Gap Year Program

I really like my experience in China because it is not just a normal Gap year in Australia or the USA. Chinese culture is very different to western culture and the language even more different which makes it very interesting to live in Beijing and it is really helping me to broaden my horizons. I have learned a lot including how my culture compares to others and how different it is to China.

Also learning Mandarin is a great advantage for my future. Studying Chinese is quite a challenge at the beginning, but actually a lot of fun and I feel that I am progressing quite fast which is very motivating.

I really feel like I am part of my homestay family and started to get known to them very well which helped me to experience China not just as a visitor but really as a local. My Chinese classes are very interesting. I like that they are not just learning grammar and vocabulary, but are connected to my daily life which makes them very useful. At the school it is very easy to make friends and it is easy to meet the new students because everyone is in a similar situation and we end up discovering China together. I am really happy I came here for my Gap year.

I have been learning Chinese at LTL Mandarin School for about 3 months in Beijing and will continue my course here until next year. LTL organized a language course, accommodation and an internship in a Chinese company for me.

Having lunch with the other students

The staff at LTL are very friendly and I always have somebody to ask for help when there is a problem. When I had a problem with my Chinese bank account for example, a staff member went to the bank with me to help me sort it out. After class I often stay at the school in the common area, because it is quite fun there and whenever I have a problem, I can just ask one of the Chinese working at the school for help.

I am currently studying in a small group course, together with two other class mates which I think is a very good format and classes are a lot of fun. It helps me to remember words when I can connect them with a specific situation when I learned them. Also one quickly meets other people to spend the weekends together with or go for a drink in the evening.

LTL organized a homestay family for me, a Chinese family I lived together with. I live with a very nice and friendly family, which does not speak any English. At the beginning that was quite a challenge, but it has been very rewarding as I can see how I more and more understand the dinner conversations. There is no social activity that is not connected with food – I will certainly never starve here. By now I can have conversations myself in Chinese as well. Living with a homestay family has strongly reduced by inhibitions to speak Chinese and listening to my host-dad’s stories is the best listening comprehension practice I could imagine. It is also very helpful to always have a local you can ask for help when I don’t know which bus to take where or have any other questions regarding Beijing. Living with a Chinese homestay family I do not feel like a tourist, but more see Beijing through the eyes of people who actually live here. Through my family I have been to a lot of places that usually a visitor would never see or experience – for example so far already two Chinese wedding parties.

Independently if people take group or 1-on-1 lessons, once a day we always all meet for lunch on the school balcony, which is always a lot of fun. Of course life does not stop after class. In the afternoons and weekends I usually go out with other LTL students. As there are people from all over the world here I got to meet a lot of very interesting people. The school is close to the Da Wang Lu subway station in the CBD, which makes it pretty easy to visit Beijing’s attractions and explore the city. There is also a Starbucks close to the school, which helps a lot when I have homework to do.

I am really enjoying my time here 🙂

My son Karim and I were jogging at the riverside of our hometown in Germany. It was April and he told me (while I was breathless) that he wanted to finish high school the following year and then go straight to China for a whole year to learn Mandarin – a new culture, new people, new language. I was very surprised at the time, but did not really have time to be shocked while we were running.

I do think Mandarin as a language and China in general are very important though, so I agreed to do some research online on suitable providers and schools. Among several other Chinese language schools, we found “Live The Language” (LTL). We did quite a lot of research about them including talking to The German Department Of Foreign Affairs for information and references.

We also spent a lot of time going through the homepage and the different offers. We finally decided to contact LTL and organized a phone call. In comparison to many other options the packages that LTL offered were not the cheapest – but they did seem very high quality and as LTL was very quick in replying to questions and providing great support while we were organizing Karim’s trip, we decided to go with them.

Today, more than a year later, I can say it was the right choice. During the whole year, I found LTL very reliable and a great school with a very motivated team and I knew Karim was well taken care of. From helping us to solve the many problems the Chinese embassy created when applying for a visa before he went to China, to organizing a great homestay, good teachers, reliable support and social events after he arrived in Beijing, from the first day to the last I knew Karim was happy and secure in China.

He is back in Germany now and he loved his year in China. Karim loves LTL, he loves China, the people and the culture. And his language skills are outstanding for just one year in China – he passed the HSK 5 (C1 level) exam with almost full marks. I do not think this would have happened without LTL.

I know it can be a bit of a scary thought at the beginning, but in the end, I found it a very safe experience that I feel my son benefited a lot from.