Studying abroad in China was the best decision I made as an undergrad. I decided to go to Beijing through the CIEE Intensive Chinese Language program with the main purpose of improving my language abilities, but I also gained so much more in the process. I learned an incredible amount about the Chinese language, culture, and people than I ever could have at my home institution in such a short span of time. It was a combination of my classes, peer language tutor, field trips, short homestay, and my own efforts that allowed me to learn so much.

Studying abroad in China has also made me more independent, resourceful, and flexible. When I didn't know the exact word for something, I explained it with the Chinese I did know in a way that the other party could understand. After the semester at CIEE ended, I used my new language abilities and skills in adaptability to do some traveling on my own throughout some western and southern areas of China. These skills of flexibility, thinking on one's toes, being able to communicate with peoples of different backgrounds are valuable in any workplace and career path.

It sounds cliché, but my experience abroad showed me that there is so much more to the world! It isn't until you leave your own comfortable little bubble, that you begin to appreciate the vast diversity of humankind. It also wasn't until I studied abroad in Beijing that it dawned on me that I, too, can be a part of this global landscape in my career. Prior to going to China, I wasn't sure about my postgrad career path. After my experience, I was inspired to seek out international opportunities such as the Peace Corps, where I can use my direct experience abroad, as well as my studies in cultural anthropology.

Overall, studying abroad provided me with experiences that no college course could ever offer. I highly recommend anyone interested to pursue it!

If you’ve spoken to anyone who’s ever studied abroad, they will say it was one of the best life experiences they’ve had. It’s a cliché, but after having studied abroad myself, I can attest that it is true.

Getting to travel, bond with a whole new group of people while overseas, and try my hand at things I would never have the chance to do in the U.S. was only a small part of the experience. In the little more than three months I spent in Beijing, China, I became a firsthand observer of a culture radically different from that of my home country, dramatically expanded my Chinese vocabulary and language skill and got to think critically about cultural and social differences.

One of my foremost reasons for coming to China was to improve my Chinese. Before coming, although I had set this as my goal, I was worried that I would not be able to achieve it. I was wrong. My full course load of four Chinese language classes was an immense help to me in improving my Chinese. However, I found that much of my improvement came not from within the classroom, but from everyday communication with Chinese people.

I tried to immerse myself as much as possible with Chinese people. I made an effort to join clubs on campus, find a language partner, chat with my tutor in Chinese and even make conversation with vendors and taxi drivers at every chance I got. This not only helped me expand my vocabulary by leaps and bounds, it greatly boosted my confidence in speaking Chinese. Before coming to China, I was hesitant to speak with native speakers, fearful of making a mistake. However, after coming to China, I have no doubt that upon my return, I can use my Chinese without uncertainty.

Another benefit of coming to China was getting the chance to become a firsthand observer of an unfamiliar culture. My major is East Asian Languages and Cultures, thus implying that not only am I studying the Chinese language, I am studying the culture. However, it is my belief that only until I came to China did I become a true student of the culture.

Getting to observe cultural differences and differences in opinion was one of the most essential parts of my experience in China. I became an investigator, taking the differences I observed and posing questions about them to Chinese people I encountered, in attempts to truly understand their culture. As a public relations major and aspiring public relations practitioner, I believe it is important that I understand how to bridge communication divides and communicate with people of all backgrounds. A key to this is being able to understand different cultures and open your mind to new ways of thinking—things studying in China helped me do.

Studying in China has only strengthened my desire to work in public affairs, specifically in public relations. I have learnt that I have a passion for dissecting cultural phenomena, bridging cultural gaps and learning to communicate with people of different grounds. As someone who now has an understanding of two cultures and has a foot in each, I hope to serve as a cultural bridge. I believe that misunderstanding often arises from cultural disparities. With my firsthand knowledge of two drastically different cultures, I hope to smooth over cultural differences and pave the way for mutual understanding and communication.

I spent an academic year studying Mandarin Chinese at the CIEE Study Center at Peking University in Beijing, China. Before going to China, I already suspected that a career in public service—specifically in diplomacy—would be a good fit for me. But having just come off a year of study abroad in France, I wasn’t sure that I’d be happy with such prolonged absence from the U.S. or with having to uproot my life once again. I decided that the year in China would be a good test of whether I enjoyed the lifestyle of a U.S. Foreign Service Officer, where each two-year tour is followed by a move.

Happily, I loved the variety that this experience offered me. The challenges of learning a new language kept my brain busy while I enjoyed all the new foods and cultural quirks on offer in Beijing. I also befriended a few diplomats from other countries, and began to come to terms with the contradictions of the expatriate lifestyle: patriotism for the homeland combined with newfound sympathy for the adopted land, new friendships that are term-limited from the start.

As a Chinese American growing up in the States, I've always wondered what it would be like to live and work in China. I was determined to spend at least a semester living overseas. The best chance came when I heard about the CIEE study abroad program in Shanghai. It was a chance to not only improve my Mandarin but to explore the possibility of starting a career half way around the world.

Throughout the program, I encountered many interesting and outstanding individuals who helped me recognize that we shared a similar background and culture. I began to realize Shanghai was my number one choice as a place to start my career. These individuals also reminded me that in terms of opportunities and career prospects, Shanghai is and will remain to be one of the most attractive and inspiring cities for young professionals.

Right after graduation in the fall of 2007, I moved to Shanghai and with the recommendations from my friends, joined the recruitment industry, and for the last two years I've been helping one of these friends to expand his business in manufacturing, trade and international freight forwarding. Starting from a three person company, we now have more than 15 employees and I am now the Project Manager.

Without going on the CIEE study abroad program, I would not have had the chance to gain so much international exposure and the pleasure to have met so many outstanding individuals from different walks of life.

My experience studying in Nanjing with CIEE in 2003 essentially set the course for the rest of my life. I had studied a couple years of Chinese in college and was curious to experience a semester in China, but had no idea that I would love it this much. CIEE set me up with a homestay in one of Nanjing’s most bustling areas just a 20-minute bike ride from the campus, which allowed me to experience the atmosphere of one of China’s best schools, its vibrant street life, and a typical Chinese family setting, all in one day. Though I did learn a great deal in the classroom, the teachers at the program also helped arrange a variety of activities outside of school that really made the experience what it was. And during the independent break I had some of my most memorable travels in China, taking a train from the eastern coast all the way to Jiuzhaigou in Sichuan to see one of China’s most beautiful natural places.

Seven years later I am still in China. Two weeks after graduating from the University of Puget Sound in Washington, I rushed back to China to work at a magazine in Yangzhou, just an hour from Nanjing. After two years there I moved to Beijing for an internship with The Nature Conservancy, working in a small courtyard in a park next to the Forbidden City. I am now the Communications Manager for The Nature Conservancy in China, and couldn’t imagine a more fascinating, challenging, and exciting job. China’s environmental challenges are well known, and its vastly diverse ecological treasures, like Jiuzhaigou, are facing extreme challenges. This is such a crucial time for China—and the world—to find solutions that work for both people and nature.

I am thrilled to be part of this work, and doing it in a place I enjoy and care about as much as China. I am extremely fortunate that my curiosity about China led me to CIEE for that semester experience, which continues to this day.