Application to BLCU(passport and other stuff)

[rebor]

Hi!

I'm planning on studying at BLCU this fall and I'm just about to send in my application. It seems pretty straight-forward, but I have a few questions. My passport expires in August 2012, and since I'll be studying for a year I will stay in Beijing until July of this year. Will this pose a problem in the application process, I mean the fact that I will only have one month left on my passport when I leave? Or do they just want to see it as identification and don't care about that? I will get a new one before I apply for my visa, and I'm guessing it shouldn't be a problem, but it would be nice to hear from someone who actually knows

Also, I saw that they recommend you to scan the documents required and send in your application via e-mail, which seems convenient, but I read some post around here that said that email wasn't to be trusted when applying. Does anyone care to elaborate?

I've studied for a couple of years at university, is it enough to send in a transcript of the courses I've taken as my "academic diploma"? I'm applying for the short-term program.

Thanks in advance

[ohaacke]

BLCU You'll be okay since you will get a new passport when you apply for the visa. If the school happens to ask about it, just tell them you are in the process of getting a new passport. It won't affect the admissions process.

When I applied to college in China it was also via e-mail. It's okay to handle it through email, just make sure their email address is the school's or the person you are contacting is listed on BLCU's site. I applied to many schools in China a few years ago and they all were through email.

You can just send your transcript as your academic diploma, just make sure if they ask for your high school diploma to send a copy of that also. The schools I applied to all made me send my High School diploma.

Good luck! If you have any other questions hope I can help.

[rebor]

Thank you for your quick and comprehensive answer! I'll make sure to get a copy of my high school diploma too, then, just in case.

[rebor]

They ask for my chinese name in the application form, how do I know what that would be? Can I simply give myself a chinese name?

[ohaacke]

Yeah you can. My name is Owen, so I chose the direct translation 欧文. It translates well into Chinese and doesn't sound too awkward. Take "大山" for example, the famous former Canadian that lives in China (google him). His name is neither a Chinese name nor a direct English translation.

You can do a direct translation or choose a real Chinese name. Think about it and ask some Chinese friends what they think before you write it down on your application, because it might not be too convenient to change it. Since you going to school in China and will be staying in the Chinese speaking crowd, people will know you by your Chinese name, not your English name. The school will also keep you on record with your Chinese name.

Make sure you know how to write your Chinese name too, you'll use it a lot!

If you need any suggestions on choosing a name let me know.

祝你好运

[rebor]

Thanks again for taking the time to reply!

Ah, I see, that's quite fascinating. Never imagined I would be giving myself a name like this, it's kinda cool(while a bit weird to be completely honest ). My name is Rasmus, what would be the direct translation of that? I'm guessing that a direct translation means choosing characters that are pronounced just like the syllables in my name? A bit of help would be very welcome, is there an online resource where I can read more about this?

I contacted BLCU and I didn't need to provide one on the application, but I'll still be needing one this fall when I get there, seems like something you should think through!

I had some problems adding my picture to my scanned pdf, but found a solution. If you're on a Mac I can recommend this application: http://code.google.com/p/formulatepro/

That way you wont have to print your picture, paste it to the application and then scan it. Instead you can simply add it to the PDF of your scanned application form on the computer, which is much more convenient.