Fredonia students who have taken at least two semesters of Chinese have until March 15 to apply for one of 10 scholarships made available by the Chinese government to SUNY students who want to study in China next year.
China's ministry of education is offering 10 full scholarships that will enable selected SUNY undergraduates to spend one year in China studying the Chinese language or related disciplines. According to Mary Sasso, director of the International Education Center at SUNY Fredonia, the application process will be "very competitive."
To be eligible, students must have completed two years of undergraduate work, must have at least a 3.0 grade point average, and have completed two semesters of Chinese language study. The application requires a personal statement about their interest in China and how they plan to use their experience in China to benefit Chinese-U.S. relationships, with a focus on SUNY-China relationships.
The host institutions are Sichuan University and Nanjing University. The scholarship will include tuition fees and accommodations, living allowance and medical insurance. Traveling expenses are not covered.
The China Scholarship Council (CSC) under the Ministry of Education will implement and manage the Program in China. The Neil D. Levin Graduate Institute of International Relations and Commerce of the State University of New York (the Levin Institute) is the designated organization to implement and manage the Program on the SUNY side.
Host Universities in China
At Sichuan University, students can choose one semester in Chinese Language OR one semester to one year in other disciplines. For students who choose to study Chinese language, the University offers all levels of Chinese classes and no prerequisite is needed. Before class registration, the University will give a placement test to determine students’ Chinese proficiency levels and assign students to classes accordingly. For students who choose to study other disciplines, they will be placed in classes with Chinese students with Chinese as the language of instruction.
At Nanjing University, students can choose programs in Chinese Language study. Each semester, the Institute provides varying levels of Chinese language instructions. Students are placed into one of four groups: Beginner, Elementary, Intermediate and Advanced.
Scholarship Application Calendar
The application process consists of several phases and applications will be reviewed by a SUNY Admissions Committee, the Admissions Committee of Sichuan University, and CSC.
- March 15, 2009-- Application deadline
- April 15, 2009-- Completion of application review by SUNY
- April 30, 2009-- Completion of application review by Chinese Host University and CSC
- May 1, 2009--Announcement of final decisions
Application Procedure
Contact Mary Sasso for futher information on how to apply.
