Friday, September 28, 2012

Happy Mid-Autumn Festival!

This evening the Hopkins-Nanjing Center community is celebrating the Moon Festival with an outdoor terrace party complete with mooncakes and student performances.  The admissions team hopes all of our blog readers have clear skies this weekend to properly celebrate as well!

HNC students celebrate the Moon Festival in 2008

Tuesday, September 25, 2012

This Week at the HNC: Moot Court Tryouts


Tryouts are being held this week in Nanjing for this year’s HNC mock-trial team.  This will be the third year that the Hopkins-Nanjing Center has been host to a moot court team.

Shirlene Yee, MAIS '12
The Phillip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition is the world’s largest moot court competition, drawing participants from more than 500 law schools across 80 countries. The Hopkins-Nanjing Center is among the small minority of participants that are not law schools.  The competition is a simulation of a fictional dispute between countries before the International Court of Justice, the judicial organ of the United Nations. Teams prepare oral and written pleadings, arguing both the applicant and respondent positions of the case. 

2012 Jessup Team in Washington, D.C.
In its first year competing, HNC placed sixth in the China National Rounds.  The following year, the HNC moot court team placed third overall out of 39 teams in the China National Rounds held at Beijing’s Renmin University from February 22-February 26, 2012. Additionally, second-year MAIS student Shirlene Yee placed first and Certificate student Stephen Levandoski placed sixth for the individual “Best Oralist” portion of the competition. As a result of the China National Rounds win, the HNC team was one of four teams to represent China in the international final in Washington, D.C. from March 26-March 30, 2012.

The HNC team, led by International Law Professor Feng Chuan, was comprised of students Wang Jinlin, He Shen, Sun Chuan, along with Levandoski and Yee. The team felt a great sense of accomplishment upon reaching the international finals. Yee said, “We’re happy with the results of the competition. The team advanced much further than it did last year and we were able to compete in Washington, D.C against the best moot court teams the world has to offer.”

The admissions team wishes all those trying out for the 2012-2013 moot court team the best of luck!  We will be sure to update the blog with news of this year's competition later in the semester.

Sunday, September 23, 2012

Connect with Hopkins-Nanjing in the Midwest!

Admissions representative Margaux Fimbres will be recruiting in the Midwest over the next two weeks!  Please contact margaux.fimbres[AT]jhu.edu if you are interested in setting up an individual meeting at any of the following locations:

Mon, Sept 24th - University of Kansas
Tues, Sept 25th - Wash U - St. Louis
Wed, Sept 26th - University of Kentucky
Thurs, Sept 27th - Indiana University
Fri, Sept 28th - Notre Dame
Mon, Oct 1st - University of Chicago
Wed, Oct 3rd - UW Madison
Thurs, Oct 4th - University of Minnesota, Macalester College & Carleton College
Fri, Oct 5th - St. Olaf College


Thursday, September 20, 2012

The Best HNC Program for You

Many applicants come to us for advice about how to select the Hopkins-Nanjing Center program that best suits their interests.  In order to help you compare the basic features of the Certificate, MAIS, and Five-semester HNC/SAIS programs, we’ve compiled some helpful information below.  You’ll find a snapshot of the duration, requirements, and degree associated with each program.  If you have any additional questions about programs and curricula offered by the Hopkins-Nanjing Center, please don’t hesitate to contact our Admissions Office.
   

*As a Five-Semester applicant, students must choose a concentration for the SAIS MA portion of the program.  More information on SAIS MA concentrations can be found here
** For specific questions about the SAIS MA, go to www.sais-jhu.edu or call the SAIS Admissions Office at 202.663.5700

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Step 1 in Your HNC Application

The Hopkins-Nanjing Center Library
It's the first week of classes at the Hopkins-Nanjing Center but here in the admissions office we are already preparing for next year's class.  The first step in the application process is Chinese proficiency testing.  All applicants to the Hopkins-Nanjing Center are required to take the Center for Applied Linguistics (CAL) Chinese proficiency exam. The CAL is the most convenient way to ensure that you will be prepared to study at the Center.

To help you do your best on the CAL, we’ve answered a few commonly asked questions about the exam below:
  • The CAL is entirely multiple choice, and focuses mainly on listening and reading comprehension. There is no oral component.
  • There are no formal study guides for the exam, but when you request the CAL from our office, we’ll send you an Examinee Handbook that explains the structure of the exam and provides some sample questions.
  • You can take the CAL independently with a proctor or at scheduled testing dates in DC or Nanjing. Professors, work supervisors, university administrators, or tutors are all suitable choices to proctor a CAL exam.   
  • We are able to send the test anywhere in the world, though do ask that applicants outside of the US and Canada pay for shipping.
  • Unlike many standardized tests, the CAL is quite test-taker friendly and requires little preparation for quirks or trick questions. It aims to be a straightforward assessment of Chinese listening, reading, and grammar skills.

Completed CAL materials must be received by the DC office by January 21st to guarantee scoring before the February 1st application deadline.
 

If you are planning to take the CAL exam, we encourage you to submit your CAL test request soon! Good luck!

Thursday, September 13, 2012

Orientation Week at the HNC

2011 Fire Safety Demonstration
This week the Hopkins-Nanjing Center welcomed its 27th class to Nanjing.  Students are busy this week applying for residence permits, learning about career services, deciding on class schedules, hearing about volunteer opportunities, and putting out fires during the annual fire safety demonstration.

On Wednesday, students also had the opportunity to attend a guest lecture by Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security Jane Holl Lute.  MAIS student Natalie Sammarco reports:
 
Jane Holl Lute, Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security
"Back at the Center, we are in full swing with orientation. It's been very fun getting to know my new international and Chinese classmates. I think each of the students is beginning to realize just how special HNC is to those involved with it and to the international community. This was made so clear by the visit to the Center by Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security, Jane Holl Lute, who came to speak with us about US-China collaboration in the Department of Homeland Security. She also opened herself up to the many questions we had for her. It was inspiring to hear the impressive questions my classmates were asking to this official so high in the US government. It's safe to say we're all very excited to start classes next week and I, personally, look forward to a year full of learning and exploring China from a place that truly engenders cultural and linguistic exchange." -Natalie Sammarco, MAIS 2014


Tuesday, September 11, 2012

China and Latin America- Alumna Profile


Margaret  Certificate Program 2011
Previous Education
The George Washington University
MA in International Development Studies 
University of Virginia
BA in Foreign Affairs

Chinese Language Study Prior to the Center
Two semesters undergrad, CET Hangzhou Summer '05, Defense Language Institute coursework
What was your favorite course at the Center?
Chinese Constitution
Why did you choose the Hopkins-Nanjing Center?
I chose HNC because I was very impressed by the Center graduates whom I'd met while working as a China analyst for the US government. They all had a strong command of Chinese, and were also often leaders in their respective organizations. I see Center graduates' professional success as a testament to the quality of the HNC educational experience. 
What are you doing now? I am currently the Director of the China and Latin America program at the Inter-American Dialogue, a DC-based Latin American studies think tank. Much of what I learned at the Center is directly applicable to my work at the Dialogue. HNC not only enabled me to refine my Chinese language skills, which have been critical when conducting research and networking, but also to understand the many domestic factors in China that are influencing its engagement with Latin America and other regions. 

Friday, September 7, 2012

2013-2014 Application Now Available!

The HNC application for the 2013-2014 academic year is now available online.  You can start your application here!

In other news, admissions coordinator Lauren Szymanski will be recruiting in upstate New York and western Massachusetts over the next two weeks.  Please contact lauren.szymanski[AT]jhu.edu if you are interested in setting up an individual meeting at any of the following locations:



Monday, Sept 10th- Colgate University
Tuesday, Sept 11thUnion College & Hamilton College
Wednesday, Sept 12thVassar College
Thursday, Sept 13thBard College
Monday, Sept 17thSmith College
Tuesday, Sept 18th- Mt. Holyoke College
Wednesday, Sept 19thAmherst College
Thursday, Sept 20thUniversity of Massachusetts
Friday, September 21st – College of the Holy Cross