Study Abroad in China: Summer Intensive Chinese Language in Kunming – Academics

Kunming Curriculum: How the Academics Fit Together

CET Kunming is Chinese language boot camp. For eight weeks, students exercise their Chinese language skills like never before.

Grammar classes introduce students to new material (and a lot of it!). In drill classes, students practice new phrases until perfect. Discussion classes allow students to find their voice in Chinese. One-on-one classes target individual questions and needs—want to learn how to say “environmental conservation” in Mandarin? And a full-time language pledge keeps the Chinese practice going outside of class.

Students get their “R&R” in Chinese, too. They go hiking with their Chinese roommates. They practice martial arts. They search Kunming for the perfect park to sit and practice character writing.

Students depart Kunming having covered one year of university-level Chinese in eight weeks.

Kunming Summer Academic Requirements

All students enroll in intensive Chinese language classes. Some classes are for small groups. Some are one-on-one conversation sessions. Classes are grouped according to level, and linked together into one comprehensive course. Students cover one year of Chinese language study in eight weeks. Language activities ensure that students practice their new skills out in the city of Kunming. Fifth year students should expect more individualized attention and fewer class hours per week. 160 total hours. 8 recommended credits.

View all course options and download syllabi.

Classroom Matters

Prerequisites

This program is open to students with at least two semesters of previous Chinese language study. We encourage beginning students who are interested in an intensive summer language program to consider Intensive Chinese Language in Beijing instead.

Language Class Placement

Chinese language class placement is determined by:

The results of a placement exam taken upon arrival in Kunming.
The student’s transcripts.
The student’s Chinese language ability as demonstrated in the application.

Adjustments to placements are made during the first week of classes.

Chinese Language Pledge

Practice makes perfect. All students uphold a full-time Chinese language pledge. Students tell us that the pledge is challenging and frustrating at first, but well worth it in the end.

Because the language pledge depends on the commitment of the students, CET accepts only those who are excited for the challenge.

Academic Rigor

Students take a full load of Chinese language courses. They can expect to spend at least one hour preparing for every hour spent in class. This curriculum, coupled with the program’s Chinese language pledge, results in an intense academic experience.

How do students survive? First, they mentally prepare themselves before departure for this challenge. Second, they soon discover language learners’ fuel: the thrill of discovering that you can suddenly express in Chinese an idea that, just last week, was out of reach.

Heritage Learners

Every term, this program welcomes students who have acquired some Chinese language (usually speaking skills) from their home environment. In the past, CET has accommodated these students with character-writing tutorials. These tutorials, coupled with the regular CET curriculum, help students catch their writing skills up with their speaking skills.

Outside the Classroom

One-Day Academic Excursions

Kunming is waiting to be discovered! CET designs excursions to get students out into the city and uncovering the area’s panoply of minority cultures and stunning natural environs. Past students have:

Hiked the temple-studded West Mountain.
Explored the Stone Forest.
Visited a Miao ethnic minority village.
Visited an organic farm and learned about sustainable agriculture and food safety issues in China.

Overnight Academic Excursion

Midway through the term, students and teachers set off on a weekend excursion to an out-of-the-way location. They might view the terraced fields of the Hani ethnic minority in southern Yunnan, explore a section of the ancient Silk Road, go kayaking on Erhai Lake, or marvel at rock formations near the Guizhou border.