Study abroad in China in Summer and Year Round with Minds Abroad

Minds Abroad: Study in Yunnan, Lonely Planet's Top Choice in China

"If you have time for but one province in China, Yunnan should be it." Lonely Planet.

Minds Abroad offers study abroad, volunteering and educational travel in China. Focusing on language and culture immersion, Minds Abroad programs creates opportunities for participants to experience non-traditional culture by putting students in real-life contexts. Minds Abroad offers a Year Round Morning Class & Afternoon Activities Program which students can enroll in on any Monday and stay as many weeks as they like. The free afternoon activities include either volunteering program or a language exchange program. Additionally we offer Summer Study+Travel Programs, between May and August, which builds upon the morning class and afternoon activities by adding weekend travel to sites of cultural significance. These programs are described in further detail in the links above or in the paragraphs below.

Max of Three Students Per Class and Experienced University Faculty

Minds Abroad limit class size to a maximum of three students which allows for maximum student-teacher interaction. Having several years of experience in teaching international students, all of our teachers are faculties with our accredited partner university. See more on this page.

Transfer Academic Credit

University students who study Chinese with Minds Abroad can earn college credits from our university partners in Kunming and likely can transfer the credits back to their home institution.* Learn more here.

Minds Abroad's philosophy is about 'learning by doing' so in addition to studying Mandarin, we encourage students to participate in volunteering, language exchange that Minds Abroad can arrange or cultural pursuits like painting and dance in the afternoons which Minds Abroad can inform students about.

In Kunming, students can choose to volunteer in various non-profit organizations that work for children of disadvantaged, migrant families and poor, homeless children. Volunteers can give English lessons to these children or help them with homework or other vocational training arranged for by the centers. Read more.

There is simply no better way to practice one's listening and speaking skills than by having regular conversations with a native speaker; so Minds Abroad arranges for language exchange programs with students from local schools and communities. Read more.

We arrange fully furnished apartments for all participants within a short commute from our office. You will have convenience stores and supermarkets nearby for anything that you need. We also arrange for homestays with Chinese families in Kunming. Living with a family in Kunming is a fantastic way of learning about family life in China and having daily opportunities to practice the Chinese language skills

We provide lunch and dinner at our office from Mon-Fri. Students are welcome to join these meals with our staff. For breakfast we pack breakfast items in the student apartments and refill them twice a week.

All our programs include in-country orientation and the full on-site support of our staff in Kunming. Upon reaching Kunming, students will be given a short orientation that will include a tour of the Minds Abroad office and the neighborhood around the office, a map of the city and an emergency contact list. Our staff takes care of any kind of emergencies or medical help, if the need arises.

For an authentic insight into the modern day China we must go beyond its modern, fast-paced metropolises and visit its interior, its heartland in central and western China, where most Chinese people live but relatively few foreigners visit. Deep within the Chinese heartland is the geographically and culturally diverse province of Yunnan. From Tibetan towns in the Himalayan north to Thai villages in the tropical rainforests of the South, Yunnan is the perfect microcosm of China.

Yunnan, and its cosmopolitan capital Kunming, are perfect destinations for cultural immersion because of their great diversity of land and people. Famous for its cool summers and temperate winters Kunming's clean air, gorgeous cityscape and proximity to nearby Southeast Asian countries makes it a great place to study abroad. Yunnan is China's most geographically and culturally diverse province.

With Minds Abroad you can study Chinese for as many weeks as your schedule permits. Start any Monday and continue as long as you like in our year-round Year Round Morning Class & Afternoon Activities. With morning classes, you could either chooseafternoon language-exchange sessions or volunteering with local non-profits. Study during the week and explore Yunnan's amazing diversity of land and people on weekend trips. During longer breaks, you can take short excursions to nearby Southeast Asia countries like Vietnam or Laos or even India!

Through May till August 2012 we have several set programs for individual students combining language class, service learning, rural homestays and travel in the weekends in both China and India. These programs are all led by a Minds Abroad team member and cover all onsite arrangements like meals, accommodation and logistics. Find a schedule of our summer programs on this page of the website.