The Chinese Studies Institute at San Diego State University

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SDSU has three exchange programs with China currently running under the direction of CSI. They are with China’s Anhui University, Hebei University, and Tianjin University of Finance and Economics (TUFE). Professor P. C. Chu of the History Department established the exchanges with Anhui and Hebei many years ago. The two programs allow up to two students to be exchanged for each semester. Most SDSU student who participate in these two programs study Chinese language and culture.

The exchange with TUFE was established in 2000 by Professor Mei Zhong of the School of Communication. It was initially a short-term summer program for SDSU students. Professor Zhong led two groups of SDSU students to China via a summer course, offered through the Office of Extended Studies in 2001 and 2002. The two groups consisted of 26 SDSU students and they were able to live on TUFE campus for three weeks and traveled in Beijing and Xi’an for another week. Students were able to attend classes taught by TUFE faculty about Chinese language and culture, meet with TUFE students to exchange ideas about college life, and conduct interviews for their research project on intercultural communication, which was the focus of these courses. SDSU students returned to the United States, completed a research paper, and presented it to the class and public. These SDSU students reported that they learned a great deal from this once-in-a-lifetime experience.

In return, TUFE has sent about 10 students to study at SDSU as exchange students. They attend one semester of courses and return to TUFE to complete their degrees. This experience has helped TUFE students find jobs upon graduation and some of them have returned to the U.S. for graduate studies.

In summer 2004, the exchange contract between SDSU and TUFE was altered to become a standard study-abroad program which accommodates up to three students each semester to study on the opposite campus. On September 30, 2004, President Jiaxing Zhang of TUFE led a delegation of nine TUFE officials to visit SDSU. The delegation met with Provost Nancy Marlin, Dean Joyce Gattas of the College of Professional Studies and Fine Arts, Dean Paul Wong of the College of Arts and Letters, and Director Al Sweedler of the Office of International Programs, to discuss possibilities for a broadened exchange between the two universities.

At present, the three programs combined send up to seven SDSU students each semester to study in China. This opportunity allows both SDSU and Chinese college students an extensive international experience, which will prove beneficial in their college career and beyond.

This activity was reported by the Los Angeles based The Chinese Press

before and after the trip, in April and July 2001.

Chinese Newspapers  (Scanned images)

In addition, Dr. Zhong was invited to speak on Intercutlural Communication

to a graduate class at the School of Journalism and Communication at Peking

University, Beijing. Zhong and a student of hers were also interviewed by

the China's International Radio while in Beijing. The one-hour interview

was aired on July 8, 2001.

 

Dining at a resort near Tainjin.  Visiting a pre-school

Visiting a Chinese home.

 

Send mail to mtsou@mail.sdsu.edu with questions or comments about this web site.
Last modified: October 11, 2004