Finding the right intensive program

[WilsonJim]

Apologies in advance if this post is in the wrong place or has been covered already--I'm new to the boards.

 

I am quite interested in finding an intensive Mandarin program but after weeks of scouring Google I am overwhelmed and slightly confused by my options. Hoping someone here might have some wisdom to impart.

 

I am searching for a 1 or 2 year program. Currently I am without any knowledge, so any program would have to accept and accommodate true beginners. My goal is to get as far as I can with the language within 1 or 2 years, so I am open, and searching for, rigorous program. I would like whatever program I attend to have some sort of communal aspect--whether that be organized day trips, communal living, or just lunch with fellow classmates. Basically, I would like to be able to meet people through my program.

 

My goal is to find the program that best suits my needs, regardless of cost, location, or school type (university or private language institute). Any advice is greatly appreciated.

[stapler]

This isn't a "programme" per se, but it *sounds* just as effective. I'd be sold if I wasn't so lazy. Consider it one more option.

 

http://www.chinese-forums.com/index.php?/topic/43939-independent-chinese-study-review/

[OneEye]

In Taiwan, you're basically looking at ICLP and MTC. In China, there's CET (which has several programs IIRC), ACC, IUP, Princeton in Beijing, and maybe a few others. Those are the best programs out there, and they're expensive (except for MTC, which isn't really as good as the others but is still fairly good). Some of them may not accept beginners, I'm not sure.

 

You're not going to have to worry about meeting people. That's included with the "living in a foreign country" package.

[zhouhaochen]

Disclaimer: I work for LTL, so obviously I will not make any recommendations on where you should study Chinese

 

However as some basic advice, you might want to start narrowing down the options a bit, because if you are just looking for "the perfect way to learn Chinese" you will get so many different opinions and ideas that it will be impossible to decide.

Start thinking about the kind of city you want to live in (big/small, only speaking standard Mandarin or also accent, many foreigners/few foreigners, cold/hot etc.), then the way you want to study (budget, immersion, group/1-on-1 etc.) and how you want to live (with foreigners/not with foreigners, price, homestay, shared/alone etc.) and then start looking for the options around. You will find suggestions and personal experiences for pretty much any of the points mentioned above in this forum, so read around a bit. What you find on here is most likely more reliable information then what google will give you.

 

Also note that some of the points you mention your are looking for are slightly contradictory. An intensive Mandarin program might focus mainly on getting you to speak Mandarin and try to avoid to put you into an English speaking environment. However, if you want to quickly make friends and have a lot of social experiences that might not be what you are looking for (at least at the beginning).