cjake22 Posted January 20, 2015 at 06:26 AM Report Posted January 20, 2015 at 06:26 AM I am a college student from the united states and I want to take a gap year and study Chinese. I am having trouble finding the best school for me. I would like to come over during the summer on a tourist visa look at some schools and find the best one for me. Once I am over in Nanjing could I change my tourist visa to a student visa and is this a good plan, or should I find a school before I come over? Quote
ChTTay Posted January 22, 2015 at 02:45 AM Report Posted January 22, 2015 at 02:45 AM Do you want to study at a University on a language program OR are you looking for a private school? If it's a language program at a University then they have application deadlines for each semester. If you waited until you arrived at the place, had a look around, got a feel for it... then you might end up missing the deadline. The deadline might have passed long ago by that time. If you are going for a private school then you could join anytime I guess. I would pick a place before you go, from the USA, then plan to stay there 3-6 months. This could be a whole semester of a Uni program or just on your own steam at a language school. If you go searching for a place, you may have unrealistic expectations, you may never find a place that you feel is perfect for you. However, a lot of places in China take a bit of time to get used to and to appreciate. You can experience a lot of culture shock when you first arrive which, if you have no ties, might make you just give up. After the first semester, first 6 months, you can choose to stay on at that place if you like it or try somewhere else. Also, if you arrive with nothing arragned just to 'look around' then you get no local assistance. If you went to a Uni, you could stay in there Uni dorms which would mean a place to stay sorted before you arrive. Also, there would be other people for you to explore with. If you were at a private school, I'm sure they have local pick up, help finding a place (or places for you to stay) as well as some local guidence and help available. So in short, I'd just bite the bullet, take the plunge, pick a place, apply, book it, organize it, hop on a plane and see what happens. Once you decide on a place or two, look in the relevant forum on here to see what's been said before. Maybe ask a few questions of your own ... Good luck 1 Quote
studychinese Posted January 22, 2015 at 10:32 AM Report Posted January 22, 2015 at 10:32 AM While I cannot help you find a school, I can offer some information about Nanjing that relates to dating. In Nanjing the ratio between males and females seems to be lopsided with a lot more females than men (as opposed to China in general, and Beijing where there are a lot more men than women). Also, any 'teaching university' is packed with girls, usually over 80%. Quote
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