Hopkins-Nanjing Center Blog

HNC provides a variety of career development resources and an on-site career counselor to help students market their unique skill sets to employers around the world.  Career Counselor Robbie Shields has organized a number of events this fall to help students better understand their career interests and how to pursue them.  Read his guest post below to learn more about the many career development opportunities available at the Hopkins-Nanjing Center: "Mark Twain once stated that 'the two most important days of your life are the day that you’re born and the day you learn why.'   As the Career Counselor at the Hopkins-Nanjing Center, I couldn’t agree more.   This fall the HNC Career Service office has had several events designed to help students develop an understanding of their career interests and how to best pursue those interests.   I’d like to take a moment to share with you some of the highlights.   At orientation, students learned about the im...

Because HNC MAIS student Natalie Sammarco attended the Certificate program in 2009-2010 before applying for the MAIS  in 2012, she was able to transfer some of her Certificate coursework in order to complete the MAIS in three semesters instead of four.  Therefore, she is now in her final semester at the HNC.  Read her advice to new students as they embark on their first graduate-level paper in Chinese: "Now that everyone is back from the National Day holiday, we’ve had time to get to know one another and focus on work. I planned my schedule so that I take no classes this semester so I can focus fully on my thesis. My other classmates, though, are taking between 3 and 5 classes and are very busy with readings and projects. It’s about 1/3 of the way through the semester and professors are assigning the first round of papers. As someone who has already spent two full academic years at the HNC, I can recognize the panic in the eyes of the new students who have to write t...

Mark your calendars!  The next online chat will take place this Thursday, October 17 from 10:00AM to 11:00AM ET .  Chatting with us will be admissions representatives Katie Brooks (HNC '09) and Sallie You.  Join us to hear admissions staff share firsthand experience and valuable advice, and be sure to bring any questions you may have about the application process, academics, or student life.  At the scheduled time, click here to join the chat and sign in as a guest.  We look forward to speaking with you!  

Amanda Hsiung Amanda Hsiung is an HNC Certificate ‘09 alumna and currently manages the East and Southeast Asia portfolio (including China) as an Associate Program Officer at The Global Fund for Children (GFC). Amanda sat down with admissions representative Katie Brooks to discuss her work with Chinese civil society, her recent travel to China, and of course her time at HNC. Click here for more on Amanda’s work and travels at GFC. Katie: Thanks for speaking with me today! It’s always great to get a picture of what our alums are doing post-HNC. Can you tell me a little more about your job? Amanda: Thank you, Katie. I’d be happy to! The Global Fund for Children (GFC) is a nonprofit organization that works to advance the dignity of children worldwide by making small grants to innovative community-based organizations working with many of the world’s most vulnerable children. As the Associate Program Officer for East and Southeast Asia at GFC, I manage over 40 grantees...

We're getting close to reaching the halfway point of our fall recruiting travel which means it's a good time for prospective students to start their applications!  The first step in the application process is Chinese proficiency testing .  All applicants to the Hopkins-Nanjing Center are required to take Avant Assessment's STAMP Chinese Proficiency Test.  The STAMP 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 STAMP, we’ve answered a few commonly asked questions about the exam below: The STAMP 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 STAMP from our office, we’ll send you a link to a practice test to give you a better idea of the structure of the test. You can take the STAMP online with a proctor.  There's no need to go to a testing center....

HNC students are all on break this week for the National Day holiday.  Below you can read about what HNC MAIS student Natalie Sammarco is up to this week: "We’ve had quite a few breaks in these beginning weeks of school back at HNC. It’s been nice, actually, a good way to ease into the school year. The first break was Mid-Autumn Festival. That gave us a couple days break from class in the first week. Usually this holiday is a couple weeks later but because it’s planned according to the lunar calendar, it came early this year :-) The best part about this holiday is the moon cakes! I really love the red bean flavored ones since they are a good counterbalance to the sweetness of the pastry in which it is encased. Yum! Since the term just started, the 'Founding Day' holiday is upon us, October 1st. This is the holiday that celebrates the founding of the People’s Republic of China in 1949. For many who just start at HNC, this holiday comes up pretty quickly....

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.