Description

Our seven Study+Travel Summer Programs for 2012 at various times from late May to August combine language class, service learning, and travel in Asia. Through these summer programs, students will get an authentic insight into the modern day China. In addition to its modern, fast-paced metropolises of Beijing, Shanghai, and Hong Kong, our programs take students to Chinas interior, its heartland in central and western China. Experiencing this great diversity of land, people and cultures is at the root of the Chinese experience.

Our programs are based in Yunnan Province, Lonely Planets top choice in China, and its cosmopolitan capital Kunming. These are perfect destinations for cultural immersion because of their great diversity of land and people. From Tibetan towns in the Himalayan north to Thai villages in the tropical rainforests of the South and centuries old Han Chinese towns in between, Yunnan is the perfect microcosm of China. As Lonely Planet says, If you have time for but one province in China, Yunnan should be it.

During weekdays in Kunming, students will attend Mandarin Chinese classes in the mornings. They will either engage in volunteering activities or participate in language exchange sessions with local Chinese students in the afternoons. Volunteering will primarily revolve around working with underprivileged children in local non-profit organizations. Students are free to participate in various cultural activities during the evening and they will travel to various sites of historical and cultural interest in Asia over the weekend. The programs beginning in May also have a rural homestay component in Yunnan.

These programs are led by a Minds Abroad team leader and cover all onsite arrangements like meals, accommodation and logistics. After the program has ended, students will have the option of enrolling in 1-4 weeks of intensive Mandarin classes and continuing their afternoon activities.

Half of our programs go exclusively to China. However, in addition to the China-only programs, half of our programs also go to India. In India our trips are planned for traveling Delhi and Kolkata (formerly Calcutta) and Lonely Planets top pick in India, the Himalayan hill town of Darjeeling. Delhi is the capital of India and is steeped in history. A tour of the historical and architectural splendor of the old Delhi and its modern day capital is the first stop in India. Kolkata; formerly Calcutta is considered to be India's intellectual capital and provides glimpses of cultural heritage that is distinctive to a first-time traveler in the country. In truth a trip to these two great Indian cities is an eye-opener for any traveler in Asia.

We try to give students a balanced perspective of Asia that includes immersion to typical metropolitan cities as well as some rural areas that the majority of people in both these countries still live in.

Highlights

- Each session is about 4-6 weeks long and they include visits to spectacular locations around China as well as to India.
- Seven sessions to choose from
- Students can choose to attend an optional extension after the first session
- Morning mandarin classes for students of all levels
- Either afternoon volunteering or afternoon language exchange

*We take care of everything from accommodations to meals to chaperoning students in excursions

The home location and the travel destinations throughout the program are safe and closely supervised by trained, experienced personnel from the United States and China. All accommodations, meals and excursions shall be arranged and supervised by experienced program managers during the program.

Program Components:

Morning Mandarin Classes: We work with our partner university for these classes who arrange both the curriculum and the teachers. Our Mandarin classes are exclusive in the sense that each class has a maximum of 3 students to allow for the most student-teacher interaction. Classes are held in the morning for about 4 hours everyday from Mon-Thurs totaling to 15 hours of class every week.

Either Afternoon Service Learning or Afternoon Language Exchange: Our service learning projects in China focus on a number of areas including education; mostly English teaching. For this program we collaborate with many local NGOs that we have developed partnerships with over the years. Volunteers placed with these NGOs work with homeless children or children of migrant labourers in Kunming.

There is simply no better way to practice one's listening and speaking skills than by having regular conversations with a native speaker; so Minds Abroad arranges for language exchange programs with students from local schools and communities.

Excursions in China and India: Through some of our program, students will visit fast growing metropolises, UNESCO World Heritage Sites and participate in rural homestays. We believe this not only gives students a balanced perspective into the rapidly modernizing urban China, but also into rural society where the majority of people in China still live. With some of our summer programs we arrange for trips to the large coastal cities of Beijing, Hong Kong and Guangzhou as well as some of Yunnan province's gorgeous countryside.

In India we will take students to Delhi, Calcutta and Darjeeling (a beautiful Himalayan town in Eastern India) for India. Most of these excursions are done in the weekends between Thurs-Sun so that students can get back to classes and volunteering work on Mon.

Culture Immersion with Chinese Peers: An important facet of these programs will be that students will share the program with Chinese peers from local schools and universities who will be participating in this program. Aside Mandarin classes which the local students will not attend, this whole program will provide for deeper culture exchange as students will share apartments, volunteering placements and travel together in excursions with their Chinese friends. This will not only allow for language exchange but by living and interacting with local Chinese students, they will have a much deeper immersion experience that is at the root of this program.

Spacious Apartments Nearby and Meals: We arrange fully furnished apartments for all participants within a short commute from our office. You will have convenience stores and supermarkets nearby for anything that you need. Additionally, there are also amenities like urban parks where you can go for morning exercise and fantastic restaurants to try some local delicacies.

We will provide lunch and dinner at our office from Mon-Fri. For breakfast we pack breakfast items in the student apartments and refill them twice a week. During excursions in the weekends we will cover all meals at quality restaurants we have worked with in the past.

Degree Level

Bachelors Degree (Undergraduate)

Type of Programs

• Community Service / Volunteerism
• Cultural Exploration
• High School Study Abroad
• Language Immersion
• Student Tours

Languages

• Chinese

Languages Used as a Medium of Teaching

• Chinese
• English

Subject Areas

• Art/fine Arts
• Asian Studies
• Chinese Language
• Culture
• Foreign Language
• Student Trips (non-credit)

Cost in US$:

China Program 25th May to 1st July - 5,385 USD/ China Program 8th June to 1st July- 4,285 USD/ China Program 29th June to 29th July- 5,385 USD/ China Program 27th July to 26th August - 4,985 USD. An additional 10% discount for all students who register on or before 31st dec, 2011. Upon registration students will have to pay 25% of the total program price immediately and the rest can be paid 1 month before the program commences.

Program Fees Include:

Cost includes all meals, morning classes, volunteering or language exchange, all internal travels and accommodation. Prices DO NOT include international flights.

Credit Available

yes

Experience Required

no

This Program is open to

American, Asian, Australian, Canadian, European, Kiwi, South African and Worldwide Participants.

Typical Living Arrangements

• Apartment/Flat
• Home-stays
• Other

Participants Travel

in Groups

Typically Participants Work

in Groups

Application Process Involves

• Online Application plus Application Assessment

Typically The Application Process Time is

1 day

Year Founded

2006