Nanjing Normal University

[roddy]

This topic is for discussion and reviews of Nanjing Normal University. Accommodation, courses, on-campus facilities and activities - anything to do with Nanjing Normal University goes in here. If there's a lot of discussion about any one particular topic we might split it into a new thread and leave a link here.

[igacave]

If anyone lives in Nanjing and could tell me anything about Nanjing Normal University I'd really appreciate it! 

[Rebeh26]

Hi! I will be attending a 1year language program in NNU. What can anyone tell me about the university, accommodation? and anything I should know

Thanks in advance ^^

[Pantsu]

Anyone else for the Language program ??

[roddy]

Pantsu, have you arrived at NNU now? Future students would be very interested to hear about your experiences - the first few days are often the most confusing. 

[Pantsu]

@roddy

I arrived at Nanjing yesterday, It has been awfull so far
I was planning to go to the University tomorrow to see how is like. . . and to see If I can register earlier, I don't know. . .

[Rebeh26]

Nanjing Normal University (NNU) is a lovely campus. If you are coming here you may want to know that there are two types of accomodations for International students:

1. Undergrad and graduate students sent to do the language program at NNU would probably be located at the new building, be aware that there is no deposit (this year there wasn't) but you will need to get a mattress and covers (avoid buying the package they sell you at the dorms, you can get better quality products at some place, i.e Walmart or Ikea) As of today there is still no wifi at the new dorms. Keep in mind that this dormitories are closed after 11pm.

2. Students who chose to study for just one year at NNU would likely be put at Nanshan Hotel. WARNING rooms are not in the best of conditions, you would need to pay ¥1000 deposit plus ¥260 for the wifi, there is usually a mattress but you will need to bring or buy your own covers.

To all students: Stipend is given during registration day (bring your photos, admission letter and copy of your passport and X1 visa with entry stamp)

Well, that is all that comes to mind in terms of what you should know, I will update the feed more as I get to know the area and the university.

[I.carranza]

Hello,

It seems like this thread has been inactive for a while...

Is anyone in Nanjing or going to Nanjing?.

I need some information about the registration dates

Enviado desde mi SM-G900F mediante Tapatalk

[ko ko jay]

Hello Everyone! 

 

I am an advanced beginner in Chinese language learning and I found out that if I am really serious about improving further, the best way would be language immersion. I've decided to apply for Nanjing Normal University but online information seems sketchy and the application to the school seems very hidden. I don't want to get scammed or anything so I really need a reliable source. Can someone provide a reliable link where I could get an application? I also have questions about accommodations. I need a single room for health reasons but I can't seem to find much information on campus dorms or how you can reserve it. I heard language students can stay at a hotel? I also heard someone say that you have to wire money to the school first to reserve rooms? But I definitely do not want to do that for fear of being scammed and I don't like the idea of sending a large sum of money somewhere where I don't know who might be receiving it. Can someone help, it would be much appreciated. Thank you! 

[roddy]

How is it hidden? That's the official university website.

[SalihSafa]

Hey everyone! I will be at NNU in a month. I will posted it up my first impressions because surprisingly this topic seems very lonely/empty. Good luck to future applicants and students

[Badger]

@SalihSafa I just studied there the past year studying Chinese.  I would like to post an in-depth review at some point about it.  Overall I would say the teaching is overall pretty solid, the international student office is good (friendly/nice), especially compared to other schools. The facilities of the school are not good, but this is in general for most Chinese schools.  Have fun, if you have any questions feel free to let me know.

[Vortex]

Who will  study for the first at  Nanjing Normal Univeraity?

[sk1ng]

Application Process

I applied through CUCAS (can google what it is for those who don't know) through a friend's recommendation because it was my first time applying to any Chinese universities and most English sites aren't complete or a little confusing, and most agents will already know who to contact AND can speak English with me etc so I thought it would make things easier, and it was. The communication was okay between CUCAS and the school and myself. I didn't have to send anything via post or fax, I sent all documents through CUCAS electronically. Fees that had to be paid upfront for CUCAS was service or processing fee and registration fee. For the school I paid upfront the tuition fees, because I was self-funding myself to study at NJNU for one semester. The school or accommodation required that I had to pay the full tuition fees TO BOOK my place at the dorm (Nanshan hotel- more on this later). Trust me, I had reservations about this considering most posts online say they pay their tuition fees when they were in China, and not through internet banking/before China. Anyway, I paid through online banking in the end because I didn't want to deal with not having a room. However, my friend who moved into Nanshan hotel late still managed to get a room. I'll leave these experiences down both so you guys can make your own judgement. Anyway, once I was accepted to NJNU I got my admission letter, visa form and handbook prepared by CUCAS on how to register/get to accommodation etc. I obtained X2 visa because my period of study was less than 6 months

 

Course and Funding

I did a Beginners Chinese Language Course from feb/Mar 2018 to July 2018, so that's one spring semester. I believe I paid 8600RMB for the course, and lump sum of my accommodation when I arrived like 4500RMB. Plus internet and deposit 1260RMB

 

Arrival and registration

Arriving to the University was a nightmare for me because the driver dropped me off at the wrong gate with my 30kg of luggage. If you're staying in Nanshan or Dinglou (mostly self-funded students or Confucious scholars), ask the taxi driver to bring you all the way to Nanshan hotel for check-in. If you're using Didi (chinese ver of Uber) sometimes they can't get past security, regardless, ask to be dropped off at the main gate at Ninghai Road. If you are in dorm no. 3 where most CSC scholars are placed, you can ask to be dropped at the back gate near the cafeterias. Checking into dorms were okay, even with little to no Chinese, just whip out your translator, they have wifi at the lobby. You give the receptionist your passport and admissions letter and they'll photocopy it. You need to pay the deposit 1000RMB and 260RMBfor wifi (all students living in Nanshan and Dinglou has to pay this, scholarship or not) and they'll ask for the lump sum of your accommodation for the semester, if self-fund. I heard you can pay some money that day and some on other days. Nanshan will ask for cash for these things, there are ATM machines at the gate of the main gate and it accepts most foreign cards. Registering for classes was okay, you arrive at the International Students Office and get directed to a room to pay your tuition fees if self-fund, they accept cash and card. Bring your bank statement saying you've paid and the email you've sent out to the agent/teachers that says you've paid tuition fees for the room- if you paid online beforehand like myself. I personally didn't have to go through changing into a Residence Permit because I had a X2 visa. But my roommate had an X1 visa:  so if you haven't done your medical check, they'll have a specific day for you to gather at a location and a  bus will bring all of you to a hospital and back for the medical check-up. After that you need to collect some documents from the dorms you are staying at, and once you have all the documents required for the residence permit, have to make your own way to the Exit and Entry Bureau to apply for the residence permit. My roommmate was on Confucius scholarship and she was asked to prepared 200+RMB for the medical check up and 400+RMB for the Residence Permit.

 

Accommodation

The on-campus accomodations for International students that I know of are Nanshan hotel and Dinglou International Student's building (mainly Confucius scholars, self-fund and Korean students on exchange programme) and Dorm no. 3 where most CSC scholars are placed. I lived in Nanshan hotel. It was a two-bedroom ensuite and looked exactly like an average twin room you'd find at a hotel (wardrobe, some cabinets, desk and chair, TV and a/c). Because Nanshan hotel was originally just a hotel on campus, but later on the 5th-8th floor was used just for international students and classes. Meaning you'd bump into hotel guests for conference or business etc but that didn't bother any of us living there. There's a kitchen in Nanshan on the 7th floor but you have to buy your own supplies. In Dinglou there's a kitchen in every room, and as far as I know, have 3 people in one room. Their rooms are a bit bigger, more apartment-style but they cost a little bit more and run out of space quickly. The majority of the students living there are South Koreans on exchange programmes (usually they come in a big group a week or two before registration). For both Nanshan and Dinglou, laundry is located at the ground floor of Dinglou; you have to buy a card from Nanshan reception (they're both run by the same management) that has 35RMB+5RMB for the card. So overall, you would first pay 40RMB. One wash is 3.50RMB and dryer is 7RMB per use. Internet is okay when you're not using a VPN and its not the best even without VPN, but its okay. You can get some money back if you choose to move out but they'll take normal room rate from your deposit for the days you stayed in Nanshan hotel (so student rate is 60RMB per day, normal rate maye 260RMB). I booked accomodation before I arrived because the CUCAS agent said the school required it, this was all done through e-mail. My roommate and I rearranged the rooms a bit so we have more space and more personal space. (I tried uploading a photo and it failed, and not that motivated to upload it elsewhere for a link...)

 

Classes, Classrooms and Teachers

I was in Beginners Class 1 (from Class 1-8, 8 being most advance) and we were about 13 people. Majority of the classes will fill up with S. Koreans. I chose NJNU over NJU because it was cheaper and also, NJNU is basically a teacher-training college so I was okay with it. Classes were okay, I don't have much to complain about the teaching. In my class we started off with English explanations and then our teachers progressively stopped using English as a medium. We had a small hiccup in the beginning where the office suddenly decided to merge us with Class 2, meaning we had to catch up to their chapters in the syllabus. For this, we had classes until the afternoon and made us all angry because we were rushed, especially when we're beginners. In the end, we managed to sort it out and stayed in Class 1, but actually it did look like we were going to move regardless of our complaints because they seemed to have made up their minds without telling us. Also it was hard to communicate with the head teacher because she didn't speak much English and we didn't speak much Chinese. Thankfully, there was one dude who happened to be in the office and he became our translator by accident haha Conditions of the classrooms were okay and standard, as for textbooks you can buy them a few days after placement test. Alternatively, you can photocopy them for cheaper, I think. Homework is dependent on your teachers but exam periods were fixed for all of the language classes. Oh, a few days after registration, you have to sit down for a placement test. The specifics of which I don't know, because I didn't take it being a beginner. But I do know that that you were allowed to sit down in other classes for a week, if you thought that the class/level they put you in was too easy/hard. Then at the end of that week, or within that week you have to talk to the class teacher to be placed in their class. Classes ran from 8-11.50 Mon-Wed, Thurs 9-11.50AM. I didn't have classes on Friday. My friend under CSC had classes Mon-Fri morning through afternoon, so I'm sure there are different experiences and intensities. 

 

Campus and Environment

NJNU has two campuses; one is the main one Suiyuan in Ninghai road, near to Xinjiekou and most places. The other one is Xianlin campus mainly for the engineering courses etc. I was in the main one at Ninghai road. Transport is abundant around there, buses to everywhere and biking is also an option. You can get a public transport card to use for bus and subways, and I believe can be used around Jiangsu too, not just Nanjing (I tried the card in Suzhou for the bus and it worked). There's a McDonald next to the gate and supermarkets around the school. There's even a wet market to buy fresh and cheaper produce. ICBC is more conveniently placed, but BOC is around the school too. The cafeterias are at the back of the school, but you have loads of selection for restaurants around the school. Chinese students are everywhere and also Chinese citizens because we have an open and public park, but I'd say it would be hard to interact with the Chinese students unless they were asking for directions.

 

Cost of Living and Budgeting

Cost of Living is manageable. I initially cooked more than I ate outside but I didn't have a fridge in my room so storing goods were sometimes hard. The fresh/wet market is a good option for vegetables and stuff, its so near that if you were bothered, you can just buy stuff and cook for the day's meals. Lots of people I know had fridges in their rooms. But you have to pay electricity and water if you exceeded the "free" wattage/degree. You'll pay more when you use heating during winter and ac during summer time. They'll attach a bill for each month on your room and you have to pay it. This is why alot of people cook in the 7th floor kitchen because it saves them on the electric/water bill. My friends also get their food delivered a lot. I was okay with 2000RMB per month, but also becaus

e I don't go to drink but towards the end of the term I went out to Karaoke alot......... all in all it depends on your lifestyle, canteen food is cheap but I didn't get the card paying system and it was a bit of a walk from Nanshan so I don't eat at the canteen. There's a cafeteria near Nanshan too but I also didn't go there haha Anyway I like Nanjing as a city and it had many sites to visit, my favourite is the Nanjing Museum and the Nanjing eye bridge! Also theres a bowling alley near the school. If you go there at 11Pm and bring your student card, it was 6RMB per game. Anyway that was my experience, not sure I'll frequent this page to reply any questions, just wanted to input. 

[Vortex]

@sk1ng Are  international students only from S. Korea?

[NinjaTurtle]

On 8/23/2018 at 2:28 AM, sk1ng said:

the office suddenly decided to merge us with Class 2, meaning we had to catch up to their chapters in the syllabus. For this, we had classes until the afternoon and made us all angry because we were rushed, especially when we're beginners.

 

This sounds like a horrible place to study.

[sk1ng]

@Vortexsorry it took me long to answer, like I said I wasn't planning on visiting the page a lot. Nope, international students is from anywhere you can imagine. But a large majority of students you will meet at NJNU will be South Koreans, because as I've mentioned, there seems to be an exchange program thing going on with NJNU.

 

but there were also many other international students from across the globe. If you ask for a specific race, background etc maybe I will be able to recall how frequent I've seen them around.

 

@NinjaTurtle That hiccup was annoying but in the end the classes were okay. I'm now up in the North side of China, and I can confirm MOST admissions office are pretty much similarly not that great. But studying wise, I like it better up in the North. When I have time maybe I'll post an in-depth review.

[Shaquelle Mckenzie]

Hello Everyone,

 

I was recently accepted to study at this university however I need assistance in documenting how to find my way to the campus if my flight would come in at Shanghai Pu dong Airport.

 

Your assistance would be appreciated. 

[alsanch1]

On 8/23/2018 at 8:28 AM, sk1ng said:

I lived in Nanshan hotel. It was a two-bedroom ensuite and looked exactly like an average twin room you'd find at a hotel (wardrobe, some cabinets, desk and chair, TV and a/c).

@sk1ng Thank you very much for your write up. Very useful! I have been given a CGS scholarship to start at NJNU this year. First semester is going to be online because of COVID but hopefully will be in Nanjing for the Spring. Can I ask: you say the rooms at Nanshan hotel are two-bedroom ensuite. Does that mean there are two people per room i.e. you have a roommate? Or do you have the room to yourself?

[sk1ng]

On 9/19/2020 at 5:24 AM, alsanch1 said:

Can I ask: you say the rooms at Nanshan hotel are two-bedroom ensuite. Does that mean there are two people per room i.e. you have a roommate? Or do you have the room to yourself?

I forgot I had this and just checked my email lol good thing you tagged me. Anyway, you're welcome! Yep, when I was there (2018); it was 2 people per room. As far as I remember, there were no ONE person rooms in Nanshan hotel ( I knew someone who was a Master's student there and still had a roommate).

 

I think, government scholarship students might be placed in the other dorm (Dorm 3), in which case I am not really sure if they would have one person rooms.. But the people I knew living in dorm 3 also had a roommate (2 people 1 room). I guess it depends on your scholarship; I think some Confucius scholarships are in Nanshan hotel, and the rest at dorm 3 (especially if you were in NJNU for the language course PRIOR to entering your degree course). When I was there, I was a self-paying student, so I'm not too sure abt the information in this sentence except for my own experience.