When Ka Ki “Kay” Tse ’19 moved from Hong Kong to the United States with her family in 2012, her parents wanted her to have a better life.
As a first-year URI student in 2015, Tse had only been speaking English for a few years and wasn’t entirely comfortable making friends. “For a while I felt lost,” she says. “I thought I needed to have everything all figured out and I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do.”
What she knew about herself was that she’d always enjoyed physical activity, so she chose a kinesiology major, thinking physical therapy might be her career path. She dove into her studies and soon discovered that living on campus offered her newfound freedom and surprising opportunities.
She found friends—in her classes, through her job at the Fascitelli Fitness and Wellness Center, and through involvement in campus groups like the URI Service Corps, where she was as an alternative spring break leader. Her love of travel led to summer adventures in Ghana and Togo with Operation Groundswell, and to a backpacking trip through Europe after her junior year, which gave her time and space for some much-needed soul searching.
An internship at the Weight Control and Diabetes Research Center at Miriam Hospital broadened Tse’s perspective—she became interested in behavior change and what motivates people to want to be healthier. So she added psychology to her academic program as a second major.
Photo: Courtesy Ka Ki Tse
Tse was on URI’s powerlifting team her sophomore and junior years. “The training taught me a lot about persistence. Even if you aren’t the strongest person on the starting line, if you work hard for what you want, you can achieve it—you just have to put the work in,” she says. “It made me mentally stronger and helped me to feel confident.”
Her relationships with professors like Christie Ward-Ritacco and Deborah Riebe were transformational.
“They took the time to know me,” says Tse. “They encouraged and supported me—and opened my eyes to new opportunities. I want to be that person for someone else. I want to be the person who listens and helps them find their way.”
Tse is attending Wake Forest University in North Carolina, working on her master’s degree in health and exercise science.
“I’m thankful for my experience at URI, for the teachers I’ve had, the friendships I’ve made, and the opportunities I’ve been offered. I thought I would come to school and mainly focus on academics, but I’ve learned so much about myself.” •
– Dawn Bergantino ’94