Best Way to Learn Chinese Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

Throughout my time at CET Harbin, my classmates and I were forced to strictly follow the 24 hour language pledge in which we only spoke Chinese. This combined with the excellent and supportive teachers improved my Chinese tremendously from a basic, non-speaking level to a level in which I could hold a conversation.

On-site administration of your program

Arriving at Harbin Institute of Technology I immediately met with my HIT Resident Advisor, Zhang Xin, she was extremely helpful in helping me to get situated. She and the other advisors also checked in with us to make sure we were enjoying our classes.

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

The best part of our housing accommodation was that we were paired with Chinese roommates and were very close to campus. However, there were many insects in our bathrooms (that went away quite easily using the shower faucet) and the beds compared to American

Harbin Institute of Technology has various cafeterias, coffee houses (including an amazing Cat Café close to campus) and bars that students can go to very easily. The food is amazing and is HIT is known in China for having some of the best cafeteria foods. The only complaint some of my classmates had was that there was a little too much MSG in the food but all you have to do is ask for less MSG and the chefs are mostly happy to oblige.

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

On arrival at Harbin Institute of Technology's Campus, we were each paired with a Chinese roommate. Our roommates knew the layout of the campus and of the city and mine helped me my first week of classes. She also took me to many amazing sites in Harbin including the Siberian Tiger Park and Karaoke. She opened me up to many cultural experiences and showed me her way of life. CET Harbin also provided us with free weekend excursions to many cultural sites in Harbin including: a Buddhist Monastery, Unit 731 Museum (a museum showing Japanese war crimes committed on residents of Harbin) and the Muslim District of Harbin (one of the oldest districts in the city). We also did some fun excursions exposing us to Harbin culture including receiving curling lessons, watching Chinese movies and climbing a mountain.

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

Very well. There were two nearby hospitals to the HIT campus. I did not require any special vaccines to go to China.

I felt very safe in both the HIT campus as well as in the city of Harbin. There were many times when I was walking the Campus at night and I felt safe.

CET Harbin Intensive Language Program was an experience that will last me a lifetime. I made memorable friends, discovered places that I would never have seen in the U.S. and improved my Chinese ten-fold.

(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost)

Buying food in China was inexpensive. I think that in total I spent less than $100 a week. It was also very easy to buy inexpensive cheap food like vegetables and fruit from the local chaoshi. However, I found that buying fruit from street vendors could be very expensive.

0 = No encouragement, 5 = frequent encouragement to use the language

After the first week of being in Harbin, every student was forced to take a language pledge in which we promised to only speak Chinese 24-7. Everyone in my class and our Chinese roommates followed this rule very well.

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• Dorm
• Hotel

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• Local Students

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• Americans

• Excursions
• Classes
• Chinese roommate

• Less insects in the bathrooms
• A second study room
• More trash cans available (they often became overfilled)

The Academic or Linguist