CET Greater China

I started studying Chinese when I was 13 years old. Almost 8 years later you’d think I would be fluent by now, but alas, that is not my reality. However, within these 8 years I have developed a deep appreciation for Chinese language and culture, so much so that I made it a personal goal of mine to spend a semester abroad in China. Congratulations, 13 year old Abigail, you did it!
As you may have guessed, life in Beijing was not what I had expected. In fact, it was the opposite. The bikes, the traffic, the pollution, the population density; it is, in every way possible, the opposite of my hometown. I thought I would find pockets of similarity, and for the first two weeks, that was all I was looking for, or so I thought. Looking back, it was not similarity that I was searching for at all, it was a sense of home. Those first two weeks were by far the most difficult. Not only was I adjusting to the academic rigor of the program itself, I was also trying to make a home within Capital Normal University and trying to create a support system within my fellow participants and CET faculty. Everything was hard, everything was unfamiliar. However, that feeling of home I was so desperately searching for, along with the support system I was working tirelessly to create, came quicker than I had expected it to. There’s something about working through a mutual struggle that creates a bond between those experiencing it, and a deep one at that. I truly believe I made life-long friends while on that program, both from my college and others. I learned that I was not as independent as I once believed myself to be, and that’s okay. I learned that it’s okay to struggle, that it’s okay to lean on others when you need to and that it’s okay to ask for help. I had been so focused on becoming emotionally self-sufficient that I had forgotten what it was like to really need someone. This experience helped me navigate that dependency in a healthy way.
While the personal growth that comes from studying abroad is unbeatable, the academic growth I experienced cannot be ignored. Within my first few years of college, I had heard about study abroad experiences in Europe, ample freetime allowing students to travel from country to country on a whim. For most, academics were able to be put second. I ignorantly went into this abroad experience anticipating something similar, I was rudely mistaken. In order to stay afloat at CET Beijing, your studies must come first. This program is known for its complete language immersion with a 24/7 language pledge put into place for all participants regardless of one’s location. There are quizzes every day, tests every week, and essays every weekend, in addition to your daily homework and studying. There is a clear expectation of excellence. With these expectations and requirements, you may believe that the staff is unconcerned with students well-being, but that could not be farther from the truth. Within my academic career thus far, I have had my fair share of faculty that are uninterested in creating a relationship with me, and are unwavering in their course requirements regardless of student feedback. The teachers that I was so privileged to have at CET Beijing were excellent, in and out of the classroom. They were always willing to help, regardless of the subject matter. The office faculty made themselves available to you throughout the day leaving their door open and encouraging students to stop by, even if it was just to chat. The CET faculty had always said Beijing was our second home, and by the end of the program, I really believed them.
For students on the fence between choosing to participate in CET Beijing or choosing to stay at their home institution, my advice would be to take that chance and go abroad. It’s bound to teach you something, if not about yourself, indefinitely about the world around you. What do you have to lose?

This program gives you many opportunities to learn Chinese which makes it a great Chinese program, you just have to take the leap. Nobody is going to force you. Each Semester at CET is different for example in the Fall semester the environment wasn’t as immersive as the Spring. There was too many students that quit the language pledge within the first weeks which made it hard for the students who wanted to make friends but couldn’t because the temptation to speak English was there all the time except for when class was in session. As I was at CET for spring 2019 and then Fall 2019 I had the opportunity to hear serval reasons why the Language Pledge was Impossible, but it's NOT impossible. In the past, I read reviews that said "stick to the language pledge" which I 100% agree with, but it sounds hard especially when you get into the 3rd weekend. Just Don't make an excuse for yourself as to why you can't do the Pledge. Don't tell yourself: I’ll start tomorrow, it's impossible, my Chinese level is too low, I’ll never make friends/connections, everyone else does it. Every day you will have challenges it's not easy but very possible to achieve with the help the all the CET staff and roommates. CET has a great structure, for example, Sunday to Thursday there are office hours, RD makes me feel secure, almost all teachers are friendly and ready to answer all the Chinese questions you have. The only things CET lacks is more training with the Chinese roommates help the CET Students with the culture shock. I feel like there needs to be not just a separate meeting about diversity/culture shock but also a joint meeting. I had been to China before my first semester at CET so the culture shock wasn’t a huge deal. But it is for most students. For example, I heard students say my roommate: leaves water on the floor, wash all her clothes in the sink, chews with her mouth open. Which are all normal parts of lifestyle in China. The 2nd problem is not really pushing the language pledge. Too many students start to get tricky if they notice that staff members are being too nice and not catching them when they speak English, which can ruin the experience. This program was challenging but rewarding. Starting at the beginner class was challenging. I wasn’t able to say anything except “I like …, I think…” for a while. I lost my personality at the beginning but gained much more than my personality at the end. I learn about north versus southern Chinese culture and language, where the locals eat, how to make jokes, have the confidence to ask questions/join clubs, meet new friends outside of CET, dream in Chinese, to be able to travel using Chinese, this list could go on forever. If I had the chance after graduating from University I would pick CET to study Chinese again.

Before I got to Harbin, China, I thought my Chinese level was pretty good. I soon found that my Chinese was pretty bad. The best thing about this program is that the locals don't speak English and you have the language pledge resulting in your level growing exponentially. The hardest thing is going to be understanding the taxi drivers, but I would say I grew able to understand the locals rather quickly. I like the curriculum because no student was left behind. While there were multiple levels ( I was at the lowest), we all learned similar enough things that I never felt like I couldn't speak with the higher level kids. We all grew together with our language.

I had a great experience with CET Taiwan! Academics (through the International Chinese Language Program) were rigorous -- expect to work hard, be engaged in classes, and see your Chinese improve significantly over the course of the semester. I also spent 10 to 12 hours per week at an internship placement that matched my interests. Although this made time management more challenging, I found the internship to be a rewarding part of my semester abroad.

Accommodations were comfortable and well-located; we shared student apartments with local roommates, who were super friendly and helped us navigate life in Taipei. Overall, Taiwan is a fantastic place to study Chinese. It also offers convenient public transportation, delicious street food, and plenty of things to do on weekends, whatever you're interested in. Just be prepared to be busy! If you're self-motivated and adventurous, this is the program for you.

This semester in Taiwan was filled with good memories and fun. CET did a good job of finding housing with Taiwanese roommates. They also did a good job of helping people explore more of Taiwan before class actually starts and you're busy, and trust me, you WILL be busy. Overall it was an unforgettable experience. I had an especially good time having a the group this semester. I believe they made it a better experience better yet. Having roommates everything 10x better. The teachers at the host University are also great, they made it easy to learn.

Before coming to Harbin, I had never been outside of the US so I was in for quite the culture shock upon arrival. However, the first few days were surprisingly easy as we were shown around campus and a little bit around the city. We didn’t start the language pledge until four days after everyone arrived so we had the opportunity to get to know everyone in the cohort, which was nice considering the first few weeks after the language pledge are filled with awkward, short sentences. Even being a more advanced program there was a lot of variety in skill level but I never felt like anyone was excluded because their language ability was a little behind.

The workload is no joke. I had two or three classes a day and each class required anywhere between 2 and 4 hours of homework. It’s especially difficult in the beginning, but over time I noticed the workload became easier. There isn’t a heavy emphasis placed on grading but more so on your ability to use what you’ve learned. The one-on-one course can easily be the best or worst part of your classes. If you choose a topic and then realize you don’t quite like it, tell the academic advisor immediately so you can change the topic accordingly. It ended up being most people’s favorite class despite being the most difficult. The one-on-two really helps you realize your tone or pronunciation mistakes, especially because you go four times a week. The other two classes are your choice and are pretty standard.

Having a native roommate is kind of advertised as a big deal and I honestly didn’t believe it before arriving, mostly because I’m a naturally shy person and never really bond super quickly with people. However, I have to say that my roommate has become one of my favorite people and probably to person I’m going to miss the most. In the beginning, when I could barely say a few sentences, she was so incredibly patient helped me with basic survival. Over time, we started talking about cultural difference, politics, life problems, and just anything. I would not improved so much if I had her helping me. As far as I know, all of the roommates were patient and very excited to help everyone in our program.

Before this program, I had never been to China and spoke no Chinese. I was the only student on my program from the University of Florida because UF does not directly transfer over credits from CET programs. I chose this program because of the internship opportunities, the location and the living situation (and I am so glad that I did!) I really enjoyed the courses I took at Donghua and my internship was a very unique experience that I believe led to my success in securing another internship when I returned. The staff on this program are so so helpful and the program is structured in a way that really allows all of the students and local roommates to meet and get to know each other. I made such great connections and felt that I grew so much personally, academically and professionally through all of the opportunities that this program allowed me.

I had an amazing summer in Taiwan. I appreciate that the academics was challenging and I could definitely see improvement in my Chinese listening and speaking. I had the best resident directors and things all went smoothly. They provided us a trip to Hualien, which was one of the best experiences I had in Taiwan. In addition to housing, tuition, books, and transportation all calculated into one sum, I also had an internship at The China Post. The internship aspect challenged me in some ways, but also became a memorable part of the program. Taiwan is also a very safe country and transportation is very easy to navigate. Housing was super nice. My roommates and Taiwanese roommates were easy to get along with and like family. Food is good and cheap. Especially BOBA!