This is for anyone who is Googling the Mandarin House Shanghai program in an effort to get current student reviews and comments. While I do have a rather glowing review for the program as a whole -- which I intend to write a full entry for later -- I feel that it would be helpful to provide would-be Mandarin House attendees with the following information.
If you are going for the language program plus accommodation, find out where exactly they plan on putting you up during your stay. If it's at the GuangXi Bei Lu address, then ask what floor. If the 20th floor, then be adamant about not being put into Room C of that apartment. Apparently there is some problem with the plumbing within the bathroom in Room C, and as a consequence the entire room stinks. Opening the door will at times also lead the rest of the apartment to stink.
The school has known about the problem for at least two weeks now, but the problem has not yet been fixed. The current resident in the room indicates that he will be put up at a nearby hotel (although the school wanted to put him up at a hotel 30 minutes away) for perhaps three days while the school arranges for someone to fix the problem.
Again, this is not reflective of my general opinion regarding the Mandarin House program in Shanghai, but it is only a caveat emptor warning for future students so that no one has to be stuck in a smelly room during their stay in Shanghai.
I hope that in the near future I can post an update to say that the problem in the room has been fixed.
------
(Коротке слово по-український: Курс китайської мови, який я слухаю в Шанґгай, під назвою схожу на "Мандаринська Хата". Чомусь, одна з наших кімнат смердить. Я про це тут говор'ю, щоб майбутні студенти пізнали ситуацію і щоб Школа щось нам зробила за сморід.)
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
Hi - I'm curious as to your full review of Mandarin House. I'm currently looking into Mandarin language programs in Shanghai. Mandarin House is certainly one of the most well known, but also most expensive. Would you recommend it for a total beginner, looking to learn Chinese for a few months before working full-time in Shanghai?
Hi Laurie, I would certainly recommend this program for a total beginner. Mandarin House is large enough to offer fine-tuned levels for small groups of students, which I found very effective for learning and also pushing yourself. If I ever wanted to continue with Mandarin studies (assuming the time to take a full-time program!) then Mandarin House is the first place I would look. I hope you have a great experience! Shanghai is a wonderful city.
Post a Comment