IFSA Study in Shanghai: Social Science

One of my main goals from this program was focusing on Mandarin study, and my professor was incredibly helpful, supportive, and overall a great teacher. I felt that my Mandarin reading, writing, and speaking skills increased a lot. The IFSA staff were also extremely helpful and I enjoyed all of the excursions and field trips we went on. I got to learn so much about many different aspects of China through the field trips and the core sociology course everyone on the 21st Century track had to take. In terms of living in Shanghai, it was extremely easy to get around the city, and the food was amazing, but it was a bit hard to get to know people who weren't fellow American college students in the program.

My time in Shanghai was full of unique experiences and fun memories! It was the perfect mix of learning and adventure. Being able to explore the city while learning about the culture and history of China deepened and expanded my experience even more. The IFSA staff were supportive and always willing to help students navigate life in China. I had incredible opportunities like an internship with a local non-profit, an organized trip to western provinces, and guided adventures around the city to museums and other historical sites.

My time in Shanghai went by much faster then I thought it would! I got travel quite a bit throughout China as well as Southeast Asia. My classes were interesting and not too demanding. My Chinese language classes were extremely helpful and fun. The IFSA office members did an excellent job of supporting me and helping me get the most out of my experience. The IFSA directors helped me and my friends plan a trip to Hong Kong, which was an absolutely amazing trip! I made several friends within the program most of whom I am still in contact with to this day. The program offers students several opportunities to get immersed into the city of Shanghai which helps students adjust to Chinese culture. Overall, I enjoyed my time in Shanghai and I definitely think that the program is worth it!

As a sociology student, I am constantly amazed by society and the varying cultures within a community. I was able to attend classes within the university district which also presented me with the ability to meet other international students. I was able to serve a non-profit organization as a grant writer which was one of the best parts of my time in China. My internship allowed me to meet so many people from all over China and our one-week field trip to Yünnan furthered my understanding of diversity in the country. There were several cultural activities including calligraphy and martial arts classes. My time abroad couldn't have been better rounded. I was learning about social structures in China, meeting people from different walks of life, and engaging with different cuisines, music, and cultural practices which gave me a holistic understanding of Shanghai/China. The program would not have been the same without all the support of the IFSA staff and our language teachers!

My study abroad experience has fueled my desire to continue learning Mandarin and aspirations of serving communities in need, both domestically and abroad while reemphasizing the value of intercultural agility.

First, I participated in this program when it was at Fudan, and was a more general language and culture program, but this seems to be the current incarnation of it. My third day there I was diagnosed with acute appendicitis, and had to have emergency surgery, alone, thousands of miles away from home. I was terrified and overwhelmed. The resident director, despite having a large group of students under his charge, stayed by my side that whole first evening when I was in pain and when I went into surgery. He eased my mother's fears over the phone. He came everyday to keep me company in the hospital while I recovered, and made sure that I was incorporated into the group when I was discharged. I was so touched by the personal attention and care the staff showed toward me and my family. It inspired me.

Otherwise, the program was pretty good. The language class was challenging and always in the target language. My chinese improved significantly. The culture classes were interesting, but sometimes tended toward really long lectures (one on Friday afternoons). Still I learned a great deal. The trips, especially to western China along the Silk Road were transformative. How else would I have had the opportunity to see the Dunhuang caves, or talk to a Kazakh gentleman in Chinese about American politics?

Overall, I have no regrets at all about participating in this program. It was fantastic and I highly recommend it.

My favorite part about this program is that you are given a Chinese roommate - mine became a very close friend, and hanging out with her improved my Chinese skills more than anything else could have!

I loved this study abroad program so much that I returned the following summer to intern in Shanghai - and all of my closest friends that summer were people who had studied with the Alliance the semester AFTER me! We didn't overlap at all, but the Chinese roommates were the same the whole year and connected us, creating a half-Chinese half-foreign social group that was the thing that made my summer great.

The most memorable experience I had from my time in China was the study trip we took to Yunan, China. The Alliance provided me with access to places I don't think I would have been able to find myself. I LOVED living with a Chinese student, too. She always spoke to us in Chinese and was very very willing to help whenever I had problems. I really enjoyed my time with the Alliance and have recommended it to many other students interested in studying language.

Shanghai definitely is the best example of a global city. There is evidence of foreign influence while still retaining traditional Chinese culture.
Even though my program was not centrally located in the downtown/business central of Shanghai, the public transportation system was accessible and incredibly affordable for a college student.

21st Century program is located in a residential area between SUFE and Fudan university. The area that I lived in catered to international student's tastes, but there was the quintessential late-night food vendors selling all sorts of delicious chinese street food.

I enjoyed my time in this program because even though this is a program for international study abroad students, we lived in a neighborhood that forced us to interact with Chinese locals in their mother tongue. We were encouraged and pushed to speak in Chinese, whether or not we signed a language contract. My level of Chinese increased exponentially by the end of four months. In the beginning, I was incredibly uncomfortable speaking chinese to anyone besides my teachers and my roommates. But by my last couple of weeks in Shanghai, I was able to carry on a conversation with locals and understand directions, even though sometimes they had a heavy accent. We had many opportunities to immerse ourselves in Chinese culture and to get out of our comfort zones.

The highlight of the program was the study trip to the autonomous region of China, Yunnan providence. We learned about minority groups in China and how their culture differed from the Han Chinese. We traveled in rural areas, observing another face of China outside of the city.

I would have to say, an area that can be improved on for this program is finding more opportunities for alliance students to interact with non-alliance program chinese students. Even though there were club fairs which all were encouraged to go to, I felt like there was not enough facilitation for interaction. A suggestion would be to maybe have an Alliance - sponsored/supported club on a Chinese University might be able to create a foundation for this?