Transitioning from a student visa to... something... this summer

[bigtops]

I'm sure this kind of question has come up in previous years, but having had so much fun tightening up for the Olympics in 2008 (麻烦), the 60th, the 20th, and the 50th anniversaries in 2009 (麻烦), it seems there is a new round of tightening for the Expo (more 麻烦) so I thought I'd make a new thread. I'm sure I won't be the only person with this question this year, as I've already heard people mumbling over it in the flesh-and-blood world recently.

So, despite optimistic rumors to the contrary circulating amongst foreign students, people here on student visas cannot currently simply turn them into tourist visas without leaving the country (this being my third summer here, I shoulda known better...). I had high hopes for this based on rumors but... no luck. Everybody I spoke to at the Beijing PSB today gave that a thumbs down.

Having studied my ass off on the Chinese government scholarship all this year... I'm still 破 pimpin'. I'm heading down to the Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine in September, which means that after I finish in Beijing in June I have a two month gap to fill. I do have work arranged, but not of the visa-blessing type. Given my financial situation, my hope is to find a way to avoid any and all visa runs. A pipe dream? Perhaps... But I'm not the only one in these shoes so if you've a moment and could lend a few words of wisdom, I'll thank ye kindly.

So onto the questions...

-I got a noncommittal response from a reasonably helpful woman at the PSB to this one: if I apply for a summer school program that provides visa sponsorship, since I am already on a student visa now, could I extend that visa without leaving the country, even though I will be switching schools?

-Is transitioning to a tourist visa from a student visa without leaving China something an agent can help with? Any ballpark figures for cost? Any recommended agents?

-The Shanghai university has offered to try to help me, if I register now for the fall semester, to get my visa to start at the end of June instead of the beginning of September. Any idea if they are likely to actually be able to pull that off?

Well, many thanks for any help!

[bigtops]

Posting answers to some of my own questions in case they will help others later on this season...

-The agent I spoke to said switching from a student visa to a tourist visa while remaining in China is currently impossible, even with their help.

-Student visas can be extended for a minimum of three months by Diqiucun (Global Village School) in Wudaokou, Beijing. I paste below what I wrote in a thread about that school...

At current prices extending a soon-to-expire student visa will cost about 1400 yuan, but I was warned that these prices are subject to change, as are laws with the coming May-October World Exhibition in Shanghai (what those legal changes nobody knows).

The minimum length they will arrange is three months, and you must pay in advance for 1.5 hours/day of classes while arranging the visa. This brings the total to around 3500 yuan. You will not be reimbursed for any missed classes, and of course can schedule more if you want to study more.

For students who are finishing sessions in June and need visas to remain studying in China afterwards, they can arrange this, but cannot start the process more than one month in advance. Due to the possible complexities of visa issues come late May, when they told me to come back to apply, it is impossible to predict if the ability to extend student visas through this school will remain at that time.

[rezaf]

上海中医大 extended my student visa for 3 months last year (when I finished my Chinese course and wanted to start the TCM course) and I just payed 400 yuans but I've heard lots of bad rumors for this year.