CET Beijing: Internship

My two months that I spent in China changed my life. After studying Mandarin Chinese for around five years in high school and college total, I decided that I wanted to actually study abroad in China and put my Chinese language skills to the test in an environment where there is little to no English. Although there was no language pledge in this specific program, I did my best to speak Chinese with those around me. I was enrolled in a Chinese language class, an elective course pertaining to Chinese history, an internship course, and an actual internship.

All of the CET staff truly cared about the students, especially the director of the program, Zuo Cui. She is an amazing woman who I hope to see again in the future. Whenever I had any issue at all, I would go to her and she would help me to resolve it. My Chinese language teacher was fantastic as well. Although she did not speak much English, I was able to understanding much of what she was saying in Chinese and practice my Chinese as well. Class sizes were small, actually ranging from 1-9 students depending on what level Chinese you have placed in. This is great because it allowed for much active participation and direct teacher and student communication.

Apart from classes, most of us participated in excursions on weekends. CET did an excellent job organizing the trips and I learned so much from each trip. One trip we took was a weekend trip to Qingdao, the beer and seafood capital of China. I absolutely loved the atmosphere in Qingdao. In addition, some of us also went to Shanghai the following weekend without any faculty or staff. It was amazing to see different Chinese cities and notice the difference as you go from city to city. I learned so much from travel within China.

My internship was great. Although I, along with a couple other students, did not have an internship placement until about two to three weeks into the program due to scheduling conflicts and lack of communication between some of us and the internship class teacher, this did not rain on all of our parades. I met some amazing people at my internship and I was able to work in a traditional Chinese courtyard home which is an experience that I will never forget.

The housing at Capital Normal University was absolutely awesome. Every two days, housing workers would come in and take out our trash for us and mop the floors. Every week, they would come and replace our bed sheets. You also get paired with a Chinese roommate. I loved my Chinese roommate so much. He was able to teach me so much Chinese and help me out with my Chinese homework whenever I had questions. CET really does an amazing job when pairing you up with your roommates. There were no problems between anyone in our group and the Chinese roommates. Overall, I wholeheartedly recommend this program to anyone who has any interest in Chinese and China.

Overall, I think that the program was very spiffy.

As an absolute beginner to the language, I was nervous about the program and how it would be especially since there was the internship component; however, after touching down in China and meeting everyone, it was not as bad as I thought it would have been. The staff of CET, the teachers, the staff of CNU, and everyone in the program were all nice and very helpful. Without their help, I would have been lost and confused in my first couple of weeks in China but because everyone was so willing and kind to help a poor soul out, I was able to adjust to being in China quickly.

I do think that having a Chinese roommate for everyone in the program was very beneficial and all of the Chinese roommates were great people. Having them there was great as they would help us with getting around China as well as becoming our long lasting friends.

The trips planned by the program were very nice and we did have weekends free for the most part so we would go out and see different places on our own. The classes themselves in addition to the internship were definitely challenging and homework was daily. I would confidently say that the program was similar to a work-study in the States. Though, the daily Chinese language class did help a lot and I was able to learn a great deal of Chinese and improve what I learned as well.

The program did require a lot of work and somewhat little sleep at times but in the end, it was definitely worth it. The experience of both studying abroad in China as well as the internship component were very valuable in terms of academics as well as making new friends.

Overall, this program was exceptional.

A few highlights:
1) The CET staff, from the resident director to the teachers, were fantastic and second to none. They truly cared about each student and made every attempt to be accommodating of all of our individual needs. Due to small class sizes (2-9 people per class), there were plenty of opportunities to participate, ask questions, and connect with professors one on one. Professors and teachers are patient and very qualified, bringing valuable experiences to the classroom.
2) The historical weekend trip, day trips to cultural sites, and class field trips for the most part were valuable, well organized, and fun. On all of the trips, the CET staff did a great job organizing the excursions and I learned a lot from each of them (they also planned a lot of them, which was great!)
3) My internship placement was awesome! I learned a lot about working in China and I got to meet a lot of new people that I wouldn't have gotten to meet if I had only taken classes. This made this specific program unique to others and was why I picked this program!
4) My roommate and housing situation was also great. Initially before coming to China I was worried about living with a local Chinese student (I feared our cultures would be too contrasting and language would be an issue). However, CET does a great job of picking the best roommates and making the most suitable pairings. My roommate was always there for me and was my greatest resource and friend in China. He really showed me a local perspective to China, while helping me out throughout the way. Also, the rooms are very nice and spacious which is a plus (better than my home university dorms).
5) While many may be concerned by the small program size (my term only had 13 students), I felt it was a great asset. Not only were class sizes small, but I got to connect with all 12 of my classmates and I feel like we became a little family in China as we always had each other’s backs. I think this community would not have developed if the program was a lot larger.
6) My Chinese improved a lot!

Some difficulties:
1) The program is exhausting. There are some days where your schedule is packed from 8:30am-9:30pm (plus homework after). This should be understandable and expected as there are 10 credits (3 classes) and 10-12 hours of internship per week. I enjoyed this because I felt like I had a productive summer and learned a lot. However, students should be aware that this program is no joke. Be prepared to have late nights, academic stress, and lots of work (daily Chinese homework and quizzes, term papers, readings, etc.). Sometimes I wished that we had more free time to explore Beijing and China, but this just motivated me to take full advantage of weekends.
2) At times, I felt the Internship course (not the placement) lacked structure. I thought some of the focus topics were not relevant, classes were not structured well, and there was a lot of work that does not equal the two credits we receive. Sometimes, I felt that the class was an unnecessary addition to our already packed schedule/program (between Chinese class, elective class, internship) and the time could have been better used to focus on other classes, relieving student stress, and exploring Beijing. However, the teacher is very passionate about China, cares about the students, and did try her best to accommodate everyone’s needs, which I appreciated.

Overall, the pros far outweighed the cons, and I thoroughly enjoyed my time in Beijing. Beijing is a great city for culture, history, and food. It is quickly growing and bustling, and it is a great city to explore and meet new people. After coming to Beijing, I now see China in my future and can picture myself returning some day. CET does a great job cramming a lot into one short summer and truly cares about their students. I would definitely recommend this program to others considering it.

During my time with the CET Beijing: Internship program, there was undoubtedly a sufficient amount of growth in my overall progress in learning the Chinese language. In addition, my understanding of Chinese culture was broaden due to my exposure to the people of China and my ability to discuss cultural differences with them. Although there is no pledge to speak Chinese with a few exceptions in this program, the combination of CET's Chinese classes, elective classes, and an internship was often quite rigorous and consuming of time.

I have seen much improvement in my language ability by the end of the program, mostly due to excellent instruction from Chinese teachers. Class sizes in general were significantly smaller than the traditional classroom, allowing for a much greater amount of participation. Having two weekly one-on-one Chinese sessions was also highly beneficial as I was able to talk to a teacher about material outside of the curriculum to supplement my learning. Although there was no strict language pledge put into place, I would sometimes push myself to use Chinese when I spoke others who could also speak English at a proficient level such as the local Chinese roommates who lived with us study abroad students.

The housing accommodation on campus was superior to the dorms I am accustomed to at my home university. The dorm rooms we lived in were regularly cleaned and well-maintained by the staff. It was very convenient to have a private bathroom within my own room rather than a communal one. The rooms were also equipped with air conditioning and any necessary furniture. Living with a Chinese roommate to practice my Chinese with and ask questions about Chinese culture definitely helped me learn so much. The program reimbursed me and my roommate for up to 70 RMB per week for cultural activities that we did together such as visiting a historical site.

The staff was always very dependable ever since the beginning during orientation when the students were first settling into life in China. Whether it was visiting a doctor or planning a trip to another city, the resident director was always willing to help the students with the challenges that they have encountered. In addition, CET also organized fun weekend excursions for the students such as to the Great Wall and Qingdao while allowing time for independently planned activities throughout the course of the summer.

Above all, I genuinely enjoyed my time in Beijing, China and would recommend this program to anyone interested in improving their Chinese language ability, living in and learning about China, and meeting great people in the process!

This program provided structure and facilitated opportunities that I could of never done for myself. In China, building connections is culturally a key part of both daily and business life which I wasn't used to; however, the staff at CET works hard to not only provide you with meaningful connections, but also teach you how to create your own.
Before studying abroad it is important to consider what your priorities are, especially if you want to participate in a summer program. I did the summer internship program, which upon later realization didn't adequately fulfill the priorities that I originally had in mind. For example, I wanted my internship to really give me a glimpse of what non-profits are like in China. However, because of the brevity of the program I didn't feel I had enough time to accomplish this. Also, if language learning is a huge priority for you, I would recommend the Intensive Language program because without a language pledge it is up to you individually to speak Mandarin with the other people in the program- and often that kind of self-discipline can be difficult. Nevertheless, I believe not having the language pledge helped me foster relationships with other people on the program that I might of not been able to foster otherwise.
Ultimately, CET is a well-developed program with superb staff that helps you create meaningful long-lasting relationships with both the Chinese roommates and other participants.

Going to Beijing was amazing and being able to do it with CET was even better. The people at CET are amazing and they are always willing to help if you have problems. CET allows you the comfort of exploring China independently, but you will always have a great support network with the CET people, the local roommates and your fellow students.
This program is a great way to explore Beijing and its culture because the internship allows you to see first hand how different the international work place is and it allows you to interact with different aspects of the Chinese culture like for example the working environment. Another great thing is the chance to explore the many sites of Beijing and you can get to most by subway or other types of public transportation. The best part was all the amazing food. You can never go wrong with their snacks especially the many different flavors of chips such as cucumber or honey butter. This program definitely makes you want to go back to China one day.
P.S: When you go pack to your own first aid kit with any type of medicine you will need especially stomach medicine. Going into any country that has a different type water and food will cause some sort of stomach issue. That is the truth.

I actually came to be admitted into the Beijing quite last minute. I'd originally planned to spend the 2016-2017 Academic year in Amman, Jordan. Midway through the year my school decided to pull me due to a U.S. State Department travel warning on Jordan. So instead of returning to campus I hurriedly applied for CET Beijing. From the beginning they were extremely helpful in my odd application process. They even managed to have my internship setup on an extremely short timeframe.
Beijing as a city is massive an can be overwhelming at first. Getting to places will take time and patience. Things were easier for me as a Chinese American so I blended in with the ethnically homogenous society better than other students. There's a good amount of history and culture (Hutongs, Tiananmen) to see in Beijing and modern architecture(Birds Nest, National Theater). Even though you aren't in a 'language pledge' intensive Chinese environment the Chinese classes are still quite rigorous. In addition to this, I know the others in my program and myself gained immense Chinese technical/business jargon while on-site at our respective internships. The semester was fun and challenging and I would recommend this program to any students who are thinking about potentially working in China in the future, this will be a great litmus test for you.

CET Academic Programs is a great program for study abroad. The most unique aspect of CET is the local roommate feature. No other program I found had this feature, and it was one I was specifically looking for. My roommate was the best resource for me to practice my Chinese, as well as a lovely person. She helped me every step of the way. My Chinese would not be half of what it is without her. In terms of academics, the English-taught courses are taught by professors that are top-notch experts in their fields. The Chinese courses are taught by experienced teachers with a wide knowledge base. My internship placement was identical to my career goals and interests. I got to learn more about the foreign environmental NGO sector in China as well as network with Chinese and other international coworkers. Although the program was extremely academically rigorous and kept us busy every minute of the day, there was one week in April where we had the freedom to travel wherever we wanted in or out of the country. The program also includes one trip outside of Beijing with the whole program that is a ton of fun. Lastly, I made great, long lasting friendships during my time abroad with CET which I expect to last the rest of my life. If you want a program that is academically rigorous, language intensive, career focused, and also gives you the freedom to travel and meet great people, choose CET!