Harbin Institute of Technology

[sujeto]

Hi sa1365, why would you like to know?

[sa1365]

my friend has applied for CSC through HIT and is waiting to receive response. I asked as I thought you may be informed via HIT.

[sujeto]

sa1365 i applied first for CSC then HIT revised my documentation and sent me a Conditional Acceptance letter. I gotta reach HIT before September. It is done, i better prepare myself for the coldest weather i have ever been.

[sujeto]

Where can i find more information about HIT, anyother Forum more active than this? I'm a bit worried about the lack of information, i'm realizing HIT isn't that good for foreigners. I can't find general information on internet nor about the rules, scheduls, not even an adress where i have to go, i only know is in Harbin. Somebody who may guide me we can talk trough facebook or something... I'm mostly goin there blind i don't have experience goin overseas.

[emmanuel]

Did you try to check studyathit.cn ? Did you try to send teacher an email?

[sujeto]

emmanuel, do you know wheter English Engineering course are taugth in Harbin itself or Shenzhen? See this thing is so confusing, Graduate School of HIT is in Shenzhen. My contact with HIT staff is so slow and kind of useless. They can't even provide me with a detailed list of courses.

 

I have question for example. If i join Electrical Engineering Master, can i take Courses from other Schools like Computer Science? I'm not sure how education system works in China. If Course is fixed or you can choose your majors.

[emmanuel]

Wow, China is not Africa. I don't know what about _take_ other courses, but you can go to listen to any courses you want.

[eliaso]

Hi all. Finally time to contribute to this thread as my first year at HIT is about to be finished. I'm a Finnish guy enrolled in a bachelors degree program studying Chinese language and literature. My program is meant for foreigners and studied under school of humanities. HIT has several ways of foreigners ending up studying there so be warned that some of my info only applies from my point of view. Your experience can be very different if you're eg. doing one semester exchange student stint. I will use Roddys list of points for university write-ups and reviews for more detailled info. Some things such as contact information, what programs are offered and application forms can be found at http://www.studyathit.com/

 

Let's however start with what kind of programs are foreigners usually enrolled in at HIT and some of my personal opinions. Disclaimer: my opinions aren't the universal truths. Also, this is quite a bit of text written on one sit by a person whose native language isn't English. Without proof-reading. Please don't complain but use the information instead.

There are something like 1500 foreign students at HIT. Most are from Russia and then a lot of students come from Korea, African countries, Middle East and Indonesia. Westeners are a minority among foreigners in Harbin and lingua franca among students is Chinese.

CET students

For students interested in CET program a lot of my info is useless. CET applies their own study methods, have their own teachers and pretty much only use facilities of HIT while having nothing else to do with the university. Teaching is of high standard as are the costs. Hope you're not spending your own money... Living in the dorms with Chinese roommates and studying at the international student center.

Exchange students

Applied through their own schools and doing a semester or two at HIT. Mostly language studies I guess but I've met one Phd. exchange student as well. Studying at international student center (if it's only language), living in the dorms and propably funded by their schools back home.

Language program students

Doing a year or two of language only studies usually with the aim of later enrolling in an actual degree program thaught in Chinese. Lot's of Russians, some Koreans and students from several African and Middle Eastern countries. Self funded. Living in the dorms and outside campus.

Degree program students

Some foreigners are enrolled in normal engineering, computer science or business programs where they study with Chinese students using Chinese language. There are also some programs thaught in English at least in engineering and business.

Then there is my program. Bachelors degree on Chinese language and literature for foreigners. We study language and some cultural things finally doing a thesis on something considering Chinese literature. First year starts with very basics. In theory you don't need to know any Chinese before starting to study but as all teaching is 100% in Chinese it might make things interesting if you don't understand anything at all. In case your Chinese is good enough you can skip the first year and immediately join the second year students. However, in that case you still have to do and pass all the same exams that first year students do.

Studying in general

Methods of teaching in China don't match what a western person would expect to get in west. Be ready for rote memorizing, listening the teacher speak with you participating very little and emphasis on passing exams rather than actually learning. Things like homework, mandatory attending to classes and very little dialogue between teachers and students are also there. Some have called eg. the kind of a program that I'm studying at "a joke" on this forum. It can be that if your own attitude is bad. However, if you have an interest in the language and you do some of your own studying you can get a lot out of this. There are students who still struggle to speak more than survival Chinese after a few years of studying and then there are those whose Chinese is excellent. Up to you, not really the universities fault.

Formal stuff with the university is sometimes quite disorganized. As is their way of communicating information to you. Stuff such as exact days of holidays or having to do some official stuff with the uni might be told on a very short notice. Or perhaps you didn't hear a class being cancelled and there you are in an empty class rooms by your self...

All that being said, living in China and studying here full time instead of being only a short term has so far been a great experience. Ok, let's move to Roddys list of points.

Application Process

I was already in Harbin when applying and went to international student center in person to inquire about the process. They told me to apply online. English was spoken by very helpful Ms. Zhao Lin. Online application and contact info for international student center can be found at www.studyathit.com

About two weeks after applying I was informed that I could pick up my admission notice and other documents that I would need to apply for a Chinese student visa which would later be turned into a residency permit. Visa I had to apply in my home country. Health check and certificate I had to get done on my own.

Communicating with international student center had no problems. Later on from day one communication with school of humanities would be 100% in Chinese and was a bit of a challenge in the beginning before me learning all the ropes.

Course and Funding

Tuition fee for bachelor degrees thaught in Chinese is 20000 RMB a year (not per semester). Scholarships trough HIT for bachelors degrees don't seem to exist but I guess you could always take a look at the Chinese goverment scholarships. For masters degrees and Phd. programs there are scholarships available. Inquire international student centre at HIT.

Arrival and registration

You should receive a campus map with your admission papers. When applying you should state if you want to live in the dormitories. When checking into dorms staff there should have your info if you've booked yourself a room when applying. Staff in the dorms will only speak Chinese. Some other students will be able to help you if your Chinese doesn't cut it.

Registration is done at the international student center and later on at your own school / department.

All fees will be paid upfront in cash. Be ready to exchange a good chunk of cash in a bank or doing several withdrawls from an ATM (as maxium withdrawl is usually only a few thousand RMB).

International student center will take students to entry-exit immigration office to handle visa and residency permit stuff. Once again cash payment upfront.

Accommodation

Dormitories 6 and 13 accomodate foreigners. A monthly fee for living in a dorm is 600 RMB. If you move out you will be refunded for what you've already paid upfront. I lived a couple of days in a dorm before renting my own apartment outside of campus. Most rooms you share with a roommate and a toilet / bathroom you share with an another room of two students. Some private rooms exist but I don't know how to apply for those.

Kitchens where you could actually cook your own food don't exist except for CET students at dorm 6 and using your own hotplates etc. equipment is in fact officially forbidden. Laundry machines exist. Campus Internet (wifi) usage I think is 30 RMB a month. No curfews and security and cleaning are adequate.

Because of the large number of foreign students university actually endorses foreign students to live outside campus. Getting something decent with two bedrooms near campus can be had for ~1500 RMB a month if you are willing to do the search. Renting your own place and having a roommate is a pretty good option vs. living in the dorms even cost wise. Note that when renting in Harbin it's once again cash upfront. Normally you'll pay either 6 months or 12 months in advance if you want to rent outside campus.

Classes, Classrooms and Teachers

First year we've studied elementry Chinese, spoken language, writing/reading and listening. Second year things like Chinese history, study of characters, culture etc. will be added to the curriculum. All teachers have been ok with some of course better than others.

My class has around 20 students. One American, one Korean, me and the rest are Russians. Other classes in my program are also dominated by Russians with Koreans being the second largest group of students. Then there's a few Thais, an Indonesian, a Japanese... And did I mention there are a lot of Russians?

First year students in my program have to stay in the same
basic classroom for all classes. After that it's more modern facilties with video projectors etc. No problem since learning basics of a language doesn't really require anything fancy. Heating is no problem as is usual in Harbin.

We've used Hanyu Jiaocheng 汉语教程 series, Conversational Chinese 301 汉语会话，and other Beijing Language and Culture University books for listening and reading/writing classes. At least Hanyu Jiaocheng will be replaced next year with some other book series as one of my teachers told it is considered a bit oldish by now. There is mandatory homework and always mid semester and final exams. Extracurricular activities are plentiful. Dancing, cooking, field trips, taekwondo...

Campus and Environment

There are two campusses in Harbin and one in Shenzhen. The main campus where I study is very centrally located with easy access to public transportation. Normally all bachelor degree students spend their first year in the second campus except for my program. Students in language only semester programs, exchange students, CET students etc. study at the international student center which is located in the main campus.

Campus has basketball and tennis courts, a gym and a swimming pool for students to use. Also several restaurants and canteens, banks, a decent sized supermarket, railway ticket booking offices, copy shops, night markets outside the gates etc etc. You don't virtually have to leave the campus ever if you don't want to. Several cafes and pubs and a nightclub on the western side of the campus. Lively neighborhood in general.

Chinese students are super easy to interact with. They are shy, however, so it has to be you who strikes up a conversation. If you're an extrovert personality you'll quickly know more people than you ever have time to interact with. And there's lot of foreigners. Good thing about Harbin though - leave the campus and avoid the nighlife around campus and you'll be lucky to see any other foreigners at all.

Cost of Living and Budgeting

I rent a nice apartment for 1500 RMB a month. Cheaper and more expensive are both available but going any cheaper than that will decrease the quality. I know someone renting a 3 bedroom apartment for 1200 RMB but that place is a real dump. A local guy rents his apartment for 800 RMB but according to him "it's very bad".

Cost of living will vary greatly on what kind of lifestyle you want to live. Simple meals with rice/noodles, meat and little vegetables in campus canteens run between 6-14 RMB, small bottle of water is 1 RMB just like a single journey on a bus. Night out with some bbq and local beer will not cost you more than 20-30 RMB. Buy your own groceries and prepare your own food and you can get by very cheap.

Then again, western style pubs and cafes, nightclubs, imported western foods and goods are priced almost the same you'd expect to pay in Europe/North America or sometimes more than that.

That's all folks! If you want to know something more specific, fire away.

[sujeto]

Great explanation Eliaso, i would wish an Engineering point of view also. How common is the communication in English? Eng. Professors speak a good level of English? Are there good technological projects in progress where i can participate?

 

In the other hand, i'm from a very warm country, i'm a bit worry about the weather in Harbin affecting my health, Of course you didn't have problem with this since you are also from a nordic country. I was in Argentina once, and there isn't that cold compared with Harbin for sure, but i was mostly dying in silence because the cold.

[roddy]

Many thanks for that, Eliaso. 

[eliaso]

Great explanation Eliaso, i would wish an Engineering point of view also.

 

 

Sorry, but cannot really help you with that. I've however met many foreigners studying in engineering programs and none of them have complained to me about their programs while none have praised them either.

 

 

How common is the communication in English?

 

 

Most (foreign) students speak decent English with the exception of Russians and East Asians. And even some of them do. International student centre sends their emails in both Chinese and English. Somebody in the staff will be able to communicate in English when you have to do official stuff.

 

 

Eng. Professors speak a good level of English?

 

 

No idea.

 

 

Are there good technological projects in progress where i can participate?

 

 

No idea, but... Somebody I talked once briefly with was doing an exchange thing as part of his phd studies which if I remember correctly were about aerospace engineering. He was satisfied with the general quality of his experience from an academic point of view. His only complain was that he always needed a minder when going to do stuff at lab.

 

 

In the other hand, i'm from a very warm country, i'm a bit worry about the weather in Harbin affecting my health, Of course you didn't have problem with this since you are also from a nordic country. I was in Argentina once, and there isn't that cold compared with Harbin for sure, but i was mostly dying in silence because the cold.

 

 

Being from a nordic country doesn't make me immune to cold weather nor does it make me like it. What makes you think cold weather would affect your health? Don't mimic Harbin locals who walk streets during winters without wearing gloves or hats their jacket open. That would be very stupid. Get a good winter jacket, winter boots, wear layers of clothing, long johns, cover your head, ears and hands. That's it. Indoors have heating. If your dormitory or apartment is cold your window is propably the reason. Do what all the locals do - get some tape, plastic and sealing strip. Cover all edges or even the whole windows with plastic. Instead of using that crappy blanket your dormitory provides you go to Carrefour/Walmart and invest in a real thick feather or wool blanket. You'll sleep like a baby.

 

One final thing - I've seen many of your posts on this forum. I know that possibly moving to a different country, actually into a completely different continent and culture, raises many questions and worries. A friendly advice, though: you need to relax a little bit. Don't panic, things will work out in the end. Living in a place like Harbin can sometimes be frustrating for even a seasoned globetrotter. Information about whatever you wan't to know about isn't available, nobody seems to know anything, there's a language barrier and even simple things might take a lot of effort to get done. Worrying too much in an enviroment like China and wanting to get every-answer-right-now will make you extremely stressed and angry. So, relax for the sake of your own sanity. I wish you all the luck if you end up coming here.

[Lu]

If your dormitory or apartment is cold your window is propably the reason. Do what all the locals do - get some tape, plastic and sealing strip.

I read somewhere that Russians stuff the gaps around their window with cottonwool, I forgot if they then put tape over the cottonwool but that would make sense. Haven't tried this myself but you can see if it works.

If you're from a warm climate, I imagine the cold might be bad for your mood, but as long as you wear enough clothes (longjohns are great), eat enough and stay warm at night, it's not bad for your health.

[emmanuel]

 

read somewhere that Russians stuff the gaps around their window with cottonwool, I forgot if they then put tape over the cottonwool but that would make sense. Haven't tried this myself but you can see if it works.

Hah. It doesn't work. Everybody tried, it doenst make any difference. After it everybody just buy "heater" or "fan". Of course, dorm's rules don't allow to use it. But who cares...

[sujeto]

Edited

[roddy]

It'll be warm when you arrive, so you'll have time to prepare for the winter. The initial arrival can be very stressful, but there will be plenty of people around you going through the same thing and you'll work it all out. 

[sujeto]

Nice, if it's too cold, i can still go the forest for a bear. kill it and rip his skin out and use it as a winter leather. LOL i'm kiddin, or not..

[Lu]

280 dollar is not much, but you won't starve. I assume you can live in the university dorm without extra costs and tuition is paid for, so as long as you don't do anything expensive you'll be okay.

I had no idea you can't get US dollars in Venezuela, that's hugely inconvenient. Is it perhaps possible to just buy renminbi directly? Or you could ask your bank if you can just get renminbi out of an ATM in China, I have no idea if Venezuelan banks do that (or do that at the moment), but perhaps they can since there is no US dollars involved?

[sujeto]

Edited

[Lu]

That's really inconvenient, I sympathise. Hopefully some kind of solution can be found. At least you have the scholarship, it's not a lot but you can get by on that.

You guys in America for sure can go everywhere when you want (...)

Could you clarify who the 'you' is you're talking to here? In your posts it often seems like you assume that everyone here on the forums (except for you) is American. That is not the case at all.

[sujeto]

Lu i rather focus about HIT, since its a HIT Thread, so i wouldnt want to go deeper into off-topic. In fact im goin to edit my other posts in respect for the forum members.

 

One think i certainly promise is to go back here and leave a resume of my experience in HIT as Eliaso just did, its important that people learn how to cut the " Western wire" and learn how to live as a chinese, since you are in China. In my case for example, i really would like to have an advanced recommendation where to buy good eletronic stuffs, as i mentioned on my last post about buying a laptop in china.

 

I initially though Shanghai were my destination but its now almost confirmed im goin to Harbin. Certainly i prefered Shanghai as a more western compatible city than Harbin.