Wednesday, July 29, 2015

New Application Deadline for the HNC Certificate/SAIS MA Program

The Hopkins-Nanjing Center Office of International Admissions is pleased to announce that the application deadline for the HNC Certificate/SAIS MA program will now be February 1, 2016. This is a change from the January 7 deadline of previous years. We hope that by having one deadline for all programs, applicants will be able to apply for the program that is the best fit for them. To summarize, the following applications and materials will all have a February 1 deadline:
  • HNC Certificate application
  • HNC MAIS application
  • HNC Certificate/SAIS MA application
  • STAMP Chinese Test deadline
  • Financial aid application

Thursday, July 23, 2015

HNC Virtual Information Session on July 29

On Wednesday, July 29 from 10-11am EDT, the Hopkins-Nanjing Center Office of International Admissions will be holding its first virtual information session of the upcoming application season. Join us to learn more about academics, career services, and student life at the HNC, and get a head start on the application process by asking questions of admissions representatives and alumni.

On July 29, click this link at 10am EDT to log in as a guest. 

Wednesday, July 15, 2015

The HNC Washington Office is Moving!

The HNC Washington Office is moving! Still conveniently located in Dupont Circle, our new office will be on the fifth floor of Johns Hopkins SAIS's Benjamin T. Rome Building. This space offers prospective students a more welcoming atmosphere and also moves us closer to SAIS China Studies, which is located on the sixth floor. We invite applicants, students, and alumni to schedule a visit to our new office by emailing nanjing@jhu.edu.

The Benjamin T. Rome Building, HNC Washington Office's new home

Our new mailing address is:
Hopkins-Nanjing Center Washington Office  
1619 Massachusetts Avenue NW
Room 509
Washington, DC 20036

We'll see you on the 5th floor!

Thursday, July 9, 2015

梦:美国梦、中国梦、我的梦

Nanfei at HNC's 2015 commencement
Because of the target-language element of the Hopkins-Nanjing Center, there are two student speakers at each graduation.  Selected by the student committee, each year's commencement features a Chinese student speaker who addresses the audience in English, while an international student speaker gives a speech in Chinese. We are proud of our very own student worker Nanfei Yan for being selected as the international student speaker for this year's commencement. Below is a copy of her speech:


梦:美国梦、中国梦、我的梦
燕南飞

大家好、我叫燕南飞、是一个从7岁就离开中国的美籍华人。其实,我出生在南京,所以来中美中心也是我第一次回到我的出生地。今天想跟大家讲一下很重要的话题:梦。

大家应该都听说过美国梦和中国梦。我百度了一下:“美国梦是平民百姓,通过个人努力攀登上社会顶峰”。中心的学生来自各个国家;来自农村、城市;不同的专业:历史、音乐、物理、经济、法律;不同的背景:和平队志愿者、投资银行等公司、各个大学研究生;我们是普通的人一步一步走到今天,追着很大的梦:朝鲜半岛统一、改善中日关系、建立跨国企业改变世界!为了我们的梦、真的很努力:学习到半夜三根点麦当劳或哈尔滨水饺外卖时不说他们也知道是中心的学生了。欲穷千里目,更上一层楼!

假如美国梦是个人的努力、那么中国梦就是社会团体的成长发展。中心独特的环境、这是大家的功劳。上学期对食堂提出建议,这学期就出现了北京烤鸭和八块钱的牛肉烧土豆。为了满足大家的各种爱好,同学们建立了哲学讨论、跑步、吃货、电影等non-club。中心是一个集体:一起爬山、一起采草莓、一起看球赛、虫、蛇等等。我们都希望中心有更美好的未来:今年夏天换地毯、明年庆祝30年周年、十年后培养出世界领导!

有梦就有人。最近在南大散步回中心时,跟朋友说“我真不知道我爱不爱中心。我是爱中心的人,没有他们中心还算什么?”(其实正确的回答是thomas猫和水池里的22条鱼,既然有人数过。)我热爱中心的人:别人嘲笑我弱的时候中心的大哥们愿意教我打拳击;听说没学过法律时,中心的教授们愿意辅导我参加模拟法庭比赛;我在纠结自己是中国人还是美国人时,同学们跟我说“你就是你。想这么多还不快去干点有用的事情。”

我有一个梦。就是幸福,让我旁边的人幸福,让缺乏幸福的人幸福。我喜欢笑(哈哈),因为我身边的人也会笑。我喜欢哭,因为感情不渗透到心中是哭不出来的。这一年我认识到很多小伙伴、一起笑、一起哭、一起打、一起闹、一起跑、一起走丢、一起发现人生的高山和隧洞。为了我们的幸福,希望大家可以爬过每一座高山,度过每一条隧洞,实现美国梦、实现中国梦、实现中美中心的梦。

Thomas猫, referenced in Nanfei's speech, also enjoyed graduation

Tuesday, July 7, 2015

What is it like to take classes at the HNC?


Curious about what classes are like at the Hopkins-Nanjing Center?  HNC Certificate/SAIS MA student Nanfei Yan reports on her experiences:

Hello All,

If we were to sample incoming international students each year for their deepest HNC fear, the answer may well be a unanimous “taking classes in Chinese?!” The coursework at the HNC is both exciting and daunting at the same time. Let’s use this post to tackle some frequently asked questions in order to dispel the mystery.

As a preface, the first few weeks at the HNC will be very different from the rest of the year. Why? Because no matter how good your Chinese is, reading over a hundred pages of academic Chinese a week will be difficult. However, most students develop their academic reading vocabulary base after a couple of weeks. It’s normal for anyone to temporarily panic at the learning curve, but it’s all a part of the HNC experience.

1. What is the typical workload of a class?

Classes meet twice a week, with between 10 to 20 pages of reading assigned per session. It’s important to focus on the concepts and trends in each reading, instead of the details. Professors tend to hold class discussions on the key points. In addition, each class will typically have both a midterm and a final exam. The exam can be in the form of a take-home exam and/or a research paper (~3000 characters). Most classes also include presentations scattered throughout the semester.

Sample Grading Spread:

Participation & Reading 20%
Presentation – 20%
Midterm – 30%
Final – 30%

The typical student takes between 3 to 5 classes, and puts in at least 3 hours per class, per week.

2. Isn’t it hard to do assignments in Chinese? 

The HNC library's collection of Chinese and English newspapers

There are several support mechanisms in place for students. A dedicated Writing Center is available for students to take their work to for editing. The Chinese-International student rooming arrangement also makes roommates a valuable teaching resource. Lastly, the professors are all easily-accessible for questions during (and outside of) office hours.

3. What about the classes taught in English?

In addition to the 3 Chinese courses that international students are required to take, most students will also opt to take at least one English course. While some courses cover familiar topics (US Constitution, US History, etc.), this is a great chance for students to take this opportunity and learn something outside of their concentration. For example, there are courses in international law, corporate finance, and philosophy.

The most important thing to remember is: no matter how you’re feeling during your time at the HNC, there are definitely other students who are going through the same thing, camaraderie is one of the keys to success. Impromptu piano jam sessions or trips to the local French bakery with study buddies is what fueled my problem sets and research papers!

Cheers,

Nanfei

Thursday, July 2, 2015

HNC Holiday Hours

In observance of U.S. Independence Day, the HNC Washington Office will be closed on Friday, July 3. We will return any messages when the office reopens on Monday, July 6.

Please note that the Hopkins-Nanjing Center in Nanjing is closed for the months of July and August, but we welcome prospective students to visit our admissions office in Washington, DC over the summer.  Email nanjing@jhu.edu to schedule a meeting with an admissions representative.

We wish you a safe and relaxing holiday weekend!