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The BSA China Study Abroad Program offers students the opportunity to study in the dynamic capital city of China--Beijing. This program is open to all majors and there are no language requirements. In fact, 90% of our students have never studied Chinese. Students on the program will take Mandarin Chinese course at Capital Normal University. Students will also go on weekend field excursions to culturally relevant sites in and around Beijing and a group trip to a different region of the country. Semester and summer students will also have the opportunity to do independent traveling. After an in-country orientation during the first week in China (focusing on basic survival Chinese, cross-cultural communication, navigating the city, health and safety issues, etc.) students begin language classes and other coursework in Chinese Area Studies taught by Western academicians and/or Chinese professors with near- native English fluency. Internships are also available. Over half of our students take advantage of the internship opportunity to gain practical work experience overseas. Students will develop a network of Chinese and international students from around the world. If you have little or no previous experience with China or the Chinese language, have never travelled overseas, want an affordable but quality program, and/or want to share a more unique study abroad experience with others from different minority groups then BSA is right for you! 15-week Spring one-semester program, 45 regular/90 intensive -contact hours Chinese Language Instruction ( Mar. 1- June 25, 2011) 6-week Summer program, 45 contact hours Chinese Language Instruction (July 1- August 15, 2011) Student can earn 15 credit hours during the semester program and up to 9 credit hours during the summer. SEMESTER CHINESE LANGUAGE AND AREA STUDIES COURSES CHI 101 ELEMENTARY CHINESE( 45 contact hours, 3 semester/ 4.5 quarter credit hours). This course is designed for students who have no prior experience in learning Chinese or have learned pinyin and mastered a small vocabulary, but cannot express themselves in fluidly in complete sentences. CHI 101/102 INTENSIVE ELEMENTARY CHINESE(90contact hours, 6 semester/ 9 quarter credit hours). This more rigorous and fast-paced course is designed for students who have no prior experience in learning Chinese or have had one-semester of Chinese. Student may have learned pinyin and mastered a small vocabulary, but cannot express themselves in fluidly in complete sentences. All Chinese language classes are taught by trained faculty. All Chinese Area Studies courses are taught by Western scholars residing in Beijing or local English-speaking Chinese scholars. All students with the exception of complete beginners will receive a placement exam before the start of the term. CHI HIST 380 MODERN CHINESE HISTORY: from 1839-present(48 contact hours, 3 semester/ 4.5 quarter credit hours). It is impossible to truly comprehend the profound changes going on in China today without first coming to grips with China’s recent past.  This course uses primary documents, visual sources, lecture, and discussion to understand China’s modern history.  Beginning with China’s ‘Century of Humiliation’ at the hands of the European colonial powers, China embarked on a long journey to reclaim its place as a strong, wealthy, and independent nation.  As China (re)emerges in the 21st century, this goal seems ever closer.  But even with prosperity and development, the problems of the past have a way of persisting into the present.  This course seeks to place the tremendous changes in contemporary China within the context of the last 200 years of Chinese history.  One other aspect of this course will be a spotlight on the relationship between China and Africa and African-Americans in Chinese history and China’s place in a global narrative of anti-imperialism and anti-colonialism. CHI SOC 350 CONTEMPORARY CHINESE CULTURE AND SOCIETY(48 contact hours, 3 semester/ 4.5 quarter credit hours) This course will be a general introduction to contemporary Chinese society with a focus on social changes in the twentieth century. Topics covered include political life, changes in economic production, organization of work, family life, gender and sexuality, consumption, youth culture, media and popular culture. BEI INTER 300 BEIJING INTERNSHIP(3 semester/ 4.5 quarter credit hours) Qualified students gain work experience in a career-related professional environment in Beijing. All internships are monitored. SUMMER CHINESE AREA STUDIES COURSES CHI HIST 380 MODERN CHINESE HISTORY: from 1839-present(3 semester/ 4.5 quarter credit hours). This a survey course on the history of modern China.  The temporal focus of the course covers the century and a half from the forceful opening of China in the Opium War of 1839-42 to the year 2000. There may be mention of events and periods on either side of these guidelines, but these decades are the main concern of this course.  During this period, the Chinese people dispensed with a form of government that had been used for three thousand years, attempted to establish a modern republican government, participated in two world wars, two civil wars, and finally established their version of a socialist state.  In the broadest of contexts, the overall goal of this course is to provide you with a Sino-centric view of this historical process and its consequences for the Chinese people. POLI SCI 390 MODERN CHINESE POLITICAL STATE AND SOCIETY(3 semester/ 4.5 quarter credit hours). This is a survey course on history, culture, and politics of modern China. Since it covers China during the ‘modern era’, we will discuss what a ‘modern’ state is, try to decide when China became one, how China’s particular brand of communism promoted the development of ‘modern’ state-ness and whether this kind of communism has disappeared from ‘Olympic’ China, a state ruled by a Communist Party with a mixed command and market economic system. This course will explore these questions by studying the Chinese state from the slow disintegration of the 2000 year old imperial system from the mid-1800 through the tumultuous civil war to the victory of the Chinese Communist Party, lead by Mao Tsetung in 1949 to its near-collapse during the tumultuous Great Proletariat Cultural Revolution of 1966-1976 and its renewal under Deng Xiaoping’s Four Modernizations program. Has this new form of ‘consumer communism’ erased the traditional Confucian belief system? Has it erased the last remaining vestiges of Mao Tsetung Thought from either domestic or foreign policy? BUS 330 INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS(3 semester/ 4.5 quarter credit hours). International business, as the name implies, is a broad field.That said, the goal of this class is not to inundate students with an overwhelming amount of theories and case studies on international business. Rather, this course will present students with an opportunity to not lose sight of the forest for the trees. We will discuss some of the basic economic theories that form the foundation for discussions on international trade, but this is not a course in economics. We are more interested in application. Therefore, our focus will be on those systems that influence or direct the flow of trade, including international organizations, domestic and international law and the consumer.  China will play an integral role in the development of our class. With the world’s third largest economy (depending on how you measure it), growing international political influence (especially among developing countries in South America and Africa) and a really fat checkbook (thanks to more than $2 trillion in foreign reserves), China is a country that cannot be overlooked, especially when studying international business. Given the location of our class, it makes all the more sense to integrate China into our studies. An important feature of the class will be the presence of guest speakers drawn from Beijing’s business community. These individuals, working for both domestic and foreign firms, will provide students with yet another opportunity to see how principles on paper are transformed into tools that are wielded every day in business. BEI INTER 300 BEIJING INTERNSHIP(3 semester/ 4.5 quarter credit hours) Qualified students gain work experience in a career-related professional environment in Beijing. All internships are monitored. Please note BSA reserves the right to cancel or alter program and courses without notice. ACADEMIC CREDIT Academic credit is available for language classes, elective courses, and internships. An official transcript from an accredited U.S. university will be issued to the student’s home institution upon successful completion of the program. U.S. Institutions may also opt to receive an official transcript from our host school--Capital Normal University. BSA’s School of Record is Huston-Tillotson University. The School of Record fee is $175 USD and should be paid to Huston-Tillotson before the start of the program. Please note all fees must be paid before a transcript is issued. ABOUT THE INTERNSHIPS An internship project in Beijing is the perfect opportunity for those interested in learning about the nuances of Chinese business culture and building a network with Chinese professionals. BSA’s partner organization oversees the placement of students in their various internships with a staff of highly qualified educators and professionals. They maintain complete oversight of the internship project. Students must write weekly reports and are responsible for a final project at the end of their term for a final presentation. Staff from our partner organization works closely with BSA and the intern to ensure the assignment meets professional standards.  Students are placed in internships in a variety of fields. Past students have worked for the Energy Foundation, Beijing Ornamental Animal Hospital, Pacific Islands Foreign Trade Office, The Los Angeles Convention and Visitor Bureau’ s Office in Beijing and others. Contact some of our past participant to hear more about what it is like to intern and study in Beijing-- <script type="text/javascript"> //<![CDATA[ var l=new Array(); l[0]='>';l[1]='a';l[2]='/';l[3]='<';l[4]=' 116';l[5]=' 105';l[6]=' 97';l[7]=' 108';l[8]=' 112';l[9]=' 109';l[10]=' 101';l[11]=' 82';l[12]=' 32';l[13]=' 101';l[14]=' 107';l[15]=' 105';l[16]=' 77';l[17]='>';l[18]='\"';l[19]=' 109';l[20]=' 111';l[21]=' 99';l[22]=' 46';l[23]=' 108';l[24]=' 105';l[25]=' 97';l[26]=' 109';l[27]=' 103';l[28]=' 64';l[29]=' 116';l[30]=' 105';l[31]=' 97';l[32]=' 108';l[33]=' 112';l[34]=' 109';l[35]=' 101';l[36]=' 114';l[37]=' 109';l[38]=':';l[39]='o';l[40]='t';l[41]='l';l[42]='i';l[43]='a';l[44]='m';l[45]='\"';l[46]='=';l[47]='f';l[48]='e';l[49]='r';l[50]='h';l[51]='a ';l[52]='<'; for (var i = l.length-1; i >= 0; i=i-1){ if (l[i].substring(0, 1) == ' ') document.write("&#"+unescape(l[i].substring(1))+";"); else document.write(unescape(l[i])); } //]]> </script>, <script type="text/javascript"> //<![CDATA[ var l=new Array(); l[0]='>';l[1]='a';l[2]='/';l[3]='<';l[4]=' 115';l[5]=' 105';l[6]=' 119';l[7]=' 101';l[8]=' 76';l[9]=' 32';l[10]=' 108';l[11]=' 101';l[12]=' 97';l[13]=' 104';l[14]=' 99';l[15]=' 105';l[16]=' 77';l[17]='>';l[18]='\"';l[19]=' 109';l[20]=' 111';l[21]=' 99';l[22]=' 46';l[23]=' 108';l[24]=' 111';l[25]=' 97';l[26]=' 64';l[27]=' 50';l[28]=' 49';l[29]=' 51';l[30]=' 109';l[31]=' 105';l[32]=' 102';l[33]=' 105';l[34]=' 114';l[35]=' 101';l[36]=' 115';l[37]=':';l[38]='o';l[39]='t';l[40]='l';l[41]='i';l[42]='a';l[43]='m';l[44]='\"';l[45]='=';l[46]='f';l[47]='e';l[48]='r';l[49]='h';l[50]='a ';l[51]='<'; for (var i = l.length-1; i >= 0; i=i-1){ if (l[i].substring(0, 1) == ' ') document.write("&#"+unescape(l[i].substring(1))+";"); else document.write(unescape(l[i])); } //]]> </script>. Interns usually work 10-12hours a week Monday through Friday. Internships are unpaid. Students must be of Junior or Senior standing when the internship begins. Students wanting placement in a “named” institution must have a GPA at or above 3.5.  Students with previous Chinese language skills and on semester terms are given priority placements. Your internship will provide you with a unique experience to interact and assist office personnel in their day-to-day duties, to work on unique projects, to increase your understanding of Chinese business culture, to practice your language skills and to develop business contacts in China. LEARNING CHINESE Most BSA students come to China without having any previous Chinese language experience. This is beneficial because students start to learn the language without having developed incorrect pronunciation and intonation that is common with students who have only studied Mandarin in the States. Native English speakers can make all the sounds in Mandarin Chinese. The basic grammatical sentence structure is the same as English-- subject, verb, and object. There is no verb conjugation in Chinese. Furthermore, students do not find the four tones in Chinese to be as daunting as they first assumed. Tutors are readily available to help students practice. Like anything else, consistent practice will help you advance in the language. Have no fears about studying Chinese--there are about 1.3 billion native speakers here who have already learned the language just fine and so can you. HOUSING AND LIVING ON CAMPUS HOUSING. All BSA students are housed in the international dormitory where they will room with either another BSA student or an international student. Dormitory rooms are small and spartan by Western standards, but very comfortable and clean. Each student is supplied with a comforter, blanket, bed sheets, and pillow. These are changed weekly. There is a laundry room located on each floor in the international dorm. A load of clothes can be washed for about .60 cents. Dryers are also available. You may purchase coins for the laundry at the front desk in first floor lobby. There is also a dry cleaners located next to the dormitory. All rooms have a private washroom with western-style toilet and shower area. Rooms have a small refrigerator. EATING OUT. Students may purchase a meal pass. Money can be added to the card and used to buy meals at the campus cafeteria. A two-three course meal cost around $2 USD. Students are encouraged to make use of the Chinese cafeteria. There are a number of foreign and Chinese cuisine restaurants on and near campus. It should be noted that most of these foreign restaurants are just as expensive as the ones you find in the States. Chinese food is very cheap and delicious in Beijing--use this opportunity to sample the many different Chinese cuisines! When eating out make sure your food is well-cooked and hot. You should also carry hand sanitizing lotion and tissues as some restaurants may not provide soap and hot water to wash your hands or paper towels to dry them. INTERNET. If you bring your laptop computer you may get an Internet connection in your room for around $50 USD a semester. There are Internet cafes and wireless spots located on and near campus.  The cost is around $1 USD per/hour. Some cafes just require you buy something to use their wireless connection INTERNATIONAL INSURANCE All BSA Program participants are automatically enrolled in BSA’s Group Insurance Plan which covers medical evacuation, etc. Participants and their parents will receive a pamphlet of the plan before students depart for China. Students should maintain their existing insurance coverage in the U.S. as BSA’s International coverage only covers international travel in the host country for the specified study abroad period. http://www.bsaminoritystudyabroad.com/index.php/57/