hello dear ppl of kunming
im coming to kunming mid february to study chinese in a private school. im already quite sure which school i want to go to but i wonder if its important to register in advance or would it b better to com there n talk w the ppl n then decide??
from one hand i think the school i want to go to is the most popular n im afraid if i get there without registering they wont have a place 4 me, or, another thought i had is that maybe if i get there without registering in advance the good teachers will already have their classes full n i get stuck with the less experienced\good teachers.
from the other hand im coming there in mid feb n will have tow weeks to walk around n ask ppl their choice n opinion and that could help make an ideal choice.
would really appreciate any opinion
thankx a allot
don't need to register in advance, im sure they'll be able to find a place for you. anyway, it's always luck of the draw whether you get a good teacher or a shit one - you could book well in advance and still get a bad teacher. go there first and sit in on a class for free before committing. if you don't like it check out another school. kunming is one of the best cities in china for expats to study chinese because of the wealth of choice and affordability. no worries.
I think the issue might be if a study visa is required. I am not sure if you can convert an 'L' to an 'X', or if you need to apply for an 'X' before arrival in China.
no they can convert a tourist visa into student visa no problem. kcel did it for me. cost 400 rmb and takes about a week.
thnkx allot .
..well i didnt want to mention it b4 but the private school i was talking about is keats.
chris8o8o u went to KCEL, u think what u wrote applies to keats as well?
thankx again
@chris....
Was this done before or after Sept 1st 2013?
If you have the money, they will find a place for you!
Also, not to try to change your mind, but Huayang academy is really, really great, and was voted #1 Chinese school this year on Go Kunming. I highly recommend it.
A friend of mine converted a Z visa to a student visa last week, though I was told this was not possible.
I converted an L visa to an X in July, and another friend did the same after September 1st.
This was at Kunming University of Science and Technology.
@tigertiger
I got a 12 month multi-entry student visa early last year and it expires end of march. I'm due to go back to china on it in 2 weeks as ive been in uk for quite a while now. Dont think there'll be a problem as they would have contacted me if it was cancelled. But i will email them anyway. Your post reminded me that there have been changes in the visa rules so i started reading through that visa thread; havent plowed through the full 11 pages yet but so far nothing about student visas being affected. Only work visas, which is ok as i dont work (officially). Im planning to get another 1 year visa when i pay for the next year's tuition - hopefully will be as stress-free as last time. Will ask them in an email but if anyones aware of a change in the student visa rules let me know ! BTW i expect private schools would be a lot more flexible and less bogged down by red tape than universities when supplying visas.
@eladi
Dont know much about keats other than that it's much smaller than KCEL and more expensive. But people who have been there are happy. I think it's worth checking out a few schools before committing. Free to sit in on a class. But just email them with specific questions as they'll be more qualified to answer than me!
