Peking University/ Beida Fall 2010

[kal1189]

Hey guys!

I'm going to Beida this fall semester to learn Mandarin! Anyone else going? I found topics about tsinghua and blcu but I haven't found anything about Beida so I am starting one! (Probably because Peking University/Beida/Beijing University simply has so many names that its hard to track in forums o.o )

Just curious who are the other people that I would be meeting there!

[Holly]

I'll be studying at Bedia this Fall through a program called the China Studies Institute. Shoot me an email at jefford2@uwm.edu. I'd love to chat! My name's Holly, btw. ^_^

[vkim67]

Now that you guys have studied at Beida these couple months, could you please write about your experience here? I'm trying to choose a few schools (between Beida, BLCU, BNU, Zhejiang, YNNU, YNU) Thanks!

[Holly]

What are you interested in hearing about, vkim?

[vkim67]

Hi Holly,

Have you audited any courses at Beida? If so, did any of the professors have strong accents or use words/syntax from their own dialect?

How's life in general? Do you find it hard to mingle with Chinese students? Have you joined any organizations and such? Is there a "Chinese corner"? How is the cafeteria food? If this isn't too personal-- about how much do you find yourself spending per month on food/entertainment/transportation/etc?

Also-- could you talk about the Chinese language courses a bit? Ex. structure, teaching methods, course materials, electives

Does Beida offer free HSK electives?

Thanks!!

Vkim67

[Holly]

I don't audit any courses, as I am taking part in a language intensive study abroad program (called the China Studies Program). I only have Chinese language classes, from Mon-Fri, about 7 hours a day or so.

Life here is okay. I was set up with an off-campus apartment because I'm an immersion student, and need to live with a native speaker. They actually put us with professors, which I found a little odd, to be honest. My apartment is really nice, but I've seen some of the other students' apartments, and....wow. Yeah.... One guy had a bad case of worms in his bathroom. I'll leave it at that. His apartment looked like a prison. I've seen the dorms for foreign students on campus, and they're really not bad at all. Nice bathrooms, actually pretty big, and someone cleans your bathroom for you. Nice. They were better than my friend's off-campus apartment he got stuck with.

Life in general in China is a bit difficult for me, as I'm getting hit very hard with health problems that are most likely due to the environment here, which is highly polluted and not very clean in general. I find it hard to mingle with Chinese students for a number of reasons, including my busy schedule and most students complete inability (or perhaps desire) to speak English. I was shocked when I came to China and no one spoke any English, even the people working at major tourist attractions. The beggers speak the best English here! There's a phenomenon my teacher told me about called "mute English." Apparently because students focus on reading and writing English to pass all of their important tests, especially entrance tests, they can barely speak English at all. They don't seem to understand it either...so you have to be willing (and able) to speak some Chinese to get around more easily. I've run into many tourists here who think everyone can speak English. Nope, not true. I've had to help them out many times trying to purchase tickets or ask for directions, etc.

I did try joining a club, but with the language barriers, it wasn't really worth my time. I could rarely understand what was going on, and felt my time would be better spent going out and exploring China instead. I have so little time here, y'know? It's hard to pick and choose what to do.

I don't think there's a Chinese "corner." Be a little wary of the cafeteria food. My friend got food poisoning at one of the campus restaurants, and many other people in the program said they got some stomach issues. I know 2 people who stopped eating on campus. But unfortunately China isn't exactly clean, and I've spotted some roach-like bugs crawling around even in nicer restaurants. Diarrhea will be inevitable at some point! Haha. Visit a travel doctor and get some antibiotics just to be safe.

Because I have some very unique chronic health issues that prohibit me from eating about 85% of Chinese food, I have to spend a lot more to buy imported food, including bread, peanut butter, etc. I can eat things like mantou, but most Chinese food has too many sauces and spices on it that I can't have. Imported food is NOT CHEAP. We're talking $10-15 for a small box of Frosted Flakes or Cheeros at some places.

My study abroad program has excursions every other weekend that are part of the program fee, so I didn't spend any money to enter places like the Forbidden City, Summer Palace, etc. However, I have been visiting places on my own, like the zoo and Temple of Heaven. I get an entrance discount a lot because I have a Beida student ID. It's nigh impossible for me to give you a number, though, because I'm not really keeping track of my spending. I'm buying a LOT of stuff, though. I like to shop. And despite what people say, many things here aren't dirt cheap, especially at tourist areas. You can often bargain, but not all of the time. Also, my situation is unique because I can't buy the ultra cheap Chinese food. If you like Chinese food, you can eat for very cheap here. We're talking a few US dollars for an entire meal.

Cabs are expensive, so I would try to stick to using the subway. I dislike the buses because they're confusing. I have the little card you can use in the subways (and even in cabs, apparently). You can get those at the subway stations. Very convenient.

I'm not sure if Beida offers free HSK electives. My classes are okay. I have class every day 9-12, then lunch break, and have another class from 1:30-3:20, and then a 30 minute one-on-one class. My morning class is the most intense and focuses on reading, writing, and speaking, while the afternoon class is a little more speaking focused. The one-on-one class usually involves just a discussion or practicing using the new vocab and sentence structures. In my classes, we read the textbook dialogues out loud, have discussions, lectures, and plenty of homework that sometimes involves going out and interviewing Chinese people. We have two tests per week - one for the morning class and one for the afternoon. We also have two textbooks. Right now we're learning between 40-60 new words per day. It's pretty tiring. We move very fast, too, so sometimes I feel like I'm memorizing, not learning.

However, keep in mind I'm going through a program, so I don't think this is actually Beida's language classes...I'm not positive how it works!

[vkim67]

Hi Holly,

Thanks so much for the in-depth response!!

I stopped watching people make our food because ignorance is really bliss here (considering I don't have too much stomach problems).... I saw the chef turn around to drink water while cooking food and then dripped a bunch (while drinking) onto the rice that was already scooped and waiting for the side dish he was cooking..... another time i saw a woman wipe sweat off her brows, rub her nose, handle money, and then use the same bare hands to start cutting meat.

Food & bathroom/room cleanliness will probably be the biggest issues for me as well! From your review, sounds like Beijing doesn't get much better than Harbin in those aspects... well for low-budget students anyway.

That's interesting that they put you with professors.... do you find that they're willing to converse and discuss issues as well as help you adjusting to life in beijing? As professors they're probably busy as well but... they must have volunteered to live with foreigners right? So they would likely be more open-minded and perhaps willing to interact with you?

Well wish you the best, Thanks again for the description.

Vkim67