How will quitting the BLCU affect my resi permit?

[yonitabonita]

Hi folks,

I've got a year long resident's permit for the purpose of study and have been in Beijing for 5 months. Today, I'm telling the uni that I'm pulling out for semester 2.

Does anyone know whether this will mean I'll have to get another visa? Is it likely that the BLCU will report me to the powers that be that I'm no longer a BLCU student, thereby beginning a process that will lead to the removal of my resident permit? And if so, any advice on what to do in such an event? Anyone got some tricks up their sleeves they can share?

Apologies in advance if this has already been discussed on another thread. I swear I've looked.

Enjoy the heat!

Y

[trevelyan]

Don't raise the issue and I seriously doubt anyone will even bring it up.

[yonitabonita]

hmmm.. I've now told the BLCU I'm quitting semester 2. The advisor spent half an hour trying to convince me to stay, then, when it was clear it was getting nowhere, told me that my visa status will be revoked, my residence permit invalidated, and I'll need to leave China to apply for another visa to continue my studies here. Is there something she's not telling me? Is there any way to avoid this Kafkaesque hassle?

Grateful any views.

Y

[roddy]

I think you need to speak to someone else who's been in a similar situation and see what happened to them - I assumed you would just stop turning up rather than officially leave. I'm inclined to suspect it's at least partially a threat to try and get you to stay, but it's probably a situation where you want to make sure.

Might be worth dropping into Diqiucun - they have, or at least had, a visa desk at reception, and I bet they deal with plenty of BLCU dropouts.

Roddy

[yonitabonita]

No, I have to officially leave - else I don't get my 10,000 yuan refund (for semester 2).

I figured I'd have to speak with a drop out, but where are they???

Apparently the drop dead deadline for dropping out is tomorrow. I have to give a list of reasons too!

Do you think it would confusing to tell them the truth? ie, I fear turning into a robot? (this isn't a serious question)

Y

[imron]

Is there any way to avoid this Kafkaesque hassle?

Take the 10,000 RMB refund, go and spend a week in HK and get an F visa, return to Beijing like nothing happened.

[adrianlondon]

Lie. Say you're finding it hard and have personal problems at the moment, but need to stay in Beijing to sort them out, after which you'll probably rejoin their classes the following semester.

[roddy]

Ah, I didn't realise there was the refund at stake. In that case, do the official leaving thing. Just tell them you have decided to travel in China, return home for personal reasons, whatever. Get your cash back.

At that point you have options. There are visa agencies in Beijing who may be able to help you change your current visa / resident permit to an F or L visa. A trip to HK like Imron suggests may be an option (what passport do you have?). Walking into the PSB at Yonghegong and saying 'I've finished my course, I'd like to do some traveling, can I have a tourist visa?' might work. You could maybe enrol somewhere cheap like Diqiucun if that works.

Or you could just take the chance - BLCU aren't going to take your resident permit off you, you need it to leave the country. The only way it's going to cause you hassles is if they a) inform the PSB who send someone round to your apartment to see what you are doing, or B) inform the PSB who put a note on their computer and you get asked about it when you leave the country. I've never heard of either of those things happening, and while I hestitate to tell other people to take risks on visa issues, I might be inclined to chance it in your situation.

I figured I'd have to speak with a drop out, but where are they???

Lush, Propoganda, SIT . . .

[youpii]

4 students of Shanghai Finance University were expelled from China last semester for not attending any classes for too long

[yonitabonita]

I'm travelling on an Australian passport - Roddy - does this negatively, positively affect my situation?

The best case scenario is really getting things arranged here in Beijing without the need to go on any HK visa holidays.

I was planning on dropping out of the BLCU to spend a bit more time at Diqiucun anyway - does this factor affect the situation in any way?

Apologies for getting you all involved in the administrivia and thanks for your responses.

Y

[wushijiao]

I've been facing a bit of visa hassles recently as well. I think your best option is to call an agency in Beijing and explain your situation. They probably know how the system works better than any of us, and you can then use their advice as you wish.

[trevelyan]

Sounds like a pressure tactic to keep you attending the school. Not unreasonable considering that BCLU let you in under the expectation that you would attend for a full year. But its also not unreasonable that BCLU improve its curriculum and actually teach people stuff rather than just stuffing them in a classroom, lecturing at them and calling the results language education.

I still can't imagine anyone actively cancelling a visa, but I've never had an X visa so maybe things work differently. In any case, worst comes to worst as imron and roddy say you can always go to Hong Kong. There is an express train which leaves from Beijing West Railroad station every two days or so and goes straight to Hong Kong. When you get off at Kowloon Station you will pass through customs and quite literally come face to face with two things (1) currency exchange stations delighted to change your RMB into local currency, and (2) visa shops delighted to set you up with various mainland visas. Americans can have difficulty arranging F visas, but tourist visas are easy to get and can be extended for 3 months.

So relax and be happy. If you feel uncomfortable travelling alone and arranging paperwork without someone holding your hand keep paying tuition at BCLU.

Apparently the drop dead deadline for dropping out is tomorrow. I have to give a list of reasons too!

Off topic, but if you're unhappy with the quality of the instruction, please tell them. When I attended BCLU their notion of class consisted of four hours of lectures by professors, and creeping despair among students under the misimpression that attending class would actually help their spoken Chinese.

[roddy]

An Australian passport won't do you any harm - a US one would have made it difficult to get an F visa in HK, should you need to do that.

Calling an agency is a good idea, but bear in mind they probably don't deal with student visas very often, unless they're based up in Wudaokou.

Given that you are planning to go to Diqiucun, I really would go there and ask - they must have someone there who knows how it works, surely? The place virtually runs on BLCU dropouts.

Good luck!

[mrtoga]

BLCU really should do something to improve their dropout rate - I know of no other school that has a similar problem in China. Still maybe they are a victim of circumstances to some extent - a fair proportion of the students there show no commitment from day one, as if they are on a holiday more than a study course. It is very much the easy option.

Concerning visa stuff - are you going to transfer to another school? (one that can issue JW-202s). If you are they should be delighted to solve your problem. If you just intend to travel I would do the Hong Kong trip just to hedge your bets. It would suck to try to leave the country in several months time only to hear your visa had been revoked in July. Fines can be quite heinous when the authorities know they have you by the proverbial balls.

[yonitabonita]

Thanks to all that responded. I'll explore a few avenues and report back so that future BLCU drop outs will know what their options are.

I'll be sure to voice my opinion about my experience of teaching quality after the exams. Even in the context of living in Beijing, the BLCU administration can be startlingly Orwellian.

So relax and be happy. If you feel uncomfortable travelling alone and arranging paperwork without someone holding your hand keep paying tuition at BCLU

Goodness - did I come across as this much of a princess? I actually meant to come across as a total tightwad.

Y

[ocpaul20]

I dropped out of a university in Yantai last year. I went there to study chinese language, didn't realise that it was an HSK course and I found it far too difficult (as did the other 4 foreigners there). They threatened me with removal of visa too. Thankfully I had only paid for a term as they were initially unhappy about giving me a one year visa (they must have suspected that there would be a hight drop-out rate for non-korean foreigners. Of course, when you are on your own in circumstances like this, they put the fear of God (and the PSB) in you and so I ended up doing a midnight flit.... I would not have got any refund for the term I started anyway, but I should have got a deposit I paid for the accomodation returned if I had stayed. Still I reckoned it was worth it. Laid a false trail, told them I was thinking of going south and then went north. I think it would be difficult to actually take your visa off you, but I notice what has been said about 4 people being deported, so maybe I was just lucky. Perhaps the effort to persue me/report me to the authorities was just not worth it. anyway good luck.

[yonitabonita]

For those interested, I'm reporting back on the effect that quitting a university course has on your residence permit.

I've made enquiries at Diqiuqun. Their position is that while they would be happy for me to study there next semester, they can't help me with getting a student visa. They said that the only way they could help me is if the BLCU issues me with a letter stating that they consent to my transfer to Diqiucun. In the absence of such a letter, they said that the best thing for me to do is to leave China, and apply for a business visa. Their reasoning is that the business visa doesn't require a health examination, wheras a student visa does. I explained that I got a health examination only 3 months ago. They said that this is irrelevant and I'd need another health examination anyway. So even if my purpose of being in Beijing is to study, the best option is to get a business visa.

I asked the BLCU for this letter of consent. The answer was pretty predictable - no way. They've never supplied such letters apparently. If I want to study somewhere else, then I'd need to get that 'somewhere else' to help me out.

It was confirmed that if I didn't provide evidence that I have informed the PSB of my decision to drop out of the course, then I would not get my refund of 11,500 kuai. Of course, going to the PSB and informing them of this would start the clock on a system which allows me 30 days to leave China (and seek a new visa).

Another possible avenue is enrolling at another university. My advisor told me that any other university would be glad to take the problem out of my hands. Universities (unlike Diqiucun) are in a position to issue Admission Notices. Handing Admission Notices to the PSB means that you can change institutions without having to leave the country. In fact, if you're swapping into another university course, they just take care of the visa issue as a matter of procedure. (for a fee of course)

Then again, if I wanted to be at a university, then I wouldn't bother changing in the first place.

As for visa agents. I haven't explored the path yet, though I've heard horror stories which all amount to something dodgy. If they can do something I can't do, then it's probably illegal. I'm not going to consider anything tricky. I plan to be in and out of China in the future and don't want to risk any stains on my record. If they can do it officially, then I figure I can do it officially too - for cheaper. So, unless anyone has any thoughts on this, I'm staying away from visa agents.

I hope someone in the future might find this useful.

Y

[mrtoga]

Yonita,

Don't tar all the state universities with the same brush - BLCU is a victim of its own success and very much an exception. Go north, my friend. As you say, the universities will help you out and you will learn a lot faster away from the English / Korean-speaking village in Wudaokou.

[yonitabonita]

Mr Toga

Arrrgh! go North where? I'm a bit dopey and don't know what you mean..

I don't mean to say that all universities are like the BLCU. I mean to say that I'll most likely find myself in the same frustrating situation wherever I go. I found that most the students in my class at the BLCU, and I expect at any other university, were happy to do their school work, pass the exams and to leave it there. I REALLY want to learn quickly, and, at the risk of sounding like a bit of a tosser - I want a challenge. Like a Mandarin bootcamp where I'll get all overwhelmed and want to reach for my hankie every five minutes. Maybe scream out for my mummy. Ok, I'm being an idiot, but you get my drift?

In case you still think I'm on the wrong track, let me know which university you have in mind and I'll look into it. Though, I've got no faith that I'll find the miracle teacher / university/ private school. I've just come to terms with the fact that getting my Mandarin up to scratch will just involve lots of time devloted to doing lots of sometimes boring stuff: beefing up characters, getting my grammar right, bulking up my vocab, practicing my written work, reading lots, and getting someone to sit there with a stick when I'm speaking to pick on my tones etc.

I really do appreciate your input though, so if you have any further thoughts, please, let me know.

Y

[adrianlondon]

Sounds like you need the 30 hour/week intensive course. BLCU offers one of those. However, as someone else has pointed out, I think BLCU attracts all sorts of students; from those who really want to learn to whose who are taking a year out and just want to doss in China while saying "ni hao".

I guess the way around that is to self study at home (in your own country) and then not to enter BLCU at their beginner level, but at the next stage up.