I was wondering if anyone knows of any or could recommend a good night school for learning Chinese. I recently accepted a job offer in Taipei and will be moving there in about a month, but know absolutely no Chinese at all. I was hoping that I would be able to attend some classes after work every night to start to build a foundation in the language. But all the searches I do pull up full time schools that only have classes during the day. What are the options for someone working and trying to learn Chinese at night?
Taipei Language Institute (TLI) offers classes from about 7am until 10pm every day. Individual classes can be better tailored to fit your schedule, but cost a bit more. Something like $350NT/hr vs $250/hr for group? They have one location near Shi-Da and one up in Tienmu.
Also, a friend of mine is getting ready to start a nighttime course (6-8ish) at Shi-Da. Not sure of the details, but that could be something to look into.
There are also tons of private tutors, but if you’re starting from zero, TLI is much cheaper.
Finally, if you have time, check these to try to get started:
The Rosetta Stone software is a bit expensive, and the Pimsleur CDs run about $20US. You can Google both names + “torrent” & probably find them online though…
Rosetta Stone isn’t immediately practical, but definitely helps w/listening comprehension.
Pimsleur is built for business travelers to mainland China, but also great for pronunciation practice & basic vocab, plus it constantly reinforces what you’ve already covered so it gets more deeply ingrained.
Chinesepod covers a ton of practical subjects & is more dynamic/interesting than just talking back to an invisible voice or clicking on pictures…
I have tried TLI but the classrooms are a bit bleack and bright for me. Although the 2 teachers I experienced were ok.
Does anyone have contact information on the night classes for Shi-da? Is there a web-site, or a desk at the school to get information, or somewhere else to get information?
Day classes at Wenhua Daxue are great but I need to start night classes again and stop missing work or class in the daytime…
Thank you very much sjhuz01 for you quick reply. It was quite helpful.
I hadn’t heard of TLI but will look into that more. A quick look on Shi-Da’s website shows that they do have Period 6, which goes from 18.30 - 20.20. I assume that’s the one sjhuz01 is referring to. From their site:
I guess you just go through the normal application process and just select Period 6 as the one you want to enroll in and that’s that. According to their website, registration for the Winter semester is already closed, but registration for the Spring semester is open until Jan 20.
i am studying at shi da now, and we don’t pay our fees for next semester until next week. if you talk to jenny in the office/or e-mail them i’m sure it could be arranged.
i personally found group classes everyday to be far more useful than 1-1 three times a week, but i guess that depends on the individually. shi da is ok, i did nights there for a year and it depends on the teacher and how hard you work, but i improved much more than i did at any of the language schools.
To answer my own questions, I dropped by Shi-da this evening.
Seems fairly easy to register for night classes. The admin office said the classes should be easy to get at beginner and intermediate level even at 630pm.
They do want a copy of the diploma and some type of evidence of ability to support self i.e. bank account information.
Even though the application deadline was Friday for Dec classes, they said they would give me a day to apply since I am already local. It is too late for students coming from abroad.
you only need to give them a diploma and proof of funds if you are applying for a visa through them. if you already have a work visa and just want to study you shouldn’t need any of that.
they still have a lot of lower level classes at night. won’t be a problem to find a suitable one
Shi-da has classes starting at 630pm, not catagorized as night classes, but are after standard work day hours, which makes it easier for someone who works days to still go to class.
I wouldn’t give up on TLI. You could study there for a semester and then change to Shida. I have only been at Shida for one semester. Of course I am sure that it depends on your teacher but there is nothing special that goes on at Shida that will really make you any better than at TLI.
If you want to learn reading and writing then TLI will not do you any good. If you just want to learn to speak Mandarin then I don’t see much difference between TLI and Shida.
Both use typical Chinese/Taiwanese teaching methods. The teachers don’t use visuals and don’t really do anything creative. I think after a hard day of work you might fall asleep at both institutions.
I will comment more after I start my second semester at Shida.
I’ll be finishing my first class at Shi-da at the end of Feb. Five days a week while working is a bit much. I am looking for evening classes (630pm) with schools that use PAVC (Practical Audio Visual Chinese) book as I’m very comfortable with the rhythm. TLI has their own book but I’m wondering if they have classes using PAVC?
Are there any other schools that have evening group class and use PAVC?
came recommended. TLI was not recommended and when i did make enquiries i had to deal that dragon lady, by the time i got off the phone i decided they were not the kind of people i want to give my business to.
If anyone is interested in forming a group for an evening class, let me know. I finish work around 7 normally so a 7:30 - 8 pm start 2 or 3 nights a week in the ShiDa area would be ideal.
What level of class are you looking for? I’d definitely be interested in an intermediate-ish class on that sort of schedule, also somewhere around Shi-Da or Tai-Da…
I am a total newbie and I want to learn listening and speaking skills (I could care less about reading and writing right now). I already have a language exchange and use chinesepod.com, but I am looking for a night class (6 PM or later) up to three nights a week (non-weekend).
I’ve studied one semmester at TLI and didn’t really enjoy the experience, they use their own inferior materials and a lot of their teachers have no formal teaching qualifications.
I tried the Chinese Culture University’s Mandarin Learning Centre (just Wen-Hua for short) it’s on He-Pinfg road next to Da-An Park, I’ve been there for about 2 and a half years and I’m now able to read newspapers and understand tv shows. The majority of my teachers have been excellent, however 2 (out of the 9) weren’t so good ~ as it turns out those two (a married couple) also work at TLI as well…
The Wen Hua course is practically the same as Shi-Da’s (use the same text books). However, Wen-Hua is a bit cheaper and the majority of the students are non English speaking Asians so… unlike at Shi-Da, there will be less chance of conversations ending up in English or of teachers showing off their English ability in class (the majority of teachers at Shi-Da were previously English teachers ~ I have a friend working there.
Either way ~ good luck with your choice ~ just thought I should put a mention in for Wen Hua.
Does Wen-Hua offer classes at 5:30 or later during weekdays. I checked their website, but I couldn’t find this info out. Also do they offer any kind of college credit?
Their course schedule is normally from 8am til 5pm (not what you want I guess), though private classes may be offered for later times and the schedule often changes - so if your interested just give them a call or stop by.
If you really can’t make anywhere before 5pm, then just try to avoid TLI.