Chengdu Courses – 2027 January Session
Academics
Chengdu provides an ideal setting for advancing Chinese language proficiency through daily immersion in a city known for its approachable dialect and strong educational resources. At the same time, its historical significance as a cultural and economic hub provides rich material for examining how China’s past shapes its present. Chengdu’s dynamic contemporary arts, cuisine, and urban development make it an ideal setting to examine China’s evolving modern culture.
You will take one, three-credit course during the January session. Courses are small and meet daily for a minimum of three hours plus homework outside of class. The intimate class size allows for meaningful discussions and close interaction with your professor and other students. Chengdu is an excellent location to study language and the program offers you lots of individualized attention to improve your language skills quickly in a short amount of time. 1:1 tutorials for more advanced students may be arranged on request.
Courses Offered
Course availability is contingent upon scheduling constraints, meeting enrollment minimums, and is subject to change. View course details and descriptions.
Courses marked with an asterisk* are taught in Chinese
January Session
Chinese Language, Culture, & Society
- Introduction to Chinese Language I
- Intermediate Chinese I*
- Intermediate Chinese II*
- Advanced Chinese I*
- Chinese Conversation *
- Modern Chinese Society
USAC Course Descriptions
Click the course title to view course details and description. To request a course syllabus: syllabus@usac.edu
- January Session100-level 1 credit Taught in English and Chinese
This course is for beginner Chinese language learners who are interested in improving their language skills to function in a Chinese speaking society. Subjects and themes for each session are specifically designed to accommodate the needs of visiting students and the vocabulary words reflect what students are likely to encounter in daily life. Students will focus on speaking and listening comprehension. Students are expected to actively participate in class activities.
- January SessionChinese 200-level 3 credits Taught in Chinese
This course is for the third-year students of the modern Chinese language and the equivalent (i.e., those who have completed primary Chinese language at the elementary and intermediate level). This course is designed to develop further the students’ listening comprehension, speaking skills, grammar, reading and writing proficiency in Chinese. Various activities - discussions, oral presentations, conversions - will provide the opportunity to practice speaking and listening. Class participation is therefore essential. In addition, outside classroom activities such as shopping, going to a restaurant, interviewing people according to the given topics are included.
Prerequisite: two semesters of college-level Chinese, or equivalent
- January SessionChinese 200-level 3 credits Taught in Chinese
This course is a continuation of Intermediate Chinese I and is designed to further develop the students’ listening comprehension, speaking skills, reading and writing proficiency in Chinese. New grammar points will be introduced, and selected grammar points are reviewed during class sessions. Various activities - discussions, oral presentations, conversions - will provide the opportunity to practice on speaking and listening, class participation is therefore essential.
Prerequisite: three semesters of college-level Chinese, or equivalent
- January SessionChinese 300-level 3 credits Taught in Chinese
This course is for the third-year students of the modern Chinese language and the equivalent (i.e., those who have completed primary Chinese language at the elementary and intermediate level). This course is designed to develop further the students’ listening comprehension, speaking skills, grammar, reading and writing proficiency in Chinese. Various activities - discussions, oral presentations, conversions - will provide the opportunity to practice speaking and listening. Class participation is therefore essential. In addition, outside classroom activities such as shopping, going to a restaurant, interviewing people according to the given topics are included.
Prerequisite: four semesters of college-level Chinese, or equivalent
- January SessionChinese World Languages and Literatures 300-level 3 credits Taught in Chinese
This course focuses on developing real-world communicative competence through an integrated, experiential approach that emphasizes both “learning by doing” and “doing to learn.” Students will develop the ability to actively and effectively apply previously acquired vocabulary and grammatical structures in spoken Chinese. The course places particular emphasis on developing fluency and accuracy while strengthening students’ pragmatic awareness and sociolinguistic competence, enabling them to communicate more appropriately and effectively across a range of real-world contexts.
- January SessionChinese Honors Sociology 200-level 3 credits Taught in English
This course provides an introduction to modern Chinese society, examining its cultural foundations, social structures, and rapid modernization while examining cultural traditions such as holidays, festivals, folk customs, philosophy, religion, and literature and arts and key dimensions of contemporary Chinese society, including population trends, family planning, urbanization and sustainability, education, and social mobility.
Honors-eligible: This course is eligible for honors credit. Membership in your home university Honors program and supplemental honors learning agreement is required to receive honors credit for this course. See USAC Honors page