Review Overall Rating
A review on CET Intensive Chinese Language in Harbin
Reviewed by Danielle Ortiz-Geisstudent(American University) on
This is the perfect program for people who are interested in becoming culturally immersed in European culture through textbook experience and traveling seminars.
CET's Central European Studies Program in Prague has already given me the best experience of my life. I'm in what in my opinion, is the most beautiful city in the world. To top things off, the cost of living here is very affordable, which is something you might not encounter with other programs. My academics consist of a mixture of history, philosophy and learning about resistance throughout time. The professors are fun and engaging and the little assigned work leaves much room for learning about Europe by actually having the opportunity to travel through it. I am honestly dreading the day that I will have to leave.
Review Details
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Academics
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Program Administration
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Living Situation
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Cultural Immersion
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Other Reviews on CET Intensive Chinese Language in Harbin
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CET Intensive Chinese Language in Harbin Great place to learn how to speak Chinese...
Reviewed by Jeff Greenberg on .
Great place to learn how to speak Chinese well. Before I went I was very uncomfortable with my speaking ability, but left able to speak comfortably in conversation. A language pledge is imperative to really learning how to speak Chinese. Definitely recommended to anyone committed to learning the language.
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CET Intensive Chinese Language in Harbin good
Reviewed by Jeff G. on .
Great place to learn how to speak Chinese well. Before I went I was very uncomfortable with my speaking ability, but left able to speak comfortably in conversation.
A language pledge is imperative to really learning how to speak Chinese.
Definitely recommended to anyone committed to learning the language. -
CET Intensive Chinese Language in Harbin A True Immersion Experience
Reviewed by Justin Thomas on .
Academics: In the two semesters I was with CET Harbin, the largest class I was aware of had only five students. The language instruction is very good, and the language environment is ideal, greatly enhanced by the language pledge. Plus, most of the teachers are such friendly, good-hearted people. The one-on-two drill class and the one-on-one class in which you study a topic of your choice provide for an academic experience highly tailored to the individual. The only caution I would give is that if you are studying a politically sensitive topic, it may turn out to be a frustrating experience. This of course depends largely on the professor, but is not helped by the general lack of access to Chinese sources on certain information.
Living Situation: The dorms are not state of the art, and there are frequent maintenance problems. But these are (for the most part) addressed relatively quickly. In a city like Harbin, you can't expect the facilities to be perfect. The dorm situation is also very interesting, since international students from all over the world live on the other floors. The dorm building is less than a five-minute walk from classes and cafeterias, about a five-minute walk to the swimming pool (which is actually new and very nice), and no more than ten minutes from the fitness center and from buses that take you around the city for just one yuan (expect congestion both on the roads and inside the bus).
Cultural Immersion: There are constant opportunities for cultural immersion in the form of conversation with the locals! Having a Chinese roommate also makes this much easier--a huge and unique advantage to this program. (I still keep in touch with my spring term roommate.) The better your language skills, the more deeply immersed in the culture you will become. CET also provides activities almost every weekend to help students bond with each other and see the city, and each semester the program organizes at least two trips outside of the city. For example, when I was there we went to Dandong, a city on the border with North Korea.
Program Administration: Friendly, capable, and responsive!
Two last notes of warning are in order. First, if you have serious mental health issues, please be aware that psychological and/or psychiatric treatment is not very developed in Harbin, nor is this provided by the CET staff. Second, no matter how good CET Harbin is as a program, the city of Harbin itself may not be the most enjoyable for some people. It gets bitterly cold, the air pollution is often bothersome, standards of cleanliness are lower, the food is often way too salty and oily (there are ways to get around that), the nightlife is not the most exciting, traffic is disorderly, public places can get very crowded, and some people may come off as rude. In short, a cultural adjustment is required to live in this city. For me, however, making this cultural adjustment was a gratifying and educational experience.
Please feel free to contact me at wholegrainking@gmail.com if you have any additional questions about my experience with CET Harbin.
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CET Intensive Chinese Language in Harbin Intensive Chinese Language
Reviewed by cjensen on .
I would highly recommend CET Intensive Chinese Language in Harbin to anyone seeking to improve their Chinese by leaps and bounds. The language pledge is a key part of the program’s success. I found that, while the language pledge could be frustrating at times, it really pushed me to use the full extent of my knowledge of Chinese. The academics are terrific (see the academics section for more details). It is a lot of work – there is no doubt about that – but it definitely pays off. I spent a summer studying in Harbin (a great season to experience the city, by the way), and I wish I had been able to study there longer.
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CET Intensive Chinese Language in Harbin great
Reviewed by jessica garland on .
fabulous! hard academically but very worth it!
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CET Intensive Chinese Language in Harbin I loved this program.
Reviewed by Nathalie Levine on .
I applied to this program because I had heard it would be less academically rigorous than the other programs (IUP, Duke, PIB, HBA) that my fellowship funded. I had had experience studying a language abroad before and found that the best way for me to learn was to immerse myself in the place I was living, rather than spend all of my time studying in my room. However, I still wanted a program with interesting and challenging Chinese classes. This program was everything I wanted and more. The courses I took were rigorous, challenging, interesting, and fun. My teachers were extraordinarily kind and helpful, and they became wonderful friends. The small class size was amazing. I looked forward to every class because I knew it would be a meeting of 2-5 friends who were excited about helping each other learn. My one-on-one class was also amazing: my professor helped me adjust our topic to fit my interests perfectly, took me on field trips, and was warm and hospitable. All my teachers got to know me as people. My teachers and roommate (and other roommates) helped me learn my way around the city and were always willing to talk with me about Chinese culture as they lived it. The living situation was fantastic - living with Chinese students helped us all make friends and figure out how to live in Harbin quickly and easily. It was also a great way to make the language pledge rewarding. The program administration - both academic and residential - was also wonderfully kind and helpful. The trips they organized were fun and educational. Basically, I can't say enough good things about this program. I could not have asked for a better way to spend my time in China. I wish I could do it again.
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CET Intensive Chinese Language in Harbin Great program
Reviewed by Su-Yee Lin on .
Great teachers and an administration that cares how you're doing. The workload is intense and stressful but I was really happy with the progress I made taking their classes. They do try to tailor the courses to the students' skill level and are aware of just how much students can be pushed. I'd highly recommend this program if you want to improve your Mandarin pretty drastically in a fairly short amount of time.
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CET Intensive Chinese Language in Harbin For a Study Abroad Program....
Reviewed by Andrew Schaus on .
Best immersion experience in China
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CET Intensive Chinese Language in Harbin Wonderful Experience
Reviewed by Alexandra Dare Norman on .
At CET Harbin, I met so many interesting and welcoming people - and surprisingly, I made those friends using a language that I had only studied for a short time! When I had to use Chinese out of daily necessity, I learned to adapt and imitate the sounds surrounding me. My Chinese feels natural now. CET Harbin was an excellent academic environment, but also a wonderful experience in which I got to make so many friends!