China » Academic Program

Language Program

At its heart, the OUS Beijing program is an intensive Chinese language program. Students participate in language classes from 830 – 12:30 Monday – Friday. Classes are challenging, yet diverse. Many CUN faculty have studied at the country’s premier language instruction programs and employ class activities and teaching styles not found in U.S. classrooms.

Students report that they typically spend at least two, but probably closer to three hours studying outside of class each day. While busy, they generally report that they have plenty of time to explore and to participate in various activities on and off campus.

The pace of language instruction is quite quick. Students generally complete the one language chapter or lesson every other day. Obviously then, students cover as much in one term in Beijing as they would in one year in a typical U.S. classroom.

CUN typically offers eight different levels of language instruction, and the format and style of instruction vary according to the level. In the past, students with very advanced language skills have been able to participate in academic courses taught in Chinese.

Culture Course and Study Tours

As part of the academic program, the OUS resident director will teach one course each semester on Chinese minority culture. The culture course prepares you for the two-week study tour to minority regions. Each study tour, the highlight of the program for many students, is designed to take you into outlying regions of China that you may not otherwise have the opportunity to visit.

Through the culture course students will discover more about China, and delve more deeply in a few specific areas of interest. Students will look at those issues from several angles, and will be able to analyze and discuss them with peers, the resident director and hear the views of invited speakers. Study tours are intended to reinforce things taught in class as part of the culture course through observation, first hand experience and through interaction with people in many different communities across China. The study tours can be challenging at times, but these intense experiences are also highly rewarding. Each study tour is designed by CUN in cooperation with the Resident Director, so they vary each year. Here are descriptions of some of the previous tours:

Recent Tours Include:

Hunan Province: Students traveled to Hunan where they were joined by the family of Howard Krippner, a U.S. Army Air Corps pilot who was shot down while serving with Allied forces in China during World War II. Students, family members and local villagers held a memorial service on the site where Captain Krippner’s plane is believed to have crashed. Students stayed with village families in Guizhou for a number of days. While there, they visited Miao nationality cultural activities, witnessed ancestor commemoration activities and visited a Buddhist theme park. Students then traveled onto Hainan Island before returning to Beijing.

Qinghai and Gansu provinces: Students flew to Xining city in eastern Qinghai province, where they visited Hui Muslim homes and visited one of China’s largest mosques. They then traveled to a Tibetan village in a beautiful region of mountains, where they stayed in Tibetan homes for several days, took hikes, visited the village temple, and worked on the village school side-by-side with village kids. The group then went on to an important Tibetan religious town for a couple days. Afterwards students traveled to western Qinghai where they took SUVs far into an uninhabited and striking region, with much wildlife, at high elevation, and stayed overnight in tents. Finally they traveled on a highway across the open regions of Qinghai to Gansu province to see the Dunhuang frescos.

Guizhou, Guangxi and Hainan: Students visited scenic historical sites of interest and did some group day hikes through dramatic mountain farms and forests, stopping in village communities for meals. Students also stayed in local people’s homes in rural locations on three occasions. On one stay, students spent three nights in homes and took part in daily life with their host families. They also participated in community projects, working closely with the village people. In another community, students got together with local high school students and took part in the Lantern Festival (yuanxiaojie) with student’s families and were invited to participate in the dragon dance, a traditional part of the holiday celebration.

Extracurricular Courses

Some extra classes are available for additional fees. The specific classes may change from term to term. Some classes may be offered by the university and some private classes may be offered by Chinese students at CUN. Kung Fu, fencing, calligraphy, and dance are some of the classes students have taken.

Host University Description

Our longtime partner in Beijing, the Central University for Nationalities is a national level, comprehensive university. As the flagship Chinese university dedicated to the study and support of the 57 recognized Chinese minorities, CUN serves as an ideal base to help U.S. students begin to see China not simply as a homogeneous whole, but as a multi-faceted and multi-cultural country with a broad range of cultural traditions and perspectives.

CUN’s intimate campus provides a rich, student-focused, environment where you’ll find many opportunities to make friends from across China and to become integrated with campus life.

Host University Website: http://www.cun.edu.cn/

Registration and Credits

Students participating in this program will be registered at their home university and will receive home campus credits for courses taken at the Central University for Nationalities. Students’ course work will be reviewed and evaluated by appropriate academic departments at their home institutions. Students must keep detailed records of course outlines, reading lists, exam results, and other work completed to facilitate accurate evaluation by their home university academic departments.

Students are advised to consult with their academic advisor about their plans to study in the China program. Students wishing to earn major or minor credits for courses taken at Central University for Nationalities are strongly advised to be in frequent communication with their advisor to determine what’s possible.

Because of the nature of this program, courses and credits are applied after completion of the program.

Academic Calendar

SAMPLE CALENDAR FOR FALL

• Thursday, August 16: Depart U.S.
• Friday, August 17: Arrive in Beijing
• Saturday, August 18: Orientation to CUN and Beijing
• Sunday, August 19: Rest day
• Monday, August 20: Start language practicum and Chinese culture course
• Thursday, August 30: Language Placement Test
• Friday, August 31: Opening Ceremony
• Monday, September 3: Intensive language classes begin
• Sept. 27 – Oct. 10: Tentative dates for fall study tour
• Friday, December 7: Last day of classes*
• Saturday, December 8: Departure

* Those staying for the winter/spring program can continue language classes until early January.

SAMPLE CALENDAR FOR WINTER/SPRING 2008

• Thursday, January 17: Depart U.S.
• Friday, January 18: Arrive in Beijing
• Saturday, January 19: Orientation to CUN and Beijing
• Sunday, January 20: Rest day
• Monday, January 21: Start language practicum and Chinese culture course
• Tuesday, Feb. 12 – Feb. 28: Tentative dates for spring study tour
• Friday, February 29: Begin language courses
• Around May 1: Week long Labor Day Holiday
• Friday, June 13: End of program
• Saturday, June 14: Departure

Campus Contacts

Click on the name of your University for contact information.

* Also serves as the program Coordinator/Assistant.

Downloads

• Program Application
• China Program Handbook
• This is Something Else
• China Slideshow

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