Tran Ha Uyen

One year studying at the SDAC

Time flies so fast. One more beautiful year in my life has passed with lots of meaningful experiences and knowledge from the Elite Master Program SDAC.

Before joining the University, there was one review about SDAC from the previous cohorts that because there are only less than 10 students selected for each year, all the students are connecting with each others like a small family. That impressed me, and when I had a chance to experience that family’s atmosphere from my first academic year, I have to add some more “family members”. Those are the professors, teachers and our advisor. At no university, or no master program before where I can find a more supportive, compassionate teachers as here in SDAC program. I was amazed by their encouragement of discovering all the new area, following my journey that leads to a deeper understanding about human-being and our decisions in various disciplinaries. In the SDAC classes, thoughts are provoked, ideas are welcomed and different perspectives, various cultures are especially respected.

In the first year, most of the classes are related to Anthropology, the study mainly about human, and the topics: cultures, languages, politics, ethics, law, technology. The Anthropology term and the way to interpret events under anthropological view are totally new for me, a student with pure Economics and Business background. But the previous degrees and experience does not limit the capability and ability to absorb the lectures.

It opens my horizon about understanding human’s behaviors, explaining the emotions, controlling the situation in a deeper level. I learn that it is possible and how the decisions of the Judges, Lawyers, the most rational people can be influenced by some intentional and selected words, gestures, verbal (verbal and non-verbal languages). Then in the development and deployment of Artificial Intelligent, there are many ethical issues which are analyzed and discussed in the classes: Anthropology of AI, Anthropology of Law. In the class Managerial Economic, I acknowledged the behavioral economics and studied how and why irrational human are. This class relates a lot to my previous working experience as Business Development. Moreover, the classes from other professors provided deep knowledge about Chinese study and the differences between the Eastern people and the Western people, individual and collective societies. Those differences are the realities that the international students are experiencing in Germany. The class of Political Science I is especially about Politics and public advisors’ work. This is a hot topic this year 2021. The knowledge from the class is helpful to know what the politicians do and especially from the public advisors, who helps them in their decisions.

A few words can not describe how much I have luckily earned after my first year at SDAC. Even though I would not specialize in Anthropology in my future career, I would always stay as an Anthropologist and balance with my other technical skills to keep myself open-minded and fair, then thoroughly and objectively consider multiple aspects when making decisions for personal life and business.