My Time Abroad at MIC: Kunming

I attended MIC Kunming in the fall of 2016 during my junior year of college. Overall, this program/experience was extremely transformative for me. It was my first time in China, and while culture shock was indeed a real thing for me, I quickly got over it and found myself calling Kunming home within no time. The program is very well-organized, and is truly designed to help you improve your Chinese. The language pledge, which seemed daunting at first, is designed to facilitate this, as well as having a Chinese roommate. In addition, the teachers are all extremely passionate and really want to see you do well. Kunming is a beautiful city, with SO much to do, from hiking, biking, and badminton, to museums, temples, and concerts. The cafeteria food at the university is decent, but the surrounding area has tons of great restaurants. It is worth noting, however, that the program is VERY academically rigorous. Having all four classes in a semester be entirely in Chinese is no doubt a big change from what most college students are used to for a normal course-load, and definitely takes some adjusting to at first. Be prepared to memorize lots of characters each week. With that said, simply being so immersed in Chinese 24/7 for a semester will have an incredible impact on your language skills, and you'll see improvement in no time