Spring 2019 in Hangzhou - an experience to remember Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

Overall, I really enjoyed my academic experience with this program. I found it to be appropriately academically challenging. At times, I did feel frustrated though (more so due to cultural differences and not necesarily due to actual classes). One thing I will say is that in one of my classes, I appreciated that our teacher asked us for our personal interests and catered our materials around those interests. On the other hand, one of our other teachers did the exact opposite and I spent the second half of the semester reading materials that focused solely on economics (a topic I'm not very interested in and ones that required at least some basic background knowledge to actually understand well). In terms of resources, the teachers are very available through Wechat. I found them to generally be quite accommodating.

On-site administration of your program

Overall, the administrators for the Middlebury in Hangzhou program were really helpful and understanding. The only major issue I experienced with the administration was the lack of communication for all activities. We were either not informed beforehand of details of group activities, trips, etc. or were informed at the very last minute about details and changes and were expected to just be okay with them. Although this kind of communication seemed to be quite common (common culturally), for a study abroad program for American students with different needs (especially for students with health concerns) knowing details of the plans beforehand would have been extremely helpful. Not only that, but also for students in general, knowing what items to prepare (for example for a long hot walk we took out in the sun where many students were told NOT to bring their water bottles) would be extremely helpful.

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

The reason why I'm rating the dorms we lived in only seven stars is because they are not in any way accessible. This is also true for much of the Zhejiang University of Technology Campus. No one in my group had any obvious external physical disabilities, but the fact that there was zero accessibility in the building was concerning to me. I also can't really speak to the cleanliness of the dorms. Perhaps because the inside of the dorms are very old, it's a little difficult to judge whether the dorm is actually clean or not. The lamps were broken (in all of the dorm rooms), maintenance was not always available to help fix things, and there was a balcony, but no windows. I wouldn't say the dorms were not liveable (they were), but there definitely were things I wish were different.

The food in the cafeteria is extremely affordable and there are lots of options. If you want to get takeout or eat out, it's also pretty affordable If you do have food allergies, do be up front about what they are and make sure that you get food that suits your personal needs.

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

Living with Chinese roommates enrolled in the local university definitely helped me feel more integrated with local culture. Rather than solely relying on the program though, I think going out with my peers and even alone (sometimes) was an even better way to immerse myself with local culture.

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

I didn't really run into any major health issues (aside from being sick for over a week), so I can't really speak to this aspect. I would say that it's pretty easy to access healthcare/

Even when I was alone (during the day and even at night), I felt pretty safe. Often times, if I went out after 11PM, I'd be with at least one other person and at least one Chinese roommate.

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

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

Middlebury Schools in China programs have a language pledge. We were expected to speak Mandarin at all times.

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• Dorm

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• Local Students

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• Americans

• Living with Chinese roommates
• Break (week long)
• week in village

• communication
• living conditions
• enforcement of rules (should be fair and not biased)

The Academic or Linguist