Study Abroad in China - Landscape Architecture/Urban Design

[design]

Hi everyone,

I'm a Taiwanese-American college student interested in studying abroad next spring for either landscape architecture or urban design. I had originally intended to study abroad in Taiwan, however, several people in my department have been urging me to look at China instead. Unlike Taiwan, I don't have any contacts in China nor have I ever been there before. Due to China's rapid development, however, it has become a hot spot in my field of study and I thought it would be worth looking into.

This might be a shot in the dark, but is anyone aware of any universities with a good landscape architecture program? A better question might be: how would I go about trying to find Chinese universities with good LA programs? I would also have to set up correspondence with that university and convince them to let me study abroad there. I know getting through the bureaucratic paperwork at my school is a pain at best, so any ideas to how hard the process is for an American student to study at a Chinese university?

Also, I read on wiki that the spring academic term in China typically runs from Feb/March to July. Is this really the case of all universities? Ideally, I'd get out of that spring term by May.

Thanks in advance!