Thinking of moving to China for 3 or 4 years to learn Mandarin,,,

[AL][EN]

Hello all

I hope someone can advise me on this.

I am thinking of moving to China for 3 or 4 years to learn Mandarin. I will probably pick a prestigious university outside of Shanghai/Beijing.

Am I right in thinking about €5000 ($7000) is enough to have a comfortable enough life in China per year?

Thanks!

[YingMing]

This is my first reply in this froum.

I am a chinese in BeiJing.

I think $7000 is enough for any city in China,including BeiJing and ShangHai.

The price of consumer goods is low and the rent of apartment is not high.

If you have no attempt to live a luxurious life,just comfortable,that's enough.

[roddy]

Call that RMB50,000 a year, slightly over RMB4,000 a month. Hard to say what your expenses will be without knowing which city and university you're looking at, but factor in tuition fees and rent and I'd say you're looking at living carefully rather than comfortably. Very cheap or shared apartment, not eating out much beyond low-end restaurants and street food, not much travel at the weekend, certainly no imported beer and pizza.

[AL][EN]

Thank you for the replies everyone.

The $7000 a year would exclude tuituin fees - I have a seperate fund for that. So it would just be rent and food and general expenses.

I'll see if I can bump it up by a grand or two.

Thanks!

[flameproof]

For me it would be tight. China is a good place to get around a little. But I guess you can make that cheap too, like that German guy, walking 4000Km from Beijing to Urumqi...

[abcdefg]

4,000 RMB per month sounds pretty lean, especially in a first-tier city. As a newcomer you will be hard pressed to live as cheaply as a native.

Edited May 27, 2009 at 01:40 AM by abcdefg
clarify

[Horse]

Not including accommodation I think 4000 rmb a month would be doable, though tight.

Not being funny but where are you going to find a 'prestigious' university outside Beijing/Shanghai?

[yonglin]

Not being funny but where are you going to find a 'prestigious' university outside Beijing/Shanghai?

Nanjing?

[roddy]

If you take a look at the top ten here, Zhejiang University in Hangzhou, USTC in Hefei, Nanjing University, HiT in Harbin, and Nankai in Tianjin - so that's five out of the top eleven (there's a joint tenth) not in Beijing or Shanghai. Obviously you can argue about the list, but there are well-regarded universities outside of Beijing and Shanghai.

That said, if you're looking for international prestige . . welcome to Beijing, and you need to bring more money.

Edit: Incidentally, you might be better off spending two years studying Chinese, spending twice as much money per month, and then getting a job. Can't see any need for four years of full-time in-country study of the language. Maybe if you're aiming to be an actual Chinese linguist rather than someone who speaks Chinese and does other stuff too.

[anon6969]

I say that's not very much. That's only 4000rmb a month. I lived on 10,000rmb a month in Shanghai and felt it only just comfortable living.

[zerolife]

i think it's definitiv doable. I've lived with a budget of 3500RMB for the last couple months of my stay in BJ.

You would however probably need to:

- Get a bike and avoid taking a cab, you may also use public transportation

- Eat at university cafeteria (the food is actually pretty good for 4-5 RMB)

- You may eat out occasionally for special events

- Don't even think going to the bars

- Hang out as much as possible with your Chinese friends rather than Western friends

Also, you could consider doing a part time or tutoring job. It will not only help with your budget but you will also learn Chinese

[AL][EN]

Thanks for the replies everyone! I much appreciate you taking the time to help me.

Incidentally, you might be better off spending two years studying Chinese, spending twice as much money per month, and then getting a job. Can't see any need for four years of full-time in-country study of the language. Maybe if you're aiming to be an actual Chinese linguist rather than someone who speaks Chinese and does other stuff too.

I hadn't thought of the above - it's good advice.

I have one more question if you don't mind:

I have a masters degree in computer science. Would this qualification and a short TEFL course be enough to get an English teaching job in China?

Cheers!

[anonymoose]

Roddy's advice is pretty good.

I will probably pick a prestigious university outside of Shanghai/Beijing.

If all you want to do is learn Chinese, then I don't think whether the university is prestigious or not really makes a difference. I think you would be better of picking a location that you think you would be happy in, and just go with whatever universities there are there. Things to consider are climate (the northern winters are long and cold), and whether you like bustling cities or prefer a bit more nature. Hangzhou is not a bad compromise. Another good one to consider is Xiamen.

Another thing is, if you are willing to commit to four years, you could always try to enrol on a degree course. At least you'll get some formal qualification for all your pains.

[aristotle1990]

Not including accommodation I think 4000 rmb a month would be doable, though tight.

Now, I don't know about you guys, but if you live like a native, 4000 RMB/month is overkill. You can get by on 7 RMB/day for food (and maybe less) -- that's only 210 RMB/month. Yeah, if you live a Western life in China, 4000 RMB isn't going to get you far, but you're in China -- 入乡随俗!

[anonymoose]

You can get by on 7 RMB/day for food (and maybe less)

Short of eating plain white rice for every meal, where are you going to get by on 7 RMB/day for food? In a provincial city, I think a minimum of 20 RMB/day would be more realistic. I'm not saying it couldn't be done for cheaper, but you need at least some quality, or you'll get sick of it within a week.

[aristotle1990]

Short of eating plain white rice for every meal, where are you going to get by on 7 RMB/day for food?

Actually, even if you just stick to prepared food, you can get by on not much more than 7 RMB/day, provided you don't eat that much. Keep to dirty street vendors and student cafeterias -- this method will have you eating variedly on maybe 10 RMB/day. (My typical daily food budget is about 12 RMB/day, but keep in mind I'm a rather small person. I also eat every scrap of food on the plate, even when I'm full, and take advantage of free food whenever the opportunity presents itself.)

1 huge 煎饼果子 -- 3 kuai.

1 bowl of white rice -- 1 kuai.

1 bowl of fried rice with beef -- 3 kuai.

etc, etc

As for 7, I still maintain it can be done. You have to buy the food in bulk and prepare it yourself, but I do think it's possible. Bags of white rice, tofu, vegetables, maybe some dried fish/meat, bought from some dingy store and prepared yourself, should go a long way.

Edited July 15, 2009 at 12:14 PM by aristotle1990

[imron]

You might also like to give the city you are in. Prices for Beijing/Shanghai will be significantly different from second- or third-tier cities.

[aristotle1990]

"You might also like to give the city you are in. Prices for Beijing/Shanghai will be significantly different from second- or third-tier cities."

Actually, I'm currently a BNU student, but if you know where to look, the prices around here can be very low -- apart from other BNU students, there are almost no foreigners in the neighborhood. Poor college students + lots of high school students + old people = cheap stuff.

[roddy]

apart from other BNU students, there are almost no foreigners in the neighborhood.

Hey! There's me! But yeah, this area can be pretty cheap if you want it to be. Although it seems I don't want it to be, must have spent the best part of 100Y on food and drink today.

[jbradfor]

I have a masters degree in computer science. Would this qualification and a short TEFL course be enough to get an English teaching job in China?

Based on discussion on other threads, yes. Search the boards for "teaching English" for more on this.