Going into this program, I had no idea what kind of summer adventure I was going to have, but I knew it was going to be interesting to say the least. Arriving in Shanghai, my roommate was waiting for and we travelled back to Donghua, the university I would be living at for the summer. I knew, just from that moment, my roommate was going to be the best part about my summer. She helped me struggle through learning Mandarin and always encouraged me to speak Chinese, even if I messed up over and over again. She took me around to museums and different restaurants (she learned that I loved spicy food and brought me to as many places as possible).
Living in Shanghai was an experience in of itself. Everyday the city brought something new and surprising to my life. I was constantly out of my comfort zone, but i loved every moment; the city always kept me on my toes.
I learned so much about myself from being in Shanghai. I am so thankful for this program and the entire CET staff who were always there for us when we needed anything.

Shanghai was the time of my life.

I made strong friendships, learned a lot of Chinese, and had a blast exploring the Shanghai nightlife. Most importantly, I learned about myself. Being thrown into a culture and overall lifestyle that is so different from my own, I was forced to adjust. As I've heard others say, "It's China. You either grow or are run over." I can happily say that I grew - academically, professionally, and emotionally.

You are matched with a Chinese roommate through CET, and I'd say around 95% of the CET students were very pleased with their roommate pairing. I am still in contact with my roommate, and I plan to visit him as soon as I can.

The staff is incredible. They made me feel at home! They are courteous, reliable, and always willing to go the extra mile. I remember when a staff member, Nova, stayed up extra late just to help a CET student with flight issues. They are here for the students, and it shows.

The program director did an excellent job making sure that everyone was assigned with an appropriate internship. Whether you are working for a small software company or the largest financial planning firm in Shanghai, your internship will be satisfying and open doors.

My advice: Speak Chinese as much as possible. Go out and explore not only the amazing nightlife of Shanghai, but also the enriching daytime excursions offered by Shanghai and other Chinese cities.

With the right mindset and motivated attitude, Shanghai with CET can be the most thrilling and rewarding ride of your life.

I enjoyed every aspect of my experience in Harbin with CET - if I had the chance to do another study abroad program, CET Harbin would still be at the top of my list, over other programs in places that I haven't been to. CET Harbin had the perfect combination of interesting cultural experiences, rigorous academics, and fun social life that I was looking for in study abroad.

I studied abroad through a Fellowship program that channeled me through CET. I didn't know much about study abroad at the time, and blindly went in, and only now realize how well-suited the program was for me.

The program was the perfect size - big enough where we had lots of different students and roommates so that it felt like a community, but small enough where we could get individualized attention in class. The classes felt like they were planned down to the minute - our main teacher was incredibly experienced, and effective at drilling us and making sure we understood the nuances of the lesson of the day.

The program highlights were a camping trip on a section of wild, unrestored Great Wall, and my Chinese roommate. We hung out, talked late at night in the dorms, and he even took me to the hospital. He's such a fun and quirky guy, and we remain really good friends.

I initially CET Shanghai because it was advertised as an academically challenging program that still allowed for students to participate in internships (if they chose to do so). Since I was double-majoring and studying abroad for a full academic year, I couldn't sacrifice any course credits during my time abroad - a CET program was a logical choice because students receive a ton of classroom time and, even on a non-language intensive program, students get the equivalent of one full year of language instruction in one semester.

My situation was admittedly a little weird; there were only 6 students on the Shanghai program that semester, so I ended up having a 1-on-1 language class for the entire semester. That meant 2.5 hours every day of individual language instruction. It would've been easy for CET to just fit me into the nearest language level with other students, but instead the Director chose to provide a separate class to meet my academic needs, and I really appreciated that.

The only downside to my experience was the social scene - since there were only 6 students, we didn't have a big group to explore the nightlife, and we never really bonded. My roommate was friendly and helped with my Chinese, but we didn't share much in common. The roommate experiences of the other students on the program seemed better, so I think it's just hit-or-miss, and it certainly didn't define my experience in Shanghai. Overall, I was really satisfied with the coursework, and I left feeling like I'd made the right choice based on my academic goals.

Chinese is hard, and I knew that going in. I wanted a program where I could really work on my language skills, and I got exactly what I asked for. I'm a good student with pretty decent time management skills, but I still had to wake up at 6:30 every morning and study the thirty-odd characters I would be quizzed on at 9. After lunch I'd run to my internship, and then I'd be back home for dinner and more studying. This kind of jam-packed day was rough, but it brings you close to everyone in your program. We were all very different people, but from the start we could count on each other for anything. It was a fantastic environment to grow in, and in China, you either grow or get run over.

Another thing that begs to be mentioned are the roommates. They put us to shame every day with how much they cared, taking friendship to a new level. I still feel shallow in comparison to Fujie, who translated carry-out menus and circled good options for my vegetarian friends without even being asked!

China is very, very different from America. We were all homesick at one time or another. But now that I'm back doing my regular college thing, I miss Shanghai a lot. I miss discovering new things, challenging and reinventing myself. I'd do it again in a heartbeat.