt too nerve-wracking and intimidating.

He had only arrived in the United States in fall 2023. Shy by nature, he wasn’t confident in his English and was still emerging from a gloomy period.

Amazingly, amid his despondency, he’d decided to take advantage of an opportunity to transfer to the University of Wisconsin–Madison from Sichuan University in his native China—despite never having previously visited the United States.

It’s worked out better than he could have hoped. Read the full story.