Legless girl troubled by choice of major at university

For those who just finished their college entrance exams last week, most of them may be anxious about the marks, but for Huang Huan from southwest China’s Sichuan Province, what worries her more is choosing which major to take.

Nicknamed ‘Stool girl’, Huang became paraplegic and lost both of her legs in a traffic accident at the age of four, and can only move around with the help of a stool, reports local news website The Cover.

Despite all the obstacles, she’s been able to go to school like anyone else. Her inspiring story has been read by nearly two million people on the Chinese social platform Weibo.

Born to laborer parents in a small village in Lu County, 19-year-old Huang also has two older sisters and a younger brother.

After the tragic incident, Huang’s family refused to give up on their little girl. They moved to town when Huang started primary school; her second oldest sister delayed school by a year to help take care of her by renting an apartment near her school.

“I feel guilty for her,” said Huang, however her sister never talked about her dreams but she always knew. “Hopefully she could open her own clothes store and live a happy life (after I go to college).”

Huang herself has been working hard to be independent and helpful. She would get up 20 minutes earlier to wash her face and brush her teeth, or fill her classmates’ cups when they were outside doing morning exercises. Her teacher Fan Shibin described her as strong, optimistic and diligent.

The college bound teenager is expected to get into a prestigious university this fall based on her past academic performance. However, choosing the best major for her, a person with high paraplegia, remains a big problem.

On the question, thousands of netizens have given their advice.

“A psychologist. Her experience will encourage people like her,” Weibo user @Terry—cat commented, which got over 2,000 likes.

“Something related to information technology. But a feasible plan is needed!” user @baicaihaowu said.

“You’ve already come this far, choose a major you like! Life has no limits,” user @xielaoban shared her thoughts.

In 2015, 29-year-old Wu Hongfei, who lost his legs to a traffic incident, was employed by Shangdong Province’s Human Resources and Social Security Information Center though after topping its written test.

In the same year, 13-year-old girl named Fan Yufei, another person with high paraplegia, was reported to have successfully run a store selling nuts on Taobao, a Chinese online shopping website.

Are these good career paths? What’s your suggestion for Huang? What can people do to make the society more friendly to the group? Please leave a comment.