Should I study at a language school or a university?

[grawrt]

I'm pretty new to learning chinese and just recently finished my colleges elementary chinese course.

For the upcoming winter session I was planning on studying in China in order to practice and enhance my language skills since I still feel very new to it. When I originally began researching which places to study, I looked into my colleges study abroad program but it seemed more about traveling than the language itself, and as beautiful as china is, I'd rather really focus on the language itself since it'll only be a few weeks of learning to condense it under.

So, my main question is: Should I study with a language instute OR at a university? And if so, which are my best options? I found one language instute that sounded very promising but I know little about it, the link is (http://www.studycli.org/study-chinese/) for the immersion program.

If University is better, then the tricky thing is deciding which fits best with when my class ends. I noticed many chinese universities begin their programs while my school is in its finals week, though I did find a few promising ones. My winter semester begins 12/22 and spring semester begins 1/27 so id like to be back for that. I dont celebrate christmas or other winter holidays, so being home for the holidays isnt essential.

I dont mind about costs but I would like it to be under 3000 USD. I'm not picky about where to study but I would like an area that would be easy for a foreigner to learn chinese.

Thanks so much! Sorry for all the writing, I was trying to be as specific as possible

[imron]

I would say that in general you'll make more progress with private language schools (smaller classes, tailored lessons etc) but you'll pay more for it. Doing a search for private schools (or private lessons) using the search bar at the top left of the page should provide you with a number of places to go from (don't use the search at the top right, it doesn't work so well).

[roddy]

For that two-month stretch of time a private school is going to be best - you'd be getting dropped in to the middle of classes at a university, and they're not really geared up for rolling enrollments.

I'd have a think about what part of China you'd like to be in, then look for schools there. This might help you make some of the decisions.

[m000gle]

Hmmm... I'm a little bit confused. You intend to study in China during your winter session/semester. However, you mention the dates being roughly 12/22-1/27. Are your semesters only one month long, or is this more of a short-term study during a winter holiday?

In either case, I'm biased towards longer term study (at least 3-6 months), if at all possible, since it gives you enough time to grasp the language and truly achieve some immersion. This goes for either private classes or universities, but I know its not possible in many cases. I agree with Imron that private schools will allow you to customize your experience, at a price, but would personally recommend a university. My rundown of the pros/cons are below:

Private schools/classes

are ideal if: your dates don't mesh with university terms; you are coming for a short time (e.g. one month) and want one-on-one classes to maximize it; money is no object; and/or you have specific topics (e.g. essential vocab for business) which they can focus on.

Universities

are ideal if: your dates DO mesh; you can stay for a full school term (usually two per year, Sept-Jan and Feb-June) or longer; you want a more general/varied experience in class (wide range of vocab); you would make the effort to be social meet both foreign and Chinese friends on campus; you don't have the cash for private classes; you hope to transfer credits to an institution overseas; and/or you want the name of a Chinese university on a resume/transcript, even if its simply for language study.

Your mileage may vary with either of these, but that's my impression after a year, here, studying.

[grawrt]

Thanks everyone! I didn't know the right side searchbar didnt work well *has been using that searchbar the whole time >__<* I read that before posting Roddy and it was very helpful. I should start looking into a specific area in china but my brain is more worried abotu what areas will offer classes in the timeline. I know when I first started my search I began looking into specific areas but many schools started their winter session at inconvenient times so then I decided to look more for the time frame than the area.

M000gle. its more a winter-vacation break. But I know some schools have winter *semesters* in that time period so I just got into the habit of using that term. Sorry to confuse you. A longer stay I understand is ideal but I dont want to worry my parents too much. Im the *baby* in the family and even though im 20 they still treat me like im 5, I was hoping to take babysteps into studying for a longer period of time in china (ie; winter & summer session) without giving them the heartattack.

[Scoobyqueen]

If you can afford it definitely one to one classes. You will learn twice as much as in a group.

My winter semester begins 12/22 and spring semester begins 1/27 so id like

I dont know if I read your dates right. I thought the spring festival 2012 is at the end of January. So the beginning of January until then will be like the month of December in European country. Sometimes it is difficult to find a teacher at that time coming up the spring festival