Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
11 weeks that is broken up into a six-week vacation and a five-week term for various types
of training or summer school.
Applying for a Chinese university isn't particularly difficult, but if you do it by yourself
directly with the university, you may find aspects of it frustrating and baffling, particularly
if you've just landed in Beijing. If this seems a little daunting or unclear, you can use ser-
vices such as CUCAS or the Chinese Service Center for Scholarly Exchange (CSCSE),
which will take care of everything for you for a fee.
Unlike the ferocious competition and exams that locals endure to get into the top uni-
versities, for foreigners it's relatively easy, as long as you can pay the fee. Standard require-
ments are that you have a foreign passport and your high school graduation certificate and
transcript. You will also need to pass a government health check and be within a given age
limit (typically 18-30 years for undergraduate degrees, although this varies greatly between
universities). If you plan to do a degree that is taught in Chinese, you'll also need to have
passed a given level of the HSK or New HSK exam (usually level 5 or higher).
If you have already accumulated credit points with a university in your home country,
don't let these go to waste. Check to see if your university is affiliated with a Chinese uni-
versity and apply to transfer your points for advanced credit.
Another expense you'll have to consider is accommodations. Most universities have several
on-campus dormitories, some that particularly cater to the local Chinese students and some
that cater more to the tastes of international students. The latter are generally more com-
fortable and modern, as well as more expensive—RMB40-80 per bed per day, or around
RMB1,200-2,500 per month. Rooms do get booked up pretty quickly, so book online
through the university's site ASAP, otherwise you'll find yourself needing to make other
arrangements.
