Eligibility
Most PiB students are American college undergraduates who have taken at least one year of college Chinese courses by the time they attend PiB. The student body is quite diverse. About half of our students come from Princeton. The rest come from dozens of college and universities around the world. Graduate students, a few juniors and seniors in high school, and a few working professionals also apply each year.
In order to apply for PiB, you must have studied the equivalent of a year's worth of college Chinese by the time you attend our program in mid-June. PiB does not accept zero beginners.
I am a working professional. Is PiB suitable for me?
Most PiB students are American college undergraduates, but PiB can work for anyone who is serious about learning Chinese. Whether a thirty-something-year-old can fit into the social environment of PiB depends largely on individual personality, disposition, and goals. Some older students have no problem, while others feel isolated. Some don't mind the age gap, others do. This is something that you will have to think about and evaluate for yourself.
I have never studied Chinese formally before, but I have knowledge of Chinese from other sources. Do I meet PiB's application requirements?
As long as you have the equivalent of at least a year of college-level Chinese, you are eligible to apply for PiB. Whether or not you are admitted, and to which level, will depend on the admissions committee's evaluation of your application. If you do go, we certainly recommend that you take Chinese in the term before PiB if at all possible.
I have an "imbalance" in my knowledge of Chinese - I can read but can't speak, or can speak but can't read or write very well.
Some applicants may speak Chinese at home or have knowledge of Chinese characters (from Cantonese, Japanese, etc.). In this case we ask you to apply for the class that best matches your LOWEST skill level, even if this means that some parts of the course will be easy for you. You should also note that, no matter what level you apply for, the PiB faculty will make the final decision on which level you take; this decision is based on your performance in placement tests that are given in Beijing at the beginning of the program.
I will not be able to attend PiB for the full eight weeks of the program. What should I do?