{"id":6677,"date":"2017-07-04T13:52:38","date_gmt":"2017-07-04T17:52:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsroom.carleton.ca\/?post_type=cu_story&p=6677"},"modified":"2025-10-18T16:36:52","modified_gmt":"2025-10-18T20:36:52","slug":"china-study-tour","status":"publish","type":"cu_story","link":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/story\/china-study-tour\/","title":{"rendered":"China Study Tour Takes Flight"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n China Study Tour Takes Flight\n <\/h1>\n \n <\/header>\n <\/div>\n\n \n <\/path>\n <\/path>\n <\/svg>\n <\/div>\n\n \n\n <\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n

A fascination with all things Chinese and a strong interest in business startups were the two factors that ultimately led to Carleton University student Ahmad Tamimi holding onto a scooter as its driver wove through the notoriously chaotic traffic of the city of Wuhan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt was an interesting look at part of China\u2019s transportation system,\u201d Tamimi reports with a grin. \u201cAnd the adrenalin rush was great.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

His adventure was one sparkling facet of a gem of an experience: Carleton\u2019s China Study Tour<\/a>. This past spring saw the fifth iteration of the annual study tour, with 17 students in programs ranging from Biology<\/a> to Political Science<\/a> enjoying a two-week introduction to one of the world\u2019s superpowers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The study tour is the result of a partnership among Carleton and Central China Normal University<\/a> (CCNU). Carleton students on the tour participate in the China scholarship program provided by the CI headquarters in Beijing, which significantly reduces the cost of all travel, accommodation and meals.<\/p>\n\n\n

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China Study Tour Gives Students First-Hand Experience<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe purpose of the study tour is simple,\u201d says Justin Li, one of the trip\u2019s chaperones. \u201cChina is profoundly different from Canada, and we want to give students a first-hand experience so they can gain a sense of familiarity with the country. Otherwise, it\u2019s very open what each student will take away from their time there. The goal really is just to be there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Much planning goes into enabling students to be there. Before the tour begins, participants attend language classes and cultural sessions, and one of the first stops in China is a cultural orientation session at the Beijing headquarters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For the last three years, the tour has been structured around cultural attractions and academic institutions in three cities: Beijing, Shanghai and Wuhan, a major educational and research hub in central China where CCNU is situated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe Great Wall, Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City are fixtures in the itinerary,\u201d says John Nelson, co-chaperone and international outreach manager at Carleton International, an office that facilitates international collaboration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOther activities change yearly, depending on the students participating and what will benefit them. For example, we might visit the campus of an exchange partner or arrange for graduate students and researchers to visit professors in their field.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

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Entrepreneurship and Innovation Key Elements of China Study Tour<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

New to 2017 were visits to entrepreneurship hubs and innovation centres at Optics Valley, a development zone in Wuhan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tamimi, who has just finished his Bachelor of Engineering in the Communications Engineering program, is involved with an Ottawa startup. \u201cIt was eye-opening to see the incubators and their different ways of doing things. I learned a huge amount and brought back new ideas.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Matt Smith, who is entering the second year of a Bachelor of Commerce<\/a> program with an International Business<\/a> concentration, was another appreciative participant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe business aspects of the tour tied right into my program at Carleton. The experience has expanded how I view my studies, and I feel that it\u2019s given me a leg up in my courses.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Both Tamimi and Smith came away with contacts they can draw on in the future \u2013 despite having little Mandarin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cUsually about half of the students have taken some intensive Mandarin courses and are taking the opportunity to practice their language skills,\u201d Nelson reports. \u201cI used to worry that the rest of the students wouldn\u2019t be able to communicate, but now just about everyone has a smartphone with a translation app, and even the students who don\u2019t have a good grasp of the language are able to function very well. They\u2019re supported by technology, and they\u2019re just more fearless.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

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Students Return to Study and Work<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Of the 86 students who have taken the China study tour since 2013, more than a dozen have already returned to China to study or to work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Stephaine Lawrence, who took the tour in 2013 in her final year at Carleton, now works at a high school in Suzhou as an international co-ordinator of academics. \u201cThe tour was a hands-on opportunity to learn about different aspects of Chinese culture, including food, education and tourism. It confirmed my interest in moving there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s really something to see the students immerse themselves in the culture,\u201d Nelson reflects, \u201ceven when it takes them a little outside their comfort zones. The best moments for me were watching the students just go<\/em>. In Shanghai, the hotel was close to the Bund \u2013 the city\u2019s famous waterfront promenade \u2013 and at the end of the day, the students would head out again to shop and walk around. They didn\u2019t want to be in the hotel. They wanted to be out there, taking it all in.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

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A fascination with all things Chinese and a strong interest in business startups were the two factors that ultimately led to Carleton University student Ahmad Tamimi holding onto a scooter as its driver wove through the notoriously chaotic traffic of the city of Wuhan. \u201cIt was an interesting look at part of China\u2019s transportation system,\u201d […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":410,"featured_media":0,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"cu_story_type":[25,1592],"cu_story_tag":[1918,1921,1926,1922],"class_list":["post-6677","cu_story","type-cu_story","status-publish","hentry","cu_story_type-student-experience","cu_story_type-teaching-learning","cu_story_tag-faculty-of-engineering-and-design","cu_story_tag-faculty-of-public-and-global-affairs","cu_story_tag-international","cu_story_tag-sprott-school-of-business"],"acf":{"cu_post_thumbnail":"blueprint"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cu_story\/6677","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cu_story"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/cu_story"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/410"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cu_story\/6677\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":97714,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cu_story\/6677\/revisions\/97714"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6677"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"cu_story_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cu_story_type?post=6677"},{"taxonomy":"cu_story_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cu_story_tag?post=6677"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}