Anyone at IUP right now?

[lylestyle]

Hey guys and gals,

Is anyone currently studying at IUP at Tsinghua right now? Or in the past? I'm accepted for the 2005-2006 year program, just wanting to know anyones thoughts on the program, if I can do anything to prepare (besides a big bottle of Aspirin)! Thanks.

[Harvey]

Has anyone ever met anyone attending IUP or ICLP in Taiwain who did -not- have the required 2 yrs / 1 yr university level Chinese experience?

They mention these requirements on the site, but also mention that you need the "equivilant" of 2 years of university level Chinese education. Is there some HSK score that would be considered equivilant?

I have no formal Chinese education history, but these two programs look great for someone who really wants an intensive study experience... I would love to join them if possible.

IUP - http://ieas.berkeley.edu/iup/admissions_language.html

IUP accepts only students with an intermediate to high level of Chinese language ability. We are not staffed to teach beginning or remedial Chinese.

http://ccms.ntu.edu.tw/~iclp/

The following persons are eligible to apply for admissions: those who (1) have a background in Chinese language equivalent to at least one-year of college-level training, (2) are degree candidates at an accredited university or college pursuing Chinese-related studies, (3) show potential in a Chinese-related field of study, or (4) are committed to a career in which the use of Chinese is crucial.

[Jive Turkey]

Definitions of "intermediate" or "advanced" vary, but it seems to me that when the IUP says "intermediate," they mean intermediate as described by the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages. You can have a look at their proficiency guidelines here:

http://www.actfl.org/files/public/Guidelinesspeak.pdf

I have no idea what kind of HSK score they would want. I imagine that unless you had a 5 or above, they would prefer that you take an oral proficiency exam like the one offered by the US Center for Appllied Linguistics since the HSK Elementary/Intermediate doesn't test oral proficiency. I think CAL exam is actually the one required in the application.

If you want to go to Taiwan or the mainland as a beginner, the options for really intensive study are not so well developed. BLCU and other mainland university programs have fairly good materials, but the class sizes are quite big. Taiwan university programs have pretty small class sizes, but the materials are starting to really fall behind those published on the mainland, and teacher training there is not as strong. IMO, you'd still be better off studying as a beginner in Taiwan or the mainland than studying in the US.