EF Beijing

I came to Beijing not knowing anyone in china and without being able to speak more than a few words, but quickly found not only people I consider to be my close friends but also people that have grown to become my family. If I have to say something that is incredibly good with ef in Beijing and ef over all, it is that it knows exactly how to organize people to quickly get to know each other and become friends which is something that I find very important and which has served to make the experience here in Beijing extraordinary.

Another thing that sets ef Beijing apart from the others is that it really allows you to get the result you want. If you want to come to Beijing and get a plentiful social life and do new things every day, then that is very possible. If you want to devote yourself to study and improve your Chinese quickly then that is equally possible. Ef becomes exactly what you want it to be, and I have seen people who have had the time of their lives here, and people who had left being able to speak Chinese almost fluently. Ef gives their students the freedom to do both, and in my eyes it is something that is extremely good, especially if you are like me and like to combine both having fun and meeting friends as well as studying. It can be something negative though, for the people who don't have the energy to study on their own or take responsibility for their own studies, and instead might blame the school for it. The teachers here also encourage you to pass exam and take hsk test which is also great for learning.
For me, my year here has been incredible. I have had a great host family and had a great roommate that I became close to, but if I have to say something negative it is that the people here come and go and that the host family (which I've heard are also mostly super nice) also depend a bit on the circumstances. Some have had amazing hosts and others not so much.

If you are considering going to Beijing to study Chinese and get to experience Chinese culture then my advice to you is this: do it. But make sure you come here with an open mind and a positive mindset, because whether you will get something amazing out of this experience is entirely up to you at the end of the day. :) For me it has been amazing, and I think coming here might just have been the greatest choice I've done yet.