CET Greater China

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!

When I first arrived, it was in early February. CET Harbin's campus was beautiful but the weather is known to be cold. It was a lot different than what I was expecting. I would say that this program definitely brought my Chinese to the next level. In my whole lifetime, I've only taken Econ 101 at school and this was my only "business" knowledge until CET Harbin, I registered for a business class and was placed in the highest language proficiency with no business background. I would say that this was one of the most challenging time of my life with school, but after 6 to 7 weeks, without realizing it, I have already been accustomed and was on a roll with classes. Other classes I took were Newspaper Reading, 一对二, and my 一对一class was on Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). I wanted to learn about TCM for the longest time of my life, and coming to this program really helped me accomplished my goal. All the 老师s were amazing at what they do and the activities that CET coordinated were really helpful in integrating students with the culture. I've made so many friends that I would definitely consider them my lifelong friends, and I've learned so so much through this language intensive program. If you are serious about improving your Chinese, CET Harbin is the way to go if you really followed the language pledge. It may be tiring speaking and thinking everything in Chinese, but at the end or before you know it, your Chinese is already on the next level. (I forgot but on the side note, breakfast foods are amazing, so were the caf's foods. There are 7 different cafeterias for you to choose from).

I always knew I wanted to study abroad in China. Being from a major city, Shanghai was the obvious choice. The city is famed for its modernity, architectural beauty, and international/metropolitan vibe.

I was immediately drawn to the CET Program. Most study abroad programs involve either coursework or an internship. The CET program combines both. Unlike most programs, CET specializes in finding an internship that is both educational and interesting. This summer I had the unique honor of interning at the Propaganda Poster Art Center, and if it were not for CET I would have not had the ability to intern at such an interesting location.

Classes at CET are difficult, but rewarding. The faculty are the best in their respective fields, and all are great professors. They are both intelligent and engaging. As far as learning Mandarin goes, every day is an adventure and the Chinese professors are all special and loving in their own way. Professor Rottman, the academic advisor is an incredible resource and mentor.

CET also has a unique reimbursement policy. They will reimburse up to 350 RMB a day (70 RMB per excursion) for cultural activities within Shanghai. This reimbursement policy encourages students to explore and engage with Shanghai.

Overall, what makes CET special is the people. The faculty, staff, and students are all excited about learning both in and out of the classroom. I highly recommend CET to any student looking for a holistic study abroad experience.

I myself will be applying for Summer 2020!

This program presents a lot of challenges, academically, socially, personally, and professionally. However, depending on how you work through and look at challenges, this program can either be discouraging or deeply gratifying. Personally, I dealt differently with each category of challenges. In each obstacle there was hidden a lesson, an opportunity, or a chance for growth, and in each gift there was a difficulty, a misunderstanding, or something wholly unexpected. I found this true across my academic, personal, and professional experiences.
No matter how you deal with challenges, your Chinese will greatly improve being abroad. Even if you don't work very hard at it, or go out of your way to use it (though i recommend you do) it will improve consistently and drastically. I was really pushed to improve and constantly practice my language skills. The class met daily and often had a lot of homework. I spent hours everyday working on reading, writing, speaking, and listening solely for my course work. However, the positive side of that was that my Chinese language ability improved drastically throughout my time abroad. I found every day that something I was learning in class was applicable to my daily life in Shanghai. I could immediately put to use what I was learning, which felt deeply gratifying. Additionally, living in China pushed me to use Chinese daily – whether with my roommate, other students, store-clerks, or strangers – and it was often both rewarding and difficult to navigate social situations with my limited linguistic ability. I was frequently frustrated and disappointed in myself for being unable to express ideas or intentions effectively, but this ultimately motivated me to learn and engage with the language even more.
Personally, I had to act more self-sufficiently and independently and really have faith and trust in my abilities. Daily I encountered difficulties adapting to a new culture and environment, even up to my last day. It was difficult to think positively about this. It was great having a Chinese roommate, and the other American students were all very supportive, but really creating a space that felt like home was a definite challenge, and one I never fully solved. That said, I still loved the city and was always excited to explore, but I never fully settled into life in Shanghai.
However, through all my time abroad, the most valuable thing I learned is that anything is possible if I trust myself and take the leap. The hardest and scariest thing about going abroad for me was getting on the plane. That isn't to say I didn't have difficulties, because there is a lot that felt or seemed impossible about being abroad: little things like buying clean supplies or ordering food in a restaurant. For several weeks I felt like everything was just out of reach, and there were times I wanted to come home. There were also amazing moments, great friends, wonderful strangers, and a unique beauty in deeply realizing that every second, across the world, everyone is really just doing their best.
The same can be said of life in general – good days and bad days – and, in a very literal way, being abroad was my life, every day, and with that came all manner of sorrow and satisfaction. But the hardest thing by far was the fear and uncertainty as I was leaving and transitioning from one home to another. In that liminal suspended space, I felt listless and lonelier than ever, my mind thinking over every worst-case scenario. But once I landed, none of those horrible things came true. I was met welcomingly and warmly, and in the end, I realized that all I had to do was get on the plane and after that, I just had to deal with things as they came. Going abroad has made me feel like I can do anything, no matter how difficult, as long as I can find the courage to get on the plane.

I loved my study abroad with CET. First, CET did an amazing job organizing enriching activities for all the students to do. We got to do a broad range of things, from hiking Taroko Gorge to going to a traditional Chinese opera. But my favorite thing was definitely traveling to the Mazu Festival in central Tawian, which is put on every year for one of Taiwan's many deities, Mazu. Andrew and Chunling did all the organizing, and the trips were all included in the program fee. Additionally, I liked my classes at ICLP, especially the 1-on-1 class that met for an hour every day. If there were a few things I could change, they would probably be my internship experience and adding a language pledge, but both of these were more applicable to me because my Chinese was at a slightly higher level than most.

The program definitely focused on language immersion and getting your level of Chinese up; even though I came in with only studying one year of Chinese before the program, by the end I felt more confident in my speaking, comprehension, reading, and writing skills. The program is set up to raise all aspects of your Chinese and it definitely delivered. I would just warn that it may be more work than you're used to, and than you might think it will be; that was the case for me. Besides the academic portion they offer weekend activities and places to go which gives you opportunities to see a lot of sides of Beijing. The city has a ton to offer and I think everyone would find something they like; exploring on my own with friends was exciting too, it's just that there wasn't as much time as I would like to have to explore Beijing without having to sacrifice academics. Pairing every person in the program with a Chinese roommate was also beneficial because it was like having a companion and guide at the same time. The teachers and staff are all very caring, hardworking, and deliver well too. My experience with this program was overall very positive and I am glad I was a part of it. Two months pass by faster than you might think but packed with unforgettable memories and stories.

Harbin was so different than what I ever would have expected going into this program. I was so surprised about the overlaps of different cultures and how much I would learn, not only about Chinese history, but also of Russian and North Korean history! My roommate, professors, and food made the experience so enjoyable. My favorite foods were 手抓饼 (Shou zhuabing) and 馄饨 (huntun); I ate them almost everyday! Even though it was very cold the first month I was there, the weather got warmer and warmer and turned into spring. The flowers bloomed and the pollution cleared up a bit because all the heaters got turned off! The atmosphere was amazing and because my Chinese language ability improved so much while I was there, I can say that I made lifelong friends from my time abroad.