A teacher helps her student, standing behind him at his desk.

Chinese

Spend a summer at the Chinese School and you’ll experience the single most effective method for rapid language acquisition: a total immersion environment with the Language Pledge®—a promise to read, write, listen, and speak only in your language of study.

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The Middlebury Chinese School provides a first-rate language program and life experience to look upon with pride and a deep sense of accomplishment long after the summer is over. Programs are open to college undergraduates, recent graduates, graduate students at other institutions, and professionals of all ages.

Chinese Program Options

Apply to a program based on your language proficiency. High school graduates to 80+ years old are eligible.

Find videos on our YouTube channel.

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Oops! I forgot my English!

In class we usually have to focus on a lot of, our content is more. And when we’re in the, when we’re in the cafeteria we also can learn how to speak like colloquial. Participate in extracurricular, yeah, like kung fu or volleyball. So what was that again? What did I say?

I said, sorry. Yeah, it is a little bit hard. Okay. I’m thinking. Day and night. Everyday, you have to speak Chinese. It’s like chop, chop, chop, chop, chop.

I think because when we are in class we usually concentrate most of our energy on formal written Chinese. But because during meal time we eat with teachers, friends, and other students we can learn how to speak colloquially and this is very useful.

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Amazing Progress!

Nǐ hǎo, wǒ jiào Jason. I am South African. I am just about to start the program here at Middlebury. The 8-week Chinese summer program. I’m really excited. I can’t speak any Chinese further than what I told you and I’m hoping to use Mandarin within engineering for  a long term goal.

8 Weeks Later

Hello. My name is Jason. I am South African. I am currently studying Chinese at Middlebury’s Chinese summer school. I think Middlebury’s teachers are excellent and very professional. Also, I think Middlebury is beautiful. But I really think the Middlebury advantage is that teachers spend a lot of time helping students practice speaking Chinese.

Live in Language

You will learn daily from some of the foremost teachers in the world. Chinese School faculty are chosen from among the most dedicated, hardworking professionals in academia. They are available to our students throughout the day and campus to assist, guide, and support. For graduate students, our programs provide rigorous graduate level instruction in key content areas.

Outside of the Chinese Language classes, you’ll join faculty and peers in cocurricular activities designed to help you build new vocabulary while developing cultural fluency. This powerful blend of rigorous academic study and varied activity has made Middlebury one of the premier language immersion programs.

Whether in class, on the field, in the dining hall, or just chatting with friends, you will be living the language for the summer. When you leave campus at the end of the session, you’ll say goodbye to friends you’re likely to meet again later—as professional colleagues in the Chinese-speaking world.

Funding

Thanks to the support of generous donors (including Language Schools alumni) and Middlebury’s commitment to provide an opportunity for as many students as possible, we are pleased to offer need-based financial aid and merit-based fellowships and scholarships.

You will find several options available for both the immersion and graduate programs, as well as funding for specific languages of study. Students can also apply to outside funding opportunities including the Boren Fellowship, Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) Fellowship, and VA Benefits.