Program Reviews

The two months I spent in Beijing with the CET Intensive Chinese program have proven to be incredibly impactful, both with regard to my Chinese language ability and my life more broadly.
It's certainly an academically challenging program, with four hours of class plus a half an hour one-on-one session with a teacher every Monday through Friday (not to mention the homework) but you'll find that there's no better motivation than being in China and seeing immediate real-world benefits of your studies, such as being able to more effortlessly communicate with Chinese students, choose dishes at nearby nearby restaurants, or just get around Beijing.
I could not recommend this program highly enough to someone who's looking to improve their Chinese and who's also interested in getting to know China and its people.

The CET Prague program could not have been better tailored to my academic interests. As a History and Political Science major on my home campus, I was constantly amazed at the political and historical significance of everything around me. On the first day of class for Refugees, Minorities, and Migrations, our professor took us on a walking tour around Prague. All within walking distance of the CET Center were significant landmarks, monuments, and sites. I was especially fascinated because Central Europe had been so neglected in my historical education.
In addition to the myriad of historical sites to take in around Prague, CET took us on a traveling seminar around Central Europe, where we visted Krakow, Auschwitz-Birkenau, Brno, Mikulov, Vienna, and Budapest. Easily the best part of the program, the traveling seminar balances lectures with educational outings and free time to explore.
Additionally, I can't speak highly enough of the CET staff - our resident director and student life coordinator both made the program amazing for everybody.

My time in Florence was absolutely incredible. I had great housing with a central location so it was easy to explore, and I got to see a beautiful view of the Ponte Vecchio on my way to class every day. There was a fairly wide variety of classes to take, so every student could find things they were interested in. Many of the classes made a large effort to interact with the local environment in order to differentiate the classes from ones at home, and that was a really great way to see differences between the US and Italy. The staff was all very friendly and nice, and Giada (Student Life and Services Coordinator) even took me out to coffee a few times to help me practice my Italian! I wouldn't trade this experience for anything in the world and I highly recommend it to anyone interested in a wonderful semester in Florence.

China is the most populated country in the world and has one of the longest human civilizations in history. During my trip to Harbin, not only did my Chinese level improve tremendously, thanks to CET Harbin's intense language program and 24-hour language pledge (Chinese only, no English allowed), but I also experienced the culture of China's beautiful Ice City of Harbin. I visited Harbin during the Summer months when it's famed Ice and Snow Festival was not open; however, Harbin still had plenty to offer. Our daily weekend excursions in this program included hiking a pristine mountain, learning how to curl and much more. We also had the free time to go on extra excursions including skiing in the world's largest indoor ski resort, visiting a cat café, and feeding Siberian Tigers in Harbin's famed Siberian Tiger Park. Along with intensive one-on-one language classes, each program participant also was paired with a Chinese roommate who helped us with school projects and brought us along to night markets and Karaoke and to experience many of China’s cultural treasures like experiencing a Tea Ceremony and interacting with Chinese children. If you wish to improve your Chinese proficiency, CET Harbin is one of the best programs. The improvement in my Chinese speaking level and the friends that I made in these short two months will last a lifetime.

Going to Siena in Spring 2019 was an irreplaceable time of growth and learning for me. I highly recommend this program because of the individual care for students, and the opportunities offered to have genuine and meaningful cultural experiences. The teachers challenge students an optimal level to where they learn a lot but are not stressed. Additionally, there is bountiful cultural diversity within Italy, with Swiss, German, Austrian, Greek, and French amongst other influences being present (region dependent). From Siena, students can bus or train to just about any of these areas, which is much more cost-effective than flying, but offers a similar experience to traveling to each of these places. The stereotype about food is completely correct, and it is worth coming to Siena for this reason alone. I would like to add that if you do select this program, I highly recommend doing a homestay because the families are very kind, they make amazing food, and its consistent and direct cultural interaction.

It's difficult to express how amazing this summer is by writing it all out. I'm usually better talking in person but here we go!

Jordan - specifically Amman - is a beautiful place. Thousands of years of culture and history found in one city is something beautiful. I wouldn't have wanted to go anywhere else to spend two months learning Arabic. From the city of Petra to the Mars-like desert of Wadi Rum to the ruins of old castles from the Umayyad era...what's not to love (and I haven't even mentioned the food)?

The best complement to exploring Jordan, broadening my cultural experience, and also learning a language starkly different from my own was the CET program. Hours of classroom instruction paired with real-life, on-the-street homework assignments meant that I was learning relevant material that actually helped and prepared me to live in Amman for two months, not just learning a weird jumble of vocabulary from Al-Kitaab that you can't really use on the streets. By the end of my time here I could successfully negotiate prices with butchers and vegetable sellers, to navigating "almost" flawlessly in another country, like Palestine. This was only because of CET, and how much effort they actually put in to not only the program itself, but also to you. They honestly care so much about your education that they were willing to work with you in any way necessary. If I was with any other program in Jordan, I am certain I wouldn't have learned as much.

Additionally, I've made lifelong friends here. Truly. Jordanians and Americans.

Thank you to everyone at CET in Amman, and if you're trying to learn Arabic, this is the place/program to do it!

Studying Chinese with CET in Beijing was greatly helpful in improving my Chinese language skills. Through CET, I had the opportunity to learn Chinese in authentic contexts, which focused on helping us develop communicative competencies and to improve in our speaking, listening, writing, and reading skills. I enjoyed the class structure, which involved a lot of repetition and practice using new grammar structures every day in a large class, small class, and one on one session with the teacher. The teachers were all not only very knowledgable about the material and able to effectively teach us, but also very friendly and relational.
The CET office staff are very supportive in case problems arise and in helping students to adjust to life in China. CET also organizes many trips for students to explore Beijing and understand more of its culture and history, such as trips to the Great Wall and to museums. Furthermore, CET houses students with a Chinese roommate, who are often valuable friends to students, helping them to navigate life in Beijing, serving as a conversational partner to practice Chinese with.
Overall, I really enjoyed my time with CET Beijing and am much more confident in my Chinese abilities now. I would recommend this program to anyone looking to grow in their Chinese abilities and in their understanding of a culture and of people different from what they may be familiar with.

My time in Japan was one of the greatest times of my life. I got to meet many new people, hang out with them, and make new experiences. The program also really helped me improve my Japanese. The teachers and staff were very helpful the whole time and helped you with any problems that you had. Your roommate will also be there to help you with your homework. He/She will be with you the whole time and will help you explore around the city and on your Japanese on your times of need. You get to use Japanese the whole time, and by the end of the program, you will feel like your Japanese has improved drastically. You also get to learn the local dialect. By the end of the program, it will be hard to let go since you don't want to leave everything that you have experienced during your time there. You will have so much fun during your time in Japan.

I had a very enriching time this summer at the CET Beijing program.
Language wise, I significantly improved my Mandarin ability. They made all students follow a Mandarin-only language pledge, which was very intense. On the same note, we had to do four and a half hours of class every weekday, not to mention daily homework and essay compositions on the weekends. I found it difficult to simultaneously keep up my physical health, social life, and results in class. Many nights, I was only able to sleep for 6 hours and struggled to stay awake in class, which started at 8 AM every weekday. As challenging as the academic load was, I would say it definitely paid off, as the constant repetition led to the expansion of my vocabulary and my Mandarin becoming more and more fluent.
On many weekends, we had sightseeing events organized by CET. I thought these were a great way to both see the beautiful sights near Beijing, learn more about Chinese history, and get closer to the other CET students. My favorite trip was to Da Tong, where we got to stay in a four star hotel and see over four cultural sites over one weekend.
CET was also great for my own development, as I got the opportunity to connect and get to know students from colleges all over the US. This, in combination with exposure to Chinese culture, really opened my eyes to the different perspectives in this world.
I really enjoyed my time at CET and would definitely recommend it to anyone who is willing to challenge themselves on multiple fronts.

Before going to China and attending the CET Beijing program, I had no idea what to expect. I had attended two previous summer Chinese learning programs, but both were only for three weeks and both were in the United States. The CET Beijing program gave me the full immersion into Chinese culture and the experience of using language in the everyday interactions of daily life. In short, it was completely different than any previous experience I had. After going to China, I became so much more willing to try new things, whether that be food, activities or just the experience of living abroad, meeting people and speaking a different language. I came to believe during my time in Beijing that you need to be willing to try new things in order to have a fulfilling experience. If I had not tried even half of the things I did, I am certain that my summer would have been not only completely different, but not even as half as incredible as it was. What made my time in Beijing unique was the people I got to meet. New friends, teachers, program alumni and native Chinese speakers like my roommate, all made a huge positive impact on my experience. Making an effort to connect with these people on a daily basis, as well as trying to make as much an impact on their lives as they made on mine, was very important in building and maintaining those relationships and giving me more opportunities to connect in the future, as well as enriching my experience abroad.

CET learning was not similar to high school learning. I was one of the youngest people in the 2019 summer CET Beijing program, and, as a result, all of my friends were at least a year older than me, already had a year or more of university experience under their belt, and were overall more adjusted in the art of adulthood, while I had just graduated high school. However, this turned out to be a good thing, especially in planning weekend activities, trips and dealing with daily navigation struggles. I was able to learn so much from these older people and gained so much more self confidence, ability and maturity in the process. I would tell future participants that going in with an open mind is the most beneficial way of getting everything out of the CET program that they can.