Hello everybody,
I am Dulguun from Mongolia. Currently, I pursue a Ph.D. degree at the University of International Business and Economics in the field of finance. Today I wanted to give you an insight into UIBE, it’s quality of education and environment, also about student life in Beijing.
Location
UIBE is located on the 3rd ring road, very close to the center. UIBE is located very conveniently as it takes only 10 minutes to walk from the university campus to 3 different subway stations. Moreover, there are 3 big malls located not far from the university where you can find brands such as Zara, Massimo Dutti, Uniqlo and huge supermarkets for grocery shopping with Japanese and American products.
UIBE value to students
There are 3,000 international students studying in UIBE from all over the world, so you can expect yourself never to get bored as you will always find something new to discuss. UIBE is well-known for its international trade and economics major in China and highly ranked in business majors also. I have graduated my MBA degree from UIBE and frankly speaking, it was easy for me to find a job after graduation. You will find UIBE alumni everywhere in Beijing, working in different corporations. As alumni already know the quality of education in UIBE, they are willing to help and offer you the position. Another great advantage of graduating from UIBE was the simplicity of getting the working visa. Many international students in China struggle to get a working visa, while students from UIBE get it quite easily because the university is well-recognized in China and the Exit-Entry bureau values degree from UIBE.
Quality of Education
I was enrolled in English taught MBA program, so Chinese teachers will all teach in English. The classes were informative and more focused on business and economics “in China”. MBA classes in UIBE were more group-based, so every week we will have group presentations and case studies to discuss. As all of our classmates were international students, the group will have many different ideas, also a challenge at the same time- to work with people from other countries, so you learn how to work with a multicultural team. I think working in groups can be a great way to improve your leadership skills too as every team will have to have a group leader to help with the project. Overall, I would say UIBE education is very good, but if anything should be improved- they lack some practical classes such as on-site visiting, visiting professors from the industry, etc.
Learning Chinese
Studying at UIBE was a great opportunity to learn Chinese. Because you can imagine, to order food- you need to speak Chinese, to shop- you need Chinese, everywhere you go- you will see Chinese characters. Therefore, you have the environment to learn and study Chinese. UIBE offers Chinese language courses for non-degree Chinese language students every weekday from 8 am till 12 pm. I have many friends who were taking Chinese classes at UIBE, and I could see them improving quickly and reaching HSK 4 level just in one semester. UIBE teaches speaking, listening, writing and reading Chinese in these classes.
Student Life in Beijing
Let’s discuss about student life in Beijing. Beijing is a big city with a population of 20 million people. You can imagine how big is the city. To get from one end of the city to the other end will take at least 2 hours by subway. So the location where you are based is really important, otherwise, you will need to travel hours every day to get somewhere. Luckily, UIBE is located in the city center, so it’s very convenient to go somewhere.
There is a place called Sanlitun, where there are many luxury shops, international restaurants, street with bars and clubs to have fun. In Sanlitun, you can find many types of food- Italian, Arabic, Mexican, Indian, you name it. After dinner, you can head to the rooftop lounge with your friends for few drinks and go clubbing if you want. Another interesting fact about Beijing is that clubs are free of charge for all foreigners – including free drinks. Can you imagine! For the first time, I was blown by the fact that you get to enter all the clubs for free with free drinks. However, I would say that students need to limit themselves, as all of these can be really disturbing for studies.
On the other hand, if you are not a club person, there are so many historical places in Beijing such as Temple of Heaven, Tiananmen Square, Yonghe Lama Temple and many more, where you can learn about Chinese culture and history. There are many beautiful landscapes to visit around Beijing such as the Great Wall, mountain hiking, skiing, etc. Basically you will not have time to get bored in Beijing as it has everything you look for to have entertainment.
Internet shopping and Payment in Beijing
Due to the recent fintech development, China went cashless. I personally don’t remember holding cash for the last time. We use WeChat or Alipay payment everywhere in Beijing. To book a movie ticket, to pay in the restaurants or shops, to call a cab- all done via online payment. Moreover, ordering food in Beijing to your house is cheaper than going to the restaurant by yourself- can you believe it? If you are lazy to go out, you can also order your groceries from the supermarket online and they will deliver within one hour. Also, maybe you have heard about Taobao and JD – platforms where you can find anything. You just basically type, for example, a case for iPhone 11. You will see hundreds or even thousands of choices, where you will just need to choose the one you like, put your address of residence and make the payment online. You will receive the package within 1 to 5 days depending on where the shop you are buying from is located. Usually, it takes 3 days. Mostly these shops include shipping fees in the price, so you can basically buy a case for $2 with no extra fee. So now you can imagine the convenience of living in Beijing.
When I come back to Mongolia during the holidays, I feel like I traveled back in time- I will need to use cash everywhere, no way to order food online, no online platforms to order whatever I want, rather need me to go to a physical store to look for stuff.
Beijing is a place of opportunity
To sum up, I like studying at UIBE and living in Beijing. Beijing offers full of opportunities for international students. Great place with fast pace for youth like us to develop and learn. I hope to see all of you in Beijing one day.
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