Few questions related to studying in China

[spock]

Hello

I got CSC Scholarship and soon I will arrive in China but there are few things I am really concerned about, I will be grateful for information.

Which currency should I take to China? Is it possible to exchange Euro and Canadian dollars in China?

Will there be a problem during airport check in if on my laptop I'll have some movies, anime or mp3s?

Is it required to take all medical tests such as blood test etc with me? I will have my Physical examination form is it enough for airport check?

I have to take train from Shanghai to Nanjing, where I can find current train timetable? Is it a good idea to book train in advance?

Please accept my appologize if these questions seems to be stupid or trivial but I am little bit worried.

[Steingletscher]

There will be no problem. You can exchange the currency at any bank.

They won't stop you at the airport.

Yes take all of the medical tests with you, but you won't need them at the airport. You will only need them in Najjing when applying for the residence permit.

As for the train tickets, you can easily get them at the train station. I don't know how to book tickets in advance besides going to the train station a few days either and buying them, but it shouldn't be a problem. At worst you will just get standing room with no seating, but I doubt that will happen. Maybe one or two days at most since the location isn't too far, and thus there will be a lot of trains (though it depends on what type of train you want to take, that is if you don't ride the bus).

[ZhangKaiRong]

Hey,

First of all, don't worry! Both euro and Canadian dollar can be changed in Bank of China, so it shouldn't be a problem, you will need your passport and have to fill some forex form, but no big deal.

They won't examine what kind of contents you have on your laptop. BtW, I don't know whether you heard it or not, but China is not that "protect copyrights"-kind of country So downloaded anime or music is not an issue. Porn is another story, though, but as I mentioned, no need to worry, they won't check your stuffs.

Blood test, chest x-ray, foreigner's physical examination form etc are all needed to get your medical certificate (which is necessary for getting the residency permit).

For checking trains, use qunar.com. You can book tickets here as well if you are in China, but you must have a Chinese bank card to use it, so it's not an option now. You can buy tickets at the train stations or at some ticket offices called 售票处, there should be a lot of them in Shanghai. Passport or photocopy of it is necessary.

BtW, don't worry about the ticket, it is nearly impossible not getting a ticket for the Shanghai-Nanjing line, there are all kinds of train types there, including the 高铁, which is considered to be pricy, and usually there are a lot of unsold tickets even before departure.

Have a nice time in China! Nanjing is a great city, you can learn a lot and have an awful lot of fun at the same time!

[ChTTay]

"Yes take all of the medical tests with you, but you won't need them at the airport. You will only need them in Najjing when applying for the residence permit."

"Blood test, chest x-ray, foreigner's physical examination form etc are all needed to get your medical certificate (which is necessary for getting the residency permit)."

Can't the OP just take the medical test in China? It would be cheaper and would definitely meet the Chinese requirements. When I arrived at my University, they provided instructions to go to the Hospital. Even if you already had a medical certificate from your home country, you had to go their anyway to get your home certificate "authorized".

[liuzhou]

Good advice above.

There is a strong chance though that no one will be even slightly interested in your medical reports and instead will insist on you having the tests all done again at the local government run "Entry-Exit Inspection and Quarantine Bureau" designated hospital. They need the money, you see.

As to train timetables, a quick Google search would have answered that question. Try here for example.

It isn't just a good idea to book a train ticket in advance, it's essential.

[ZhangKaiRong]

@ChTTay

It is an option, though I wouldn't be willing to take the chest X-ray again if I have already done it in my home country half a year ago... Too much X-ray isn't good for your health, you know.

Last year I haven't encountered any problems during getting my Chinese medical certificate based on my papers done in Europe. I had red stamps, English translations, everything. It is possible that I was just lucky enough, I also heard that in other cities they made the students redo the whole procedure "according to the new rules". Though, I guess if your Chinese is good enough, it can help you explain why you won't redo all the papers. Being persistent worked for me several cases during my stay in China.

And why should he redo all the papers anyway if he has already done it at home? You have to pay 30-50 RMB for the authentication (=the Chinese medical certification necessary for the residency permit), but if they make you redo everything, it is more than 400 RMB.

[liuzhou]

why should he redo all the papers anyway if he has already done it at home?

Because that is what they want. After all, they haven't made anything from the overseas tests.

if your Chinese is good enough, it can help you explain why you won't redo all the papers

Then, it will also help you to understand when they refuse the residence permit.

[ZhangKaiRong]

Then, it will also help you to understand when they refuse the residence permit

It doesn't have any connection... After you get your authenticated Chinese medical paper (which is a totally different document than your FPEF), the Immigration Office will give you the residency permit. So the point is getting your authenticated Chinese medical paper, and according to my and my friends' experience if you are persistent enough they won't mess wih you, they have a hundred more naive foreign students who don't know how to deal things in China and they can rip them off... Maybe I was just lucky, but this strategy worked for me in several bureaucratic cases, I've never been overcharged or ripped off during my scholarship year in China.

Of course, there are some universities work together with the hospitals and have their own cut from the money, so in these cases it can't be helped, but I advise everybody to be persisent first and don't immediately open your wallet because you are told to...

[Angelina]

ZhangKaiRong, I had exactly the same experience (40-50 kuai for authorization) in Beijing two years ago.

OP, if your medical exam was done within six months, take it with you when your school sends you to the Chinese hospital and show it to the person that asks for your name there.

Good luck!

Edit: Don't forget to take the blood test report and the X-ray report (don't take the big X-ray thing) when you go the Chinese hospital.

[ChTTay]

The point i was making was... It is often cheaper to do the test in China rather than to pay for the tests in your home country then to pay to have the home country tests authorized in China.

As well as being cheaper to have the tests in China, you remove the "potential" risk of having your home medical exam rejected.

As it happens, I have had a medical test authorised in the past. I still think the best way is just to have it done here in China for the above reasons.

As for hospital conspiracies, naive students, getting ripped off and not knowing "how to deal things in China"... My response is...What?!!?

[liuzhou]

Yeah, great advice.

How to deal with Chinese officialdom? Dig your heels in and refuse to do what they ask you to. They will capitulate immediately.

Over the last 18 years I have seen literally hundreds of people required to have the tests done all over again, because they won't accept the overseas tests. All over China.

But it's OK. Just refuse to cooperate.

[ZhangKaiRong]

You really like to change the meaning of what others said, don't you?

Okay, here is the story of our medical authentication, just to have an insight:

We went to the hospital, they checked our papers (which was done 2 months before). They said that I had to redo the chest X-ray exam, because I didn't have the CD with the picture. I said no way, because X-ray was not good for your health, and I had done the X-ray just 2 months ago, look at my english report. They said that it was necessary, it cost 220 RMB. I persisted that only the report was necessary, as it was stated on the FPEF, and I had the report. Then the woman talked to her collegue, and they said that okay, no need to redo the test, just pay an extra 30 RMB and it should be OK. Had I "cooperated", as you advised, I would have lost 190 RMB...

But the story isn't over yet. My classmates went to the hospital on another day, their papers were 4 months old. The same woman told them that it was not okay, because the documents were too old, just redo all of the tests for 450 RMB. One of my friend's Chinese was already good enough to discuss the problem with the woman. My friends let the woman read the actual requirements for the medical paper's date, and then she realized that it was 6 months, not 3 months... After that they only had to pay the authentication fee, which is 30 RMB. Not 450 RMB... Oh yeah, did you say they would have cooperated with them?

IMO if you are a students and you just meet the authorities once, then you should be persistent and try to avoid the unnecessary costs IF IT'S POSSIBLE. Of course, if you live in China and have to deal with stuffs, be more flexible and open your wallet...

And, dear liuzhou, as Angelina stated as well, there are hospitals which accept those nasty overseas FPEF for scholarship students. Actually, there are several of them.

PS.: I don't want to argue with anyone on the forum, because it is pointless. I respect you, liuzhou, because you've been living in China for nearly two decades, of course you have experienced stuffs most of us haven't yet. But as you see, there are cases when you're not one hundred percent right, so please let others give advice as well...

@ChTTay

I don't know where you live, but I did my medical papers and tests for 15 euros, which is a lot more cheaper than in China. I was told by former scholarship students to make sure that I have red stamps, and they also gave me their FPEF as a reference to fill my own one. It's 100 percent China-compatible, so there were no problems... And AFAIK, you need the FPEF to get your X visa in your home country.

[liuzhou]

[Lu]

Liuzhou is wrong and overly cynical. They don't always insist on doing everything over again. I went through that circus twice (2002 and 2010) and only had to do one test over again. Make sure you bring as many originals as possible (including the chest X-ray) and there is a good chance that you don't have to do anything twice. I noticed Angelina says you don't need to bring the original large X-ray picture, I would recommend bringing it, you might not be asked for it, but it might also save you from having to do it again. If they tell you to, it can actually work to insist that you already did that (not always, but it's certainly worth trying).

It's unlikely that your computer will be checked, I've never heard of it happening. Although copyright is not very well protected in China, there are laws against pirated cd's and such, they are just barely enforced.

It wouldn't be a bad idea to book a train ticket in advance if you can, but unlike Liuzhou thinks, this is not essential. If you're out of luck you may have to wait for a few hours.

As to money, you can look around for earlier topics on this. I'd recommend just bringing your bank card (check with your bank whether you can use it abroad and what the costs are) and getting money from an ATM at the airport once you've landed. You can also buy a sim-card there, if your phone takes those.

Good luck and enjoy your time in China!

[liuzhou]

Liuzhou is wrong and overly cynical. They don't always insist on doing everything over again.

I didn't say "always". As I said before, I have personal knowledge of literally hundreds of examples. It's part of my job.

You really like to change the meaning of what others said, don't you?

Er? What have I changed?

My real point however is that advising newcomers to China to stand up to officialdom and insist on what they want is perhaps not quite the best way to help them to deal with things in China.

It wouldn't be a bad idea to book a train ticket in advance if you can, but unlike Liuzhou thinks, this is not essential. If you're out of luck you may have to wait for a few hours.

Yeah. Just roll up at the station and insist on being allowed onto the next train! No problem.

Have I been transported to another planet?

[Angelina]

He doesn't necessarily have to stand up to officialdom. If he has already got his physical done and it's still valid (not older than 6 months), why not try? I didn't insist on anything, just gave them my physical and they accepted it without any comments.

[liuzhou]

Well lucky you!

[spock]

Thank you very much for all information

[ChTTay]

Let us know how it turns out!

[imron]

Deleted a bunch of off-topic posts.