Immersion in Beijing Past Review
By Elizabeth G (The College of William and Mary) - abroad from 01/19/2012 to 05/14/2012 with
China Study Abroad Reflections: Comprehensive Reviews of Past Programs
I gained a lot of language experience that I could not have gotten in the US. It was absolutely worthwhile, I only wish I had gone earlier so I could have stayed for a whole year.
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. |
The resources provided to students in the immersion program, which I participated in, were impressive. When students requested extra work on pronunciation, character writing, or tutoring for the HSK test, it was provided within a matter of days. The program cared about and listened to the students feedback, which was really impressive. The program is rigorous but manageable since the tests in the immersion program are, for the large part, based on what is studied in class. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
The professors and office staff at the program are very competent and met students needs and desires. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
The program administrators notified me before choosing a homestay that my commute may take an hour or more, but I chose it anyway. My commute ended up being 40 minutes, so I felt lucky, but the commute was still quite long. Living with a host family was a great experience in many ways: my host family was welcoming and enthusiastic about helping me practice speaking, even taught me some chinese cooking, and my living arrangements were comfortable. I don't regret having chosen a homestay, the only downside was the commute. |
| * Food: |
Food was not provided by the program but there are many options on campus that are filling and very inexpensive. A cheap lunch would cost about $0.80 and an "expensive" one about $2.5. Dinner and lunch cost more or less the same. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
Having the option to live in a homestay allowed me to feel more integrated with the local culture: I lived in an apartment building with a Chinese family and commuted on public transportation every day. The experience was as authentic as it could have been considering that I am a foreigner. When I left Beijing, one of the things that struck me that I would miss the most was the older man who sold fruit at the corner where i used to live. He felt like a friend, and he even let me borrow his bike once. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
I only got a cough while abroad, but I avoided going to the hospital due to some confusion over where my health insurance was valid. Had my health problem been more pressing I would have asked some more questions. |
| * Safety: |
I felt very safe in Beijing and, once there, found that I did not have to worry much about pick pockets or crime as long as I took basic precautions. I never felt that I had to fear for my safety, even when I occasionally returned home alone rather late at night. |
| 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) |
Living in Beijing is very inexpensive. I tried to overestimate the personal expenses I would need before going to China and found that I was well prepared and came in under budget. |
| * Was housing included in your program cost? | Yes |
| * Was food included in your program cost? | No |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | $45/week for food |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Bargain hard in markets or you won't get things for much cheaper than in the US. Stores in malls where you cannot bargain are priced similarly to the US. Try to avoid shopping in western markets like carrefour if you want to pay less than western prices. The food on campus was clean and safe, but be very cautious buying food from street vendors; I never bought food from street vendors. Save money by filling up your water bottle from the filter in the CSI building. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
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How much did the program encourage you to use the language?
0 = No encouragement, 5 = frequent encouragement to use the language |
As an immersion student, I was not allowed to speak English during the week. I was, however, still allowed to type personal emails. The point of the immersion program is to learn the most Chinese possible, so I felt very encouraged to use the language all the time. |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | Beginner |
| How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program? | Intermediate |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | CHIN 201 |
| How many hours per day did you use the language? | 10+ |
| Do you have any tips/advice on the best ways to practice the language for future study abroad participants? | Practice frequently, make flashcards, and most importantly learn tones as you go - Chinese people won't understand you if you say the tone wrong, and you don't want to have to go back and re-learn them. |
Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
Select all that apply |
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* Who did you live with?
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* Who did you take classes with?
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| About how many local friends did you make that you will likely keep in touch with? |
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? | That I should try to minimize the amount of time spent writing emails to people back home every day. I wish I had made a greater effort to find more locals to be friends with than I did. |
