Zhejiang University

[Alex_Hart]

That's my problem as well, Totient. My girlfriend is rather against the idea of having flat mates and so we've been mostly looking at single bedroom apartments, which tend to require us to shell out at least around 3,000 for a 老房子, an old apartment building, if we want gas for cooking. I found a beautiful apartment near 文一路 with roommates like you describe and it was about the same price. Baffling but an agent told me most people at the lower end of the budget are young and don't want a kitchen (since they just order take out everyday) or want roommates. 

 

My apartment is 3,200/month and is about a 4 minute walk from the 留学生楼, but it's a really dirty building.

 

I look online and find apartments I like, then contact the agent who listed it. Usually, the apartment they list online is fake but they might be the agent for that building or know similar places. I also contact several agents at once - I currently have 3 I'm speaking to (I'm not in Hangzhou, so haven't started actually checking out the places they send me pics of). They usually have apartments with flatmates already inside, so you could do that. Otherwise find classmates who want to leave and check it out with them! Finally, you can just walk into an agent's office and they'll take you around on their scooter. They'll ask you if you want a 老房子 or a new one. That's up to you; I like old buildings because the community tends to be nicer, but the apartments can be rather shocking.

 

Good luck with apartment hunting. It's actually pretty fun, although stressful. It was great practice for my spoken Chinese, and it was my first real attempts at serious bargaining. I've actually done it three or four times with classmates now, and it got progressively more fun. Bargain hard though, seriously. I managed to get the agent to drop my 业务费 (originally 50 yuan a month, I paid 100 yuan for the year) and the apartment went from 3,800 a month to 3,200 a month. I'm told agents get a large chunk of their salary by overcharging for everything, so they have a lot of room to bargain down. You might also find some gems - my eye is on a first floor 老房子 with 假山 in the backyard. The agent was pretty shocked that I was willing to look at backyard apartments (many Chinese think the moisture and drafts from living on the first floor will make them sick). 

[Mihaela]

Hi, is there anyone who will be studying Master of China Studies taught in Chinese this year in ZJU or will be living in Xixi Campus 10? Is there any wechat group of new students that I can join? Thank you in advance. 

[Mihaela]

@heff Hey, could you please add me to the wechat group you created? Thank you very much  my ID: mihaelam5

[Angelina]

I still live there, Xixi Campus, Dorm 10. Welcome! 

 

 

[Mihaela]

@Angelina great to hear that! I'm so sorry if you've already explained that but I want to ask how this particular building is, is there any change to get a single room (I'm willing to pay more), is it true that the rooms don't have separate bathrooms but there is only one

[Mihaela]

@Angelina sorry, I don't know what happened with my previous message. Just wanted to ask about the bathrooms? I heard from other students who study in ZJU, but live in some of the other campuses, that Xixi Campus will shock me. Please tell me that all I heard is overexaggerated  thank your for your answer. 

[Angelina]

The toilets and showers are shared. You don't get a separate one in your room.

 

You can't move to a different campus. You should talk to Li Tang if you have a scholarship. They can reimburse you 700/month if you are a master's degree student or 1000/month PhD instead of the usual free accommodation on campus. Then you can try to find something outside. 

 

You can pay 900 to not have a roommate, but the problem is the toilet and that will still be there. 

 

So try to talk to them about this reimbursement for living off campus. 

 

 

 

 

[Angelina]

A guide to libraries at Zhejiang University. 

 

WeChat link:  

 

http://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/COEkiC8JzmMkcPzleq92Zw

 

[heff]

Zhejiang University is still accepting applications for Chinese language Program. Registration for the Chinese Program (for those who are already accepted) will be on March 5 & 6, 2018. 

[Alex_Hart]

Masters in China Studies 中国学 at Zhejiang University.

 

I'm now in my fourth month of classes after having attended the language courses last year. Note that I am in the Chinese language program at Xixi campus; there are also courses at the new Haining campus which use English. My courses are a mix of Chinese and foreign students, but only use Chinese. If you enroll in the Chinese language courses and find them too difficult, you can switch to the English language major but it is in a different city. I have no comments on the English language program as I know nobody in that program.

 

The major is only for foreigners. There are no Chinese students in the major. There are also no courses in the major! The major is in the 人文学院 and basically picks random courses that teachers decide to open to the major. You need to finish a certain number of credits, and the required courses will change based on what teachers decide to teach. Most of your classes will be with Chinese PhD students studying their major, for example Chinese philosophy courses will be with Chinese students getting their PhD in Chinese philosophy. Some courses are foreigner-only.

 

I'll start with my conclusion: The major is much worse than I hoped. Organization is pretty much nonexistent, and the lack of an adviser really hurts your ability to figure out what courses to attend (unlike, e.g. the linguistics students, who enrolled with an adviser already picked). It's also very hard to find an adviser. The major is extremely broad and a lot of teachers don't want to bother advising students who aren't going to be primarily in their major, e.g. if you choose to do your thesis in linguistics, you will still be taking a lot of classes with nothing to do with linguistics. An adviser from the linguistics department won't know those courses and won't be able to advise you, and will often refuse to do so even when asked. I believe my 学姐 said she asked nine teachers before finding one who agreed to advise her.

 

Other than course selection, many teachers are surprised when a bunch of foreign students show up. Some of them didn't know 中国学 was a major for foreigners, other teachers thought one student would show up but we have around ten in the major. At least one teacher asked all the foreign students to drop the course. Teachers are also pretty 随便. I waited outside a classroom for an hour on the first day only to discover the teacher didn't want to have class that day, before finally being told to go elsewhere and wait another hour for the teacher to arrive; other teachers have taken off several class days (and there are not that many), or sent us to listen to lectures by other teachers that have little to do with the course goals. While I and a friend were able to figure out the course selection by ourselves, several students could not figure it out and the 学院 was unhelpful - they all missed the first week of classes.

 

The courses are also pretty weird. So far, I've taken most of the courses that were open to our major. I mention difficulty and this might refer to language level (I'm HSK 5, which I would consider the absolute minimum for this major), or to content:

汉字文化研究 Culture of Chinese language - interesting idea, and would have loved it but content was too easy; language and content both easy. Just for foreigners.

现代思潮研究 Mostly dealt with post-Mao analysis of language and aesthetics; very difficult to follow the discussion if your Chinese isn't fluent, and I found it pretty boring because class time is mostly lecture and close reading with minimal discussion. With Chinese PhD students.

中国概况 (required for all 留学生 of all majors, I think?). You study a major topic every week. When you have 3 hours to discuss "Chinese philosophy" and another 3 hours to discuss "Chinese Economics," you already know you're not going to be going very deep. Some teachers are at least funny, making it a good course to practice your 听力, I guess. Very easy for content and language. Just foreigners, all majors, about 100 people.

佛教哲学 Buddhist Philosophy (should actually be called Sinicization of Buddhist Philosophy). My favorite class so far - interesting, analytical; discussions and questions are very welcome in class. Ranges from difficult to very difficult if your Chinese isn't fluent because there are a ton of terms that are going to be pretty hard to grasp coming from Buddhism. Would recommend reading on Buddhist terms before coming to class so that you can understand what is being explained, otherwise lots of words are transliterated from Sanskrit so won't make much sense. Heck, looking the words up in English sometimes doesn't even begin to help you understand, but this is what one should expect if taking courses outside their specialty! With Chinese PhD students.

新词多元研究 Study of "New Words," mostly from Japan and the west. Most of class is devoted to students giving presentations on the text. I'm not really sure if it's difficult or not; sometimes, I think it is, then I realize it's just that I didn't understand a key word and suddenly it's really easy. Not very interesting. The reading is pretty difficult if your 阅读 isn't great, and the presentation seems to be just "read aloud key points." Open to 中国学 and 语言学, all foreigners this year.  

中国文化遗产研究 Study of the Chinese cultural heritage. Literally the most boring class I have ever sat through in my entire life. The Chinese PhD students all sit in the back and sleep. Seems it's a medley of many majors, foreigners and Chinese students alike. I had to drop this course after two lectures because I was worried I might jump out the window. My classmate says it got worse after I dropped (new teacher). No readings, discussion or engagement, so easy if you're not going to kill yourself due to boredom. Language is also pretty easy since the teacher just lectures for 3-4 hours in a monotone.

中国古典园林空间分析 Spatial analysis of traditional gardens; teacher is interesting when he lectures, but he came two hours late the first class and didn't come to three other classes. We've had six classes. Two Chinese PhD students and two foreigners. Teacher is very open to questions and discussion; he gives a short essay to be read once a week, plus three large textbooks (mine have yet to arrive, so can't comment on difficulty).

 

Content wise, I would not say the courses are particularly comparable to my American uni. They're more similar to first or second year undergraduate courses in the US. This includes the classes with Chinese students. That's fine for me because my Chinese is not very good, but it means I wouldn't recommend these courses for students who are already fluent and primarily trying to master the content rather than the language.

 

Language Requirements  Tough one. I was told we need HSK 5 with any score or HSK 4 with a score over 220. ZheDa language courses are roughly split in that way; I passed HSK 5 after I finished course 4 with extra studying; half my classmates were either course 4 or 5 (also HSK 5 words) last year. We also have students who only finished level 2 or 3. This is going to depend a lot on what you want to get out of this major. If you just want to be in China and have a scholarship, then I'd say HSK 5 is fine. You'll pass your courses. If you want to get something out of the major, HSK 5 is not enough. You're wasting your time. If you want to take better courses, you can take some outside the major (especially your 2nd year when you don't need to take any major courses anymore), but I would very strongly recommend having a higher Chinese level than required. Either your 听力 and general knowledge should be much higher, allowing you to follow the lectures, or your 阅读 should be much higher, allowing you to understand the readings. Best case would of course be that both you can understand both the readings and the lectures! Cliche but if you do the readings before class, you will understand a lot more of the lecture. Actually, this is only true for some of my courses (e.g. Buddhist philosophy). Other classes have little or nothing to do with the assigned text.

 

Conclusion I would have dropped this major and found a job or gone home to apply to a new program if not for the scholarship. I, and at least one other classmate, have agreed that the major is useful to increase our Chinese level even though it is not comparable to an MA in the west. If it had been comparable, I would have failed already. As it is, my grades are pretty good and I'm really baffled as to why. The MA is frustrating due to lack of communication, organization and the low quality of courses. If your Chinese level is considerably higher than HSK 5, I would recommend applying directly to a major with Chinese students. If your primary goal is to increase your Chinese, I'd try to figure out a way to stay in the language courses for two years. It's been a really disappointing experience for me, and I wouldn't particularly recommend it to anybody serious about their studies.

[Kurchak]

Hello. Is anybody here from Master of Translation at Zheda ? I would love to know something about this program.

[happy_hyaena]

On 12/30/2017 at 7:41 AM, Alex_Hart said:

Conclusion I would have dropped this major and found a job or gone home to apply to a new program if not for the scholarship. I, and at least one other classmate, have agreed that the major is useful to increase our Chinese level even though it is not comparable to an MA in the west. If it had been comparable, I would have failed already. As it is, my grades are pretty good and I'm really baffled as to why. The MA is frustrating due to lack of communication, organization and the low quality of courses. If your Chinese level is considerably higher than HSK 5, I would recommend applying directly to a major with Chinese students. If your primary goal is to increase your Chinese, I'd try to figure out a way to stay in the language courses for two years. It's been a really disappointing experience for me, and I wouldn't particularly recommend it to anybody serious about their studies.

 

Would it have been possible to do another 2 years of language courses at a different university? Or is a problem related to scholarship funding?

[Alex_Hart]

8 hours ago, happy_hyaena said:

Would it have been possible to do another 2 years of language courses at a different university? Or is a problem related to scholarship funding?

You can apply for a different scholarship, but you will need to do it at the end of your first year. I also think you need to apply for a different university, but I'm not sure about that. I had one classmate who was doing the ZheDa Language program with the Chinese Government Scholarship and then switched to Zhejiang Normal university (I think) and the Zhejiang Province Scholarship. Note that not all the scholarships give the same amount, and the universities are in different locations. 

[happy_hyaena]

40 minutes ago, Alex_Hart said:

You can apply for a different scholarship, but you will need to do it at the end of your first year. I also think you need to apply for a different university, but I'm not sure about that. I had one classmate who was doing the ZheDa Language program with the Chinese Government Scholarship and then switched to Zhejiang Normal university (I think) and the Zhejiang Province Scholarship. Note that not all the scholarships give the same amount, and the universities are in different locations. 

 

I was just wondering what was stopping someone from doing 2 years of language study at one university, and then when they kick you out as the max is 2 years, go and do another 2 years of language study at another university? 

[Alex_Hart]

1 hour ago, happy_hyaena said:

I was just wondering what was stopping someone from doing 2 years of language study at one university, and then when they kick you out as the max is 2 years, go and do another 2 years of language study at another university? 

Sorry, I'm not sure I follow. As far as I know, the only language scholarships here are 1 year - everybody I have met who is staying for an extra year switched scholarships, e.g. from CGS to Zhejiang Uni or Zhejiang province. 

 

If you mean 自费 students, they don't seem to have a limit - I've met some people who are on their third year here. These students tend to be people who are really here to work and use the language program as a method of getting a visa, so they rarely actually attend class. As long as you pay, I can't imagine the school kicking you out of the language program. 

 

In reference to the government scholarship, your application is forwarded to the government scholarship people. If you were trying to "game" the system by applying to another program, they already have your ID info from your last application. It might work anyway - I know at least one person who got the scholarship for one year, then got another scholarship the 2nd year, then reapplied for the government scholarship the 3rd year, but the third year was for a degree rather than language. 

 

[happy_hyaena]

3 hours ago, Alex_Hart said:

Sorry, I'm not sure I follow. As far as I know, the only language scholarships here are 1 year - everybody I have met who is staying for an extra year switched scholarships, e.g. from CGS to Zhejiang Uni or Zhejiang province. 

 

If you mean 自费 students, they don't seem to have a limit - I've met some people who are on their third year here. These students tend to be people who are really here to work and use the language program as a method of getting a visa, so they rarely actually attend class. As long as you pay, I can't imagine the school kicking you out of the language program. 

 

Ah okay now I understand - there are only 1 year scholarships for language programmes, and of course 自费 students can study as much as they like.

 

I misunderstood you. I thought there was a limit of 2 years of language studies in one university and then they wanted you to either apply for a "real" degree or you had to change university; and also I figured that this rule might either be enforced by a hard limit, or by denying people scholarship money.

[Alex_Hart]

2 minutes ago, happy_hyaena said:

I misunderstood you. I thought there was a limit of 2 years of language studies in one university and then they wanted you to either apply for a "real" degree or you had to change university; and also I figured that this rule might either be enforced by a hard limit, or by denying people scholarship money.

Sorry for the misunderstanding! MA students can elect to spend their first year studying in the language program and then attend the MA, but this is not required. About half of the foreigners I've met (almost all in linguistics or 中国学) did this, but others did not. I know of at least two students who asked to spend an extra year (2 years total) in the language program, and both requests were denied. Of course, one person being denied does not mean the next person will also be denied - never hurts to ask again while in China.

 

Note that it is required for many foreign students (possibly all? Not sure on this) to attend a 汉语课 their first semester as an MA student, but you can 旁听, not attend, if you've passed HSK 5. I went the first week and saw classmates who had already passed HSK 6 a year ago. Most of us chose to 旁听.

[sheroo]

Hi, i am due to register for Chinese Language Program this coming 5/6 of March. I am now in the midst of locating my accommodation, perhaps i will stay in hotel or hostel for the first - two weeks of arrival. Giving the condition that, i prefer private room with bathroom attached (no shared bathroom):

1. I would like to receive your opinion and advice regarding living on campus or off campus.

2. If it is better to live off campus, please help me to narrow down or suggest area to search (easy access to campus via metro/bus/etc, travelling time less than 30 minutes)

 

All your responses are appreciated.

 

 

[Alex_Hart]

On 2/10/2018 at 4:17 PM, sheroo said:

Giving the condition that, i prefer private room with bathroom attached (no shared bathroom)

This is going to depend on your luck. The main dorm for fee-paying international language students only has private bedrooms with private bathrooms (the International Student Building on Yuquan campus). It is also extremely convenient for going to class as you will only need to walk a minute or so. If you are a scholarship student, you will definitely not be in this building. This building is often full, so you will need to depend on your luck to get a room. I think it is around 1500 yuan/month.

 

If you want to stay on campus in the same area as the school, there are very few or no options in this price range. You will want to look at the area around Yuquan campus. If you rent, are you willing to share a bathroom with people in other rooms? If you're looking for your own bed/bath off campus, you're probably out of luck unless you want to rent an entire apartment on your own (3500 yuan+/month for an old apartment in these areas). There are some newer buildings where you can rent one room out of five with a shared bathroom, but these will also set you back around 2000+ yuan/month in the newer buildings. 

 

You will also want to consider how long you will be in China. Since you are arriving in the spring semester, will you stay for one year? One semester? Half a year? Apartments come with a 12 month lease, but may be willing to shrink it to a 6 month lease if you are willing to pay more rent.

[heff]

On 2/10/2018 at 4:17 PM, sheroo said:

Giving the condition that, i prefer private room with bathroom attached (no shared bathroom):

1. I would like to receive your opinion and advice regarding living on campus or off campus.

2. If it is better to live off campus, please help me to narrow down or suggest area to search (easy access to campus via metro/bus/etc, travelling time less than 30 minutes)

 

Availing single rooms in the International building is really by luck. A lot of students (self-support) wasn't able to get a single room last semester. So if you want to get a single room in the International building, I suggest you go there earlier (before the registration day). As for my experience, I chose to live off campus and it was a great choice. The apartment is near a bus stop and it's just 10-15 minutes away from the Yuquan Campus （北门). There are also a lot of communities where you can get an apartment. Single apartment might be a little more expensive though.