The Center of Chinese Language and Culture

The Center of Chinese Language and Culture (CCLC) was established in the Fall of 1956 as a non-profit language training institute. Since that time the Center has grown to become the most respected institution in the Republic of China, dedicated to providing instruction in Mandarin and Classical Chinese as a second language. The Center of Chinese Language and Culture, located on the 5th to 10th floors of the Bo-Ai Building on the main campus of National Taiwan Normal University (NTNU), has air-conditioned classrooms, a library, language labs, and other facilities.

Approximately 1,400 students are enrolled in any of the four quarters of study each year. Students come over 56 different countries. The faculty is composed of over 150 experienced teachers who must be approved by the University President after passing a rigorous examination.

Language program

Students need not know any Chinese to apply; however, a desire to learn the language and culture is important. All classes are conducted in Mandarin Chinese. For the first week Mandarin phonetic symbols are taught, and those symbols will be used to indicate the pronunciation of Chinese characters. Teaching materials include texts for non-native learners, Chinese primary and secondary school readers, and audio and video cassettes to make the classes as interesting and varied as possible. During each quarter approximately 300 classes of varying levels of proficiency are available. Study materials are assigned a general level of difficulty which ranges from elementary Chinese (Level 1) to advanced Literary Chinese (Level 9).

Beginners of Chinese take a regular class load of two hours per day (10 hours per week) for the first twelve-week quarter, for a total of 120 hours. Upon successful completion of the first quarter, students generally take an intensive class load of four hours per day (20 hours per week) during the second and third quarters. Class size is generally 3-5 students. Iowa State University typically awards 6 credits for each 120 hour class, provided the student makes reasonable progress.

Taipei

Taipei, which literally means Taiwan North, has a population of 3 million and is the largest city on the island of Taiwan. Because of the economic and educational opportunities available in Taipei, the population is rapidly growing. Skyscrapers, high-rise hotels, broad boulevards intersected by narrow lanes, and markets offer a blend of the old and modern China. The 20th century facade does not, however, mask the fact that Taipei is staunchly one of the Orient's most traditional cities.

The heartbeat ofTaipei is unquestionably Chinese. The city is a place of many outstanding attractions such as the world-famous National Palace Museum and Lungshan Temple made of the finest temple carving and roof work in all of Asia. The official language is Mandarin Chinese, so even outside the classroom students will have many opportunities to speak Chinese. Taipei's climate is subtropical and is usually quite humid all year long. Winter weather is unpredictable, and it is not unusual for the temperature to be in the 70s for a couple of days and then suddenly plunge to the 50s.

Financial aid

ISU students pay tuition, fees and room costs at ISU and in return are not charged for those services abroad. Housing is provided for ISU students in the graduate dorm at the NTNU, in the branch campus located 10 minutes from the CCLC by bus. Students pay their own meals costs in Taiwan. Also, NTNU provides ISU exchange students an allowance, about US$400-450 per month.

Housing

Students participating in the exchange are housed in the graduate dormitory on the branch campus of the NTNU, about 10 minutes by bus from the CCLC. Students not participating in the exchange are responsible for making their own hotel or room reservations beforehand. For student not on the exchange, please make room reservations through: Taipei International Youth Activity Center, 30 Hsin Hai Road, Section 3, Taipei, Taiwan, Tel: 886-2-362-1770. Other reasonably priced accomodations are YMCA, 19 Hsu Chang St. Tel: 886-2-311-3201, or YWCA, 7 Tsing Tao West Rd. Tel: 886-2-371-4493.

Application

Applicants must normally be full-time students at ISU, have completed one year of study at ISU prior to the year abroad, have an overall 3.00 GPA, and have an interest in learning Mandarin Chinese language and culture.

The application deadline is March 1st.

Download the ISU study abroad application form. (.doc)

Application forms and further information about the Center of Chinese Language and Culture can be obtained from:

Study Abroad Center
3224 Memorial Union
Ames, IA 50011-1133
(515) 294-6792
studyabroad@iastate.edu