
Study Mandarin, trek on the Tibetan Plateau, delve into the complexities of the world’s most populous nation.
open
closed
17-22
Tuition is all inclusive aside from airfare and insurance fees.
China. Few countries evoke the same curiosity and intense fascination.
Throughout its long history, China has inspired curiosity and fascination in travelers, seekers, merchants, and dreamers like few other places. Our semester in China does more than introduce the contemporary China that is seen in the country’s ever-expanding cities; we gain a firsthand understanding of the country’s diverse peoples and cultures, moving through lesser visited urban and rural landscapes. Immersive travel experiences are balanced with a strong language curriculum and a comprehensive, interdisciplinary exploration of modern Chinese history and economic development, society, and cultural traditions.
Throughout its long history, China has inspired curiosity and fascination in travelers, seekers, merchants, and dreamers like few other places. Our semester in China does more than introduce the contemporary China that is seen in the country’s ever-expanding cities; we gain a firsthand understanding of the country’s diverse peoples and cultures, moving through lesser visited urban and rural landscapes. Immersive travel experiences are balanced with a strong language curriculum and a comprehensive, interdisciplinary exploration of modern Chinese history and economic development, society, and cultural traditions.
Kunming—located southeast of the Tibetan Plateau—is our home for five weeks of the program. This “city of eternal spring” is the capital of China’s Yunnan Province; an ideal location from which we explore ethnic diversity, environmental issues, and the dramatic changes that people in China have witnessed in recent decades. Through guest lectures, discussions, and mentored community engagement, we explore traditional Chinese approaches to healing, cooking, exercise, art, and music. While in Kunming, students live independently with homestay families, many of whom represent the “new middle class” in urban China today. At the Dragons Program House, we gather for language classes, work on Independent Study Projects (ISPs), hear from visiting scholars, and meet as a group to plan our adventures and investigations.
Building on all we’ve learned and experienced in Kunming, we begin five weeks of travel through China’s western corridor with unique itineraries each semester that may take us through Guizhou, Sichuan, Qinghai, Ningxia, or Gansu Provinces. With a broad curriculum and an itinerary designed to explore the variety this country has to offer, our semester program offers an unparalleled overview of China today.
Click on the gallery below to browse photos, videos and quotes from our participants and instructors.
Introduction to Buddhism, Daoism, Islam, Confucianism, Marxism, Capitalism.
Minority issues and status, socio-economic issues, health, land-use and environment, tourism, human rights issues, cultural survival.
Ancient, imperial and modern history, political studies, social issues in modern China, development of market economy, gender and race studies, cultural and environmental preservation, Chinese philosophy.
5-6 weeks of urban homestay in Kunming, one or two rural homestays in Yunnan, Qinghai or Sichuan villages.
ISPs facilitated throughout program: Traditional Chinese Medicine, calligraphy, ink painting, environmental issues, Tai Ji Quan (Tai chi)/martial arts, tea ceremony, ethnic minority studies, internships with local businesses, NGOs or English schools.
Intensive daily Mandarin Chinese instruction, options for additional one-on-one tutoring sessions and opportunities for language immersion throughout.
Small volunteer project in cooperation with Yunnan or Sichuan-based NGOs.
Moderately rugged: extended train and bus travel, village home-stays, bike touring, limited camping.
3 to 5-day trek in the mountains of western China, numerous day hikes and/or additional multi-day treks depending on student interest.
In order to deepen your experience abroad, you may elect to enroll in college-level courses while participating on the China Gap semester program. Those who enroll in an optional course will be invoiced an additional fee top of the land cost, for up to 16 college credits. To learn more, click here.
Students who take courses for-credit will receive an official transcript from a School of Record after successful completion of the program.
Through our Schools of Record, you may take the following courses for-college credit:
See full Course Offering descriptions.
What is so unique about Dragons is that they foster the opportunities and space for experiences like nomadic/rural homestays that would be really rare, hard, or even impossible to do by ourselves independently.
China Semester
"The way I think and process things has fundamentally changed and I owe that to my Dragons experience.”
Laura Burke China Semester: South of the Clouds
"In addition to creating strong friendships, the rural homestays provided a new perspective on ethnic minorities in China."
Jimmy O'Hare China Semester