Middlebury College in Hangzhou 

 

  • Established in 2004, the Hangzhou program operates in association with Zhejiang University of Technology (ZUT) and C.V. Starr-Middlebury School in China. It is located 100 miles south of Shanghai in Hangzhou, a city of seven million people with an emerging technology industry and a variety of nationally acclaimed temples, pagodas, and museums.
  • The curriculum consists of both required and elective courses. The two required courses are the "One-on-One" and the "One-on-Two." The former is a research project, proposed by the student, and conducted entirely in Chinese under the supervision of a Chinese faculty expert. Topics range from politics, economy, and literature, to music, medicine, and education; students produce either a research paper or another academic project. The other required course, the "One-on-Two," is conversation-based, involving one instructor and two students and emphasizing the mastery of pronunciation, grammar, and vocabulary with a focus on useful communication skills.
  • Two electives are chosen from such courses as: Modern Chinese Literature, Classical Chinese, Reading Chinese Newspapers, Topic Discussion, and Business Chinese. In addition to the two required and two elective courses, students may also choose from a series of extra-curricular evening courses such as calligraphy, martial arts, and Chinese cooking. All students are required to take a language pledge to speak Chinese only at all times.
  • Excursions are offered every week to places that would normally be difficult for students to visit on their own, such as small businesses and villages, and a more extensive three day field trip is organized in mid-semester.
  • Housing is provided in an international student dormitory with a Chinese roommate.
  • Eligibility: Two to three years of Chinese language or the equivalent. (70% of particpants are third- or fourth-year students from Middlebury College.) Suitable for serious-minded Chinese learners who also have their own research projects in mind.

 

Hangzhou Chinese Language Program (Middlebury College) | C.V. Starr Middlebury | Schools Abroad | Sunderland Language Center | 802-443-5745 | Fax: 802-443-3157 | schoolsabroad@middlebury.edu