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Beijing Normal University (aka 北京师范大学)


Zhende ma?

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I decided that the Feb-May/June semester meant I was in Beijing during the Spring, which fro what I've read is hot, sticky and mosquito laden.

So I've picked the Autumn semester instead, which runs August/September - December. Yes, it'll get bloody cold towards the end of it, but I plan on rewarding myself with a week or two further South after my course finishes.

There's lost of pros and cons for both BNU and BLCU. I've decided against BLCU mainly because the campus seems very Western. However, the facilities that this brings (bars, cafes - just loads of studenty places to hang out) is a good plus point, whereas BNU is quite sparce. I'll be buying a bike, so will just cycle between the two places anyway.

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There are a few more cafes around BNU than there used to be - I'm sitting in one right now which has comfy sofas, wireless and a very nice spaghetti bolognaise which I am about to order to congratulate myself on finishing my work for the day. :twisted:

However, how is the weather like in April, May, June, July, etc?

If you are only going for a month, then it will probably depend when suitable short courses are running. Weather wise, aim for autumn or spring. See here for monthly averages.

I would say that the Spring or Autumn semester would be fine - it's Summer which is unpleasant, and Winter might not be fun if you aren't used to sub-zero temperatures (very mild this year though).

PS. Here's a picture of the Spag Bog. Portion was disappointingly small, but it is much tastier than your average Beijing cafe pasta fare.

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  • 3 years later...
  • 3 weeks later...

Huier: I'm pretty sure that they do. I believe their website says as much, and my friend who's there at the moment said his class grew by several people at the start of the spring semester.

Jon09: I have a friend who's there now, he's happy. Says his teachers are mostly pretty good, and since most of his classmates are not native English speakers there's little reversion to English. He likes the neighborhood, as it is a central location and also not a college student colony rife with foreigners. I've been there, and indeed it feels more like the rest of Beijing does (to me) than Wudaokou does. Wish I could provide more info... All I can say is that if I get the CSC scholarship, I hope that's where I end up.

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bigtops:

do you have any info on applying to BNU?

i'm about to send my application in for the fall semester but there is no information on how to remit the application fee.

should i try to send cash in the mail -- or is there an account that you can wire money to (like BLCU)?

thanks

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  • 3 weeks later...

Hello! :) I have a question regarding online dorm reservation: :help

So, I got a 4-week scholarship and I will go to BNU.

- If I´m on a scholarship, can I book the dorm online and is the choice restricted? Or I´m just simply assigned a room? I´m not too picky, I would want a double and I know rooms A don´t have a bathroom, so any room´s OK if it has a bathroom.

-Oh, and do ALL rooms (even A) have a safe with a code (so I could close in my passport etc.)???

Thanks for making this clear to me. :mrgreen: Anything you´d like to tell regarding BNU dorms, you´re welcome. :wink:

Edited by Gaogao
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hey -

I just sent in my application for the fall semester. gubokai, I sent them a check which is probably laughable, but i'll let you know how it goes.:roll: gaogao, did you get a csc scholarship? if so i think i remember reading on the csc thread that the dorms are picked for you.

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Hey,

I studied at Beishida for a year. Overall I think it's a fantastic place to learn Chinese. Someone mentioned that most of the students seem to be Korean...and....this is completely true! :P Although there is actually a pretty wide mix. Off the top of my head, my first class comprised of Koreans, Japanese, Brits, an American, an Indonesian, and a Russian.

It depends what you're used to, but when I turned up I had a good technical grasp of Chinese, but not actually much speaking/listening practice. The classes are pretty hard to understand at first, and there was a lot of unknown vocabulary in the texts, but diligence quickly pays off and it does get easier.

Good points:

- Very good teachers,

- Fantastic classmates - they really made the time there for me. We hung out quite a lot and the only language we all spoke was Chinese.

Bad points:

- I realised about half way through the year that all the materials were about how great China is. While the textbooks are actually very well done, the content does get very dry after a while.

- The homeworks are pretty boring and monotonous, especially for "newspaper" class.

The most important thing is that everyone's Chinese shot up really quickly, though, so it must have worked! Something I also feel I should mention is that the terms are agonizingly long...but I guess this is the same all across China.:conf Personally I prefer it here in the UK where we get a holiday every 5 weeks:mrgreen:

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i just received my admission packet from BNU so i'll be arriving in beijing in about two months. very excited.

actually, i studied in Taiwan before (at the other "Shi Da" in Taipei) and all the texts there glorified Taiwan and Taiwanese culture... so i would sort of expect that with BeiShiDa, especially since it's in the capital...Some of the taiwan stuff is hillarious, especially when they start discussing the local fruits..lol.

The only thing is i studied traditional characters previously and i am now having to make the switch to simplified. Easier i suppose than trying to go from simp to trad....

jiangping are you still in BJ now?

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Speaking of which, is there anyone who can give any information regarding the electives offered/taken and the standard of Chinese needed?

Personally, I'm quite a beginner. But I am interested in law-related modules. (But I can forsee some difficulties there). How do they determine whether you can get into an elective or not?

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I just got my admission packet. Yea! Signed up for the international student apartment building (#3).

huier -- If haven't looked at all the info closely yet, but most of the electives are things like newspaper reading, chinese literature, or chinese news (tv). It's all directed at language learning - or at least it is if you're enrolling in the language student program.

Most universities require a very high HSK score to enroll as an actual student and take non-language classes ie the law electives you're looking for.

I remember seeing a post that lists all the BNU electives on the board somewhere recently. Try a search for it.

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If you're interested in law related classes taught in English, but about China check out Chinese Studies Institute. Its an affiliate of American University, Washington DC (my graduate school) but now accepts students from anywhere. They run classes in English for credit at an undergraduate level. If you have more questions about that let me know.

here's the link

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  • 1 year later...

Hey guys,

I'm aware this is a year-old thread but i just want to resurrect it for the sake of continuity. Anyway questions:

I got another one-year scholarship and this year the CSC is sending me to BNU. I just finished one year BLCU in the Upper Elementary level. I'm expecting the level system in BNU is different so if anyone out there has been a BLCU-BNU transferee, would you know what level should i be taking in BNU now? I know i may have to take the proficiency test again but i just want to know.

And then do you guys know which dorm scholarship students sent to live?

Thank you very much!

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I only attended BNU in 2005 and was not a transfer from BLCU but the CSC students (of which I was one) typically stay in the (older) #1 Student dorm on the front of campus. Cons is the facility is older and the rooms have less amentities but you are right next to (in fact connected) to the much nicer and new #2 dorm and you are in a central location on campus. The bathrooms are all communal but are sufficient. I had no problem and had a roommate from Malaysia. Most of the scholarship students were pretty cool and were from Europe or Africa.

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  • 3 weeks later...

In July I tried to book a single room in International Dorm 3 at BNU for the new semester starting in Sept. Trying to do it online just didn't work so I called them. They said to call back in August. I did and now all the single rooms n that dorm are fully booked. They said to come on 5 July and line up to see if any rooms are available. International dorm 2 is also fully booked.

I'll definitely go on 5 July and perhaps earlier as well as I'll be in Beijing, but I was wondering if anyone else had experience with trying to get accommodation at BNU. A Chinese friend said a lot of people book rooms and then change their mind before the semester starts.

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I had no problem getting one of the bedrooms, in the No 3 dorm, which have a single bedroom and a shared living area. As a CSC student who was upgrading the free room I didn't originally have access to the booking website, but all it took was an email to the International students' Office to gain access. I did this back in May, though, so I guess the spaces have filled since then.

Its my understanding that they do allow room switches in the first week or two, so you could go for a double now and upgrade later, even at the start of the next semester.

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