Anyone at BNU fall '09?

[blink]

which level are you in?

a few of us are going to sculpting in time this afternoon to study (coffeeshop just west and across the street from the south gate) you're welcome to join if you want. just be aware that the group that's going wants to get quite a bit of work done. we should be pretty easy to spot as we'll be the only table full of students with beishida books...

[hanxue]

Hey guys, so is the internet connection throughout campus really that bad?

Would someone do me a favor and please run this internet test and post the results here? --- http://www.speedtest.net/

I'd be interested to see what approx. I can expect from my internet speed when I go to BNU in spring...

Thanks in advance!!

[blink]

http://www.speedtest.net/result/578687664.png

results:

download .26 Mbps

upload .07 Mbps

ping 630 ms

I don't know how that stacks up to anywhere else in terms of numbers, but I can tell you the internet here is slow. Some students say its due to the amount of downloading everyone in the building is trying to do...

[hanxue]

Jesus Christ, now this really is bad..... I get 1.06 mb/s download speed where I'm at right now (at home), and it's already not that fast but totally adequate for me though. But 26 kbps.... damn, I'm so going to hate China!

Is there an option to upgrade to a higher speed? The main thing that concerns me about such slow internet speed is that it will highly affect my Skype conversation - I know that if the connection is crappy, so is the voice quality over Skype..........

[hanxue]

Does anyone know if 1 semester over at BNU counts as a "short-term stay" or a "long-term stay"? It would be a good thing for me to know, so that I can start making calculations about the dorm costs in advance...

[blink]

A semester is quite a few months so its long term. I think the short term is for just a few weeks.

[hanxue]

Hm, are you sure? In that case the definition of BNU's "short-term stay" differs from that of Confucius Institute?

Confucius Institute monthly allowance is at the following rates:

a. Short-term studying ： CNY1 ,400

.

.

.

3. One-off settlement subsidy, at the following rates (CNY Yuan) ：

a. Students who will study in China for 1 academic year or more ： CNY 1,500

b. Students who will study in China more than 1 semester, but within 1 academic year ： CNY 1,000.

From the statement above I drew conclusion that my 1-semester scholarship would fall under the "short-term studying", but is that also what BNU would define a "short-term stay" in their dorm pricing?

[blink]

ok I think we already covered this question for you in this very topic once before (you asked adrianlondon), but all I know is that when I divide the amount I paid for a semester when I arrived by the number of days in the term (sept 5 - jan 18) I get the long term room cost.

I have no idea how much you get for monthly institute allowance or how thats supposed to relate to BNU's dorm pricing - by the way the apartment building I live in is not the scholarship student dorm which has very different pricing.

If you want something more definite than the amount I'm paying to stay here you'll have to call BNU.

[hanxue]

Oh, why I referred to the Confucius Institute was merely for their definition of "short-term stay" because I thought since they are a Chinese institution that their definition would agree with what BNU consider a "short-term stay". Well, but in any case, I prefer what you've told me - because it means cheaper dorms for me.

What dorm are you staying at again?

[adrianlondon]

How are you all finding BNU? While I was there (Autumn semester 2006) I ended up meeting loads of people who also picked BNU from this forum. Admittdly it turned out that they only picked BNU because of a kind of unofficial review I made prior to picking the place myself. Luckily, we were all enjoying it, otherwise I reckon I could have got some grief ;) We became good friends and hung out regularly.

I'm only asking because ... I'm coming to Beijing on holiday next month and fancy seeing the BNU campus for nostalgia reasons and wondered if anyone was around, and socialising. We'd regularly cycle down to Houhai and hit the bars there as that was my favourite destination. I never did like Sanlitun, and still don't. Maybe Houhai's gone that way now, as well. In which case, where's the new trendy place?

[roddy]

I'll still be around. As far as changes go . . . big new sports building on campus. Sculpting in Time at the south gate. Tube Station's tried to turn itself into some kind of bistro, but unfortunately has left all the graffiti in place. Kro's Nest Pizza up on the third ring. Haven't been to Houhai myself for ages. Nanluoguxiang isn't too bad, but very much has a Tourist and Culture Traditional Shopping and Restaurant Street feel now. Don't go there anywhere near as much as I used to, but it should be a bit calmer if you're here in winter. Gentrification continues to spread out up to the north stretch over Gulou Dong, in Guozijian, etc.

[adrianlondon]

I'll send you a pm once I've got my dates finalised Roddy. I'm definitely up for eating continuously, which I believe is your usual daily activity inbetween coffees and pretending to work.

[supimtoni]

Hi,

I plan on applying to BNU's Chinese Language Program for the fall 2010 semester. I wanted to ask those already at BNU (or have been at BNU) what the classes were like. What is a typical day's schedule? How many classes do you take in one day? Is it pretty difficult to obtain good grades or are instructors relatively generous in terms of grades? How many hours of homework is typically required per night? I ask because I don't want to be in my dormitory studying all the time when I am there. I want to have time to go out and explore Beijing.

Thanks

[hanxue]

Anyone know when does the spring semester 2010 start?

[worriedmum]

Do you know the final exam dates for June 2010? If you need to leave before that, do you know if BNU will allow you to take the final exam in early May, for example?

[lilbun]

spring 2010 probably starts last week of february/early march.

if you need to leave early, you can probably ask the office and your teachers if you can take your tests earlier, but you probably have to pay a fee to take the test early. but if they're anything like beida, you may not be able to take your final test early or later and if you talk to your teachers and the office earlier and thell them your situation, if it's okay with the teachers, they'll just grade you up until the work that you did before you left.

class schedule isn't bad, some days you'll have a large gap between classes, some you'll only have 2 back to back classes and some days you'll only have class. pretty standard for college courses i suppose. your classes will be at least a hanyu (reading/writing), kouyu (huihua- speaking), newspaper reading (in upper levels at least), and a tingli (but they refer to it more as a tv watching class).

although classes are stupid in my opinion in that when they stick you in one class level, it's the same level for all of your classes. say if you test into level 301, all of your classes are that level, so somehow after the placement test, they average out your oral ability and reading/writing ability to put you into a level that should match your abilities. but say if your speaking is far better than your reading/writing ability or vice versa, it sucks because one of 2 of the classes will end being more difficult than others.

plus, what i think is even stupider, is that they'll assign you into a specific ban (class) within your level and so will everyone else- so in every single class, you will see the exact same people all the time! it's fine if you all get along, but if you don't, it's not horrible, but you still have to see everyone:roll:. hehe. as one student said to me when i didn't understand, "it's like kindergarten, except you change classrooms and you go to the teacher!".

so possibly when you switch one class, you'll have to change all of your classes. but i heard if you don't care about your grades as in you don't actually need them, you can change individual class levels as long as you get permission, which is what i did. i don't know if that necessary means they won't give you a certificate at the end or not or that your grades are completely worthless if you do so, but you can change just one if you need to. although, i bet your grade can still count even if you do. just ask the office and if in the end you have to go down a level with all of your classes, then at least you won't be killing yourself trying to do the whole course load!

oh, and by the way, depending on how much you put into preparing for each class, you can have up to 4+ hours of homework a night. actual turn-in assignments are really only given once a week though. so, it also depends on how much you yourself want to put into it too.

[hanxue]

Thanks for the reply.

Btw, what about sockets? Do they use American or European style or neither?

[gato]

Btw, what about sockets? Do they use American or European style or neither?

Most places in China use the same power socket type as the US, but the electricity delivered is 220v (as opposed to 110v in the US). The higher voltage will burn your gadget unless you use a transformer or if it has a built-in transformer (like many laptops).

http://www.educationabroadnetwork.org/?id=69

Why do some countries use 110v while others use 220v?

The United States uses 110-volt electricity, whereas most countries outside North America use 220-volt electricity.

Electricity in China is 220 Volts, alternating at 50 cycles per second. If you travel to China with a device that does not accept 220 Volts at 50 Hertz, you will need a voltage converter.

[hanxue]

Oh, good. Then I don't need to worry about that.

[supimtoni]

Thanks for the reply.

I have one more question, if you don't mind. How strict are the teachers in terms of attendance. Is attendance absolutely mandatory and factored into your overall grade?

Thanks again.