This is a question that comes up repeatedly when speaking with the new students. We've written a lot about this topic over the years, but it's always useful to organize the information. This post will concentrate on my experiences of joining Mandarin classes in Taipei and Hsinchu.
There are many ways to learn Chinese, classroom experience is a proper way to learn the language in my humble opinion. Photo by Maybritt Devriese on Unsplash
As a European student, I faced numerous challenges and difficulties while attempting to improve my Mandarin skills. After many attempts to learn Chinese in Europe, it was time to get a chance to learn the language for real in a proper environment. That includes not only classes with teachers but also learning as much as possible on your own. As a result, I decided to travel to Taiwan, where I discovered a school that allows students to study Mandarin Chinese both outside and inside the classroom.
First, let me describe my experience in Taipei. As a Huayu Scholarship recipient, I traveled to Taiwan as an undergraduate student. Because of this, I was able to enroll in an intensive summer Mandarin learning program and attend classes every day to improve my conversation and writing skills; personally, I enrolled in classes for students who had already studied Chinese. However, it was not the only option: there were other programs and courses with varying levels of intensity available, which can be found on the Ministry of Education's website. If I could do it all over again, I would stay longer (up to a year) and study Chinese during that time.
My second experience learning Chinese in Taiwan was at National Yangming Chiaotung University. As GMBA students, we have the opportunity to participate in Mandarin classes in the Chinese Language Division at Assembly Building I. Classes can be divided into three groups. The first is a step-by-step course with ten levels that lead to B1 proficiency. The second category is Introductory Chinese Conversations classes, which focus on spoken Chinese and teach the most commonly used vocabulary. The third category is more specialized, such as Taiwan Today, Chinese Current Issues, or Chinese Culture. During our first year, we enrolled in the Basic Conversation class. By the end of our second year, we had graduated from this level and moved on to the more advanced ones.
Learning back in the classroom creates many opportunities to improve your language skills. Photo by Jizhidexiaohailang on Unsplash
To summarize, these two experiences taught me that learning Mandarin is never easy, but the right approach and determination can help. Anyone can succeed with enough dedication, effort, and motivation. You can learn more about the university's language division by visiting its website here.
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