IES Beijing - It's Life Altering (In a Good Way) Past Review
By Trevor R (Global Studies and Chinese, University of the Pacific) for
Beijing Foreign Studies University: Beijing - Direct Enrollment & Exchange
I don't know how much more I can say. I learned the language, culture, and history. Aside from that, I learned about myself. What my weaknesses are, what my strengths are, and how to ask for help. I learned humility, and how important it is to metaphorically and quite literally take steps towards paths where we might not fully understand the destination. I struggled a lot, and through struggling and persevering and with the help of friends and family I was able to come out a better individual.
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | 1 month - 6 months |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
Since I had 10 units of Chinese language instruction by native Chinese teachers, most my time was spent in a language learning environment. The classes started at 8am and went until noon with breaks about every hour or so. The classes had anywhere from 4 to 6 students and was very conducive to focusing on individual student needs when it came to learning Chinese. I had a couple elective courses taught by American Professors. Those were generally taught in American lecture style rooms. I took two history courses and one International Relations course in my year abroad. Each class was about 15 to 25 students. The teachers were very well prepared and the classes were instrumental in my learning of Chinese history and culture. They definitely added to my experience in a very positive way. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
After going through the Cross Cultural Training class, I didn't really have any questions for the IPS office. Paperwork was straight forward, responses were timely and everything went smoothly. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
My first semester I lived in a dormitory in the IES building. I had a Chinese roommate which was great. Second semester I wanted to work more on my language so I requested a host family that didn't speak any English. That was more rewarding in terms of language progress than the dorm. I would definitely recommend the host family if your goal truly is language improvement. Beijing overall was very very safe. I never once felt like I was in danger. I also heard this from many American women as well so it's not just because I'm a man. My host family treated me very well. They'd had previous American host children so they knew a lot about what to expect with me. They were very helpful in terms of helping me practice my vocabulary and about teaching me what they knew about Chinese history. I didn't need to buy sheets, but many girls did just because they wanted higher quality ones. |
| * Food: |
If you're a vegetarian, or follow strict Jewish dietary restrictions, you'll find a way to make it. I'm neither of those and didn't have a problem with anything I ate. In general though, make sure you bring some sort of stomach medicine. I don't know one person that avoided having stomach issues the entire time. Also, bring cold medicine. That sort of thing is hard to come by. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
Two week trip along the Silk Road to as far West in China as is probably possible. Enough Said. It was awesome. Also, Spring Festival aka Chinese New Years was epic. Second semester my program arranged a two week trip to Southern China. Again, it was one of the best experiences of my life. IES arranged trips are amazing, well planned out, and will truly give you a view of China you could not get if you were planning something on your own. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
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| * Safety: |
IES takes care of you. It's just that simple. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
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Finances
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* Money: How easily were you able to live on a student's budget?
(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost) |
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| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | I honestly don't really remember. I spent more money when I lived in the dorm because I had no meals provided for me. Probably spent about $50 USD a week on food and transportation. But IES gives you a sheet that's really good at breaking down how much people tend to spend.I opted to buy soda a lot when I went out to eat which if you just wanted water, could cut down costs a lot. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | The only real unexpected cost I had was long underwear, and a warmer coat during the Winter. Don't underestimate how cold it can be. Especially if you're from Southern California and you don't really know what cold is. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | Beginner |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | Intermediate Chinese |
| If applicable, to what degree did your living situation aid your language acquisition? |
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| Language acquisition improvement? |
My program had a language pledge which stated that we were not allowed to use English anywhere on campus. I was encouraged by all the faculty, RA's, and office workers to speak Chinese. I also had a language partner who served as my tutor that was provided by the program. This was personal one on one language practice that was instrumental in my learning process abroad. Daily actions involving the local citizens had to be done in Chinese. There's no other way around it. Taxi drivers do not speak English, and most people in shops don't either. Good luck asking for directions if you don't speak at least a little mandarin. Because of the language pledge, American students in the program also encouraged each other to practice and we were constantly building each other up. It was the perfect environment to learn the language. It was even better if you had a home-stay family. |
Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
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* Who did you live with?
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* Who did you take classes with?
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A Look Back
| * What did you like most about the program? |
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| * What could be improved? |
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| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | Students who are outgoing and independent will benefit the best from this. Adventurers surely will get the most out of this. No matter what, you will gain something from this program. It just helps if you can laugh at yourself and put yourself out there. |
