Beijing or somewhere else...

[paperbagprince]

I am planning on applying for graduate schools in China, but I am having a hard time of decided what school and more importantly, what city to go to. Maybe you guys have a bit of advice?

 

I lived in Beijing for two years, and I loved it, everything from the people, to the food, to the pollution. So, I know I would be happy. However, I am worried about going to a program or school with too many forigners. Thinking about applying for RenDa or MinDa 民族中村大学

 

Howwver, part of me wants to go to a less developed city with less forginers, kinda like a big fish in a small pond kinda thing. I am worried however about the quality of schools in these areas, as well as oppritunities. The reasons why I like Beijing (it has everything!) is also somethine I am trying to avoid in the future city I go to.

 

So, I am left to decide do I want Beijing, or a new city. As it is now, I am leaning towards MinDa as a happy middle.

 

Any one face a similar problem, and how did you solve it?

 

I know this is more of a personal issue than a China issue, but hopefully someone can point me in the right direction. Any advice is welcome.
-dylan

[gato]

Might be better to keep your grad school choice discussion in just one thread.

Is there a particular reason you want to study Ethnic Sociology instead of just Sociology?

Going by past threads by kdavid, amandagmu, and wushijiao on grad school in China, it appears that one probably would have a better going to a top-ranked school as the faculty would be more likely to be more knowledgeable and better funded. Starting basic salary for new university teacher is about the same level as restaurant worker, so they have to spend much time outside of their core job of teaching trying to supplement their income. At a top program, your fellow students are also likely to be more capable and more interested in the subject material.

So I would recommend that you figure out who are the top professors in sociology and where they teach and apply there. There isn't likely to be many foreigners studying sociology in any university in China (you might be the only foreigner in most MA programs), so looking at the foreign enrollment shouldn't be a top priority.

[kdavid]

I strongly recommend you read the threads which have already been written on this subject.

 

I'm regularly asked about my experience and for advice on how to get into graduate school here. The first thing I always tell everyone is: if you can get into a funded program back home, then do your graduate studies back home. The experience and degree will go much further.

 

The only exception would be if you've already networked with a professor who's involved in a project in which you're very interested; but that's clearly not your case if you haven't chosen a school yet.

 

If you're narrowing down options now, I strongly recommend you begin contacting faculty and current students to ensure their interests coincide with your own. It may even be worth your time to make a visit and sit in on some classes. (Good luck with that!)

[paperbagprince]

Thanks.

 

I have read the other topics, but wanted to get a bit more narrowed advice. I think I have made up my mind, however.
 

[zhouhaochen]

Not commenting on the Grad Schools, but just the choice of location, I find Beijing just as fun as you do, however I think that while Beijing is the best place to start a China experience, learn Mandarin etc. once you are familiar with Beijing, it is a very valuable experience to live in another smaller city. There you will be more immersed, speak less English (if you stay in Northern China, your Mandarin should improve much quicker there) and learn a lot about China that those expats living in Beijing/Shanghai just never will because it is just too easy to break out and hang around with foreigners.

Once you are looking for a job you will inevitably go to Beijing or Shanghai so there will be plenty of time left there.

For university quality, I never studied at one, so others know better, but it is true that Chinese universities do not have much of a reputation for teaching excellence.

[roddy]

I think that's a bit backwards. Early on is exactly when you should be avoiding the big cities with their English speaking temptations. See this, which I wrote up in 2009. I haven't got much to add to that, but I'll note this will likely also fit in better with a career or study path. Edit: was inspired to type this up. So maybe I did have much to add. 

 

For what it's worth, Minda is out of the foreign expat enclaves of Wudaokou and Chaoyang. If you're going to try and live local, that's a good place to do it. 

[gato]

Minda's teaching resources tend to be more limited compared schools up the street like Renmin University, Peking U, and Tsinghua, from what people told me.

[paperbagprince]

I must confess, when I read Minda, without there characters, I could not help but thinkg "Hmm..who is Minda? Must be some girl who post on the forums a lot".

 

 

I have heard that Minda is a bit more limited, but for my intended major it is pretty good (only Ethno Soc program I can find so far). plus, I have read some of the works by some of the professors in the past.

 

My first time in Beijing, I was really able to avoid most forigners, and had only local friends. So I guess I can do it the second time around.

 

The more I think about, while I would like to be in a smaller city, I do fear that the teaching will be limited. Maybe this is not the right place to ask it, but does anyone know of any schools away from the major metropolitian areas that are also pretty good?

 

Thanks for all the help
 

[gato]

Maybe this is not the right place to ask it, but does anyone know of any schools away from the major metropolitian areas that are also pretty good?

Most education resources are concentrated in Beijing and Shanghai. That's the way the government planned it, I am afraid.

How much do you know about Minda? Are you not willing to consider any of the big name schools in Beijing (like Beida and Renda)?

Minda was founded to train ethnic minority students who could go back home and become government officials. Today that mission is much eclipse by the new economic and social reality. If you are looking for real scholarship on ethnic minority, I am not sure you'll find it there.