Education options at Peking University

Updated on: Tuesday, March 02, 2010

Last week, we saw an overall picture of the Peking University, and the formalities for entering the university. The academic year is divided into two semesters—Spring and Fall, each of 18 weeks.

Fall is from September to January, and Spring from February to June. The academic year starts with the Fall. There are two vacations. The summer vacation lasts for nearly two months and the winter vacation for a month.

You should not arrive in China earlier than two weeks before the day of registration. Those who arrive late (not later than two weeks after the day of registration) must write a letter to the Division of International Students' Office via fax (+86-10-62751233) or email ( [email protected]), intimating the reason for late arrival.

On-campus housing at the Shaoyuan student dormitory is available to students on the day of registration. For more information, please contact the International Students Accommodation Office: e-mail: [email protected]; Ph : 86-10-62757361; Website: www.shaoyuan.com

There are limited facilities of accommodation for international students in the university campus. Also, you may search and find accommodation off-campus.

There are several banks near Peking University where you can set up a bank account after you arrive in Beijing. You can convert foreign currencies like the U.S. Dollar and the Euro into RMB, at the banks. It is illegal to exchange money on the streets. There are certain ATMs that accept credit cards such as American Express, Master Card, VISA Card, and Dinner's Club Card.

RMB is the same as the Chinese yuan. It is the abbreviation of Ren Min Bi, or the People's Money. One RMB is roughly 6.8 Indian rupees. (1 Yuan = 10 Jiao = 100 Fen). You may need an average of 5,500 RMB per month for housing, food, and transportation.

You should pay one year's tuition fee at the time of registration, or earlier. The payment can be made conveniently through the ‘UnionPay Card', a usual instrument in that country. In order to obtain a UnionPay Card, you have to first open a bank account in China. The university prefers accounts in the Bank of China.

It may take 8 to 10 weeks after the application deadline to receive the notification of admission to the university. In case you need any clarification on the procedure for admission, you may contact International Students Division, Office of International Relations, Shaoyuan Building No. 3, Peking University, Haidian District, Beijing, 100871, China; Ph: (+8610)-6275-1230; e-mail: [email protected]; Web: www.oir.pku.edu.cn.

Normally you would have to put in four years for undergraduate degrees, three or two years for master's degrees, and four years for doctoral degrees. Apart from these, there are special opportunities for studies:

Senior visiting students programme: You should have at least a Master's degree. Senior visiting students conduct research in a specific subject, under the supervision of a professor for one year. The duration may be extended on request.

General visiting students programme: You should have completed at least one year of undergraduate study in India. Options are available for joining undergraduate courses or for enhancing proficiency in Chinese language.

Research scholars: You should have a doctoral degree or the title of at least an Associate Professor. You will be given access to the school's resources and allowed to collaborate with professors to conduct research in specific areas. You should find a supervisor in advance. Dates and durations of research are flexible.

All students have to register on their designated day of registration. Continuing undergraduate, graduate and postgraduate students should register at their respective departments. Visiting students, research scholars and new in-takes will have to register at the Division of International Student's Office. Visiting students may enroll in any of the courses that have been made available to them in tune with the academic guidelines laid out for them.

International students must seek approval from the Division for ‘excused absence' from classes. They should explain reasons for missing classes and the activities in which they are involved in during the absence.

Proficiency in Chinese Language

General Visiting Students are required to take the Chinese language proficiency examination after registration. Only those students whose results meet the standard are allowed to take specialty courses. Otherwise they should study Chinese in the International College for Chinese Language Studies for one or two semesters, attending 18-20 hours of classes per week. For those who have already received an intermediate B certificate or above on the HSK 7 (Hanyu shuiping kaoshi) exam, the Chinese language proficiency exam will be exempted.

Senior Visiting Students and Research Scholars need not take the Chinese language proficiency exam. Undergraduates, Master's and Doctoral candidates also are not required to take the Chinese language proficiency exam.

Tuition fee per year

The tuition fee for the general visiting students programme in Humanities subjects is 26,000 RMB and science subjects is 30,000.

The tuition fee for the senior visiting students programme in Humanities subjects is 30,000 RMB and science subjects is 34,000.

The tuition fee for the undergraduate programme in Humanities subjects is 26,000 RMB and science subjects is 30,000.

The tuition fee for the Master's Programme in Humanities subjects is 29,000 RMB and science subjects is 33,000.

The tuition fee for the doctorate programme in Humanities subjects is 32,000 RMB and science subjects is 40,000.

Scholarship awards

The following categories of students are eligible for scholarship awards for academic excellence:

Graduating Students of Postgraduate Studies

Graduating Students of Graduate Studies

Third Year Undergraduate Students

Eligibility: The conditions for eligibility for scholarship awards for academic excellence are as follows:

Should be regular students completing studies, without taking time off from the university and should not have extended their duration of studies.

Should have obeyed all Chinese laws and the university regulations and should have achieved academic excellence.

Undergraduate Students should have passed all their required classes with a minimum GPA of 3.0 since their second year.

Should have passed all their elective courses.

Graduate Students should have excellent grades and have demonstrated insights and brilliance in their research ability and in critical thinking. Students should have published their thesis in scholarly journals while studying at Peking University.

Scholarship grants

Doctorate Academic Excellence Scholarship: 1st Class Award: 10,000, 2nd Class Award: 5,000

Master Academic Excellence Scholarship: 4,000

Undergraduate Academic Excellence: 32,000 (40,000 Nos)

More details, including the method of application for scholarship is available in the International handbook of the university.

Other universities

We discussed in some detail the PKU. Some of the other top universities are the following:

City University of Hong Kong

Fudan University

Nanjing University

Nankai University

Shanghai Jiao Tong University

The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology

The University of Hong

Education options at Peking University

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