Program Description

The Chinese Program at Wooster introduces students to both Chinese language and culture. Its objective is to teach students the basic skills of reading, listening, speaking, and writing Chinese. Besides providing practical training in Chinese for career purposes, the program is also designed to familiarize students with non-Western conceptual schemes and modes of thought. The courses in Chinese language and literature, together with related courses in the departments of Anthropology, History, Philosophy, and Religious Studies, will give students a strong background in China and East Asia.

A minor in Chinese Studies consists of six courses: three in the language and three in the culture in translation. The three required language courses should be from among the following: Chinese 201, Chinese 202, and one Chinese 400 language tutorial or intensive language course at or beyond the intermediate level offered by such off-campus programs in Taiwan or Mainland China as CIEE, IES, or CET. The three cultural courses in translation should be from among the following: Chin 220, Chin 222, Chin 223, Hist 200 (Traditional China), Hist 201 (Modern China), Hist 237 (The United States and China), Phil 222 (Chinese Philosophy), or courses in Chinese culture and society offered by off-campus programs.

Reasons to Study Chinese

• Chinese is spoken by the largest population in the world.
• The ancient writing system had its etymological origins in pictures known as ideogram. Writing Chinese characters can be an aesthetic experience as Chinese calligraphy is a form of art. It also helps people remember things better when they know how to write 2 to 3 thousand Chinese characters.
• The written Chinese history dates back over 4,000 years.
• China's economic growth rate and industrial potential are among the greatest in the world. In the 21st Century China is expected to play an important role in world market economy. To know the language is essential to successful business negotiation and communication in China.
• "A man who has a language consequently possesses the world expressed and implied by that language." (Frantz Fanon, "Black Skin White Masks") The study of Chinese gives the student a set of alternative values and worldviews.
• The courses taken for a Chinese Minor can provide an understanding of a non-Western culture, a critical component of the Cultural Area Studies major.
• The major in Comparative Literature emphasizes the ability to read the works of a national literature in the original. Studying Chinese provides the necessary language training to do comparative studies.
• Since the International Relations major requires one language course beyond the beginning level, Chinese language and cultural courses can help fulfill the requirement for this major.

Career Opportunities in Chinese

Chinese is applicable in a variety of settings in the United States and abroad. Mastery of Chinese allows students to consider careers in such fields as education, government, international trade, banking, print or electronic media, and tourism. Many employers are eager to hire graduates who are proficient in Chinese because their business requires them to deal with native speakers of Chinese.

Careers in which Chinese is the primary emphasis include teaching Chinese at all levels; interpreting and translating for the United Nations, the government, or for private and public organizations; and a variety of positions in the travel and tourism industry at home or abroad such as flight attendant, travel agent, and tour guide. Careers in which proficiency in Chinese is a good secondary tool include banking and finance, business, sales, export purchasing, foreign market analysis, journalism, foreign correspondence, science and research, library science, hotel management, publishing, radio broadcasting, and teaching English in China to employees in corporations abroad. All who study Chinese find that the experience sharpens their understanding of language in general and enables them to use their native languages more effectively and thus exercise a greater amount of control over their own lives, no matter what their eventual fields of interest or occupations.

Beginning salaries generally range from $26,000 to $30,000 or sometimes higher depending on candidates' skills and experience, and whether Chinese is of primary or secondary importance in daily job performance. Chinese language graduates find their marketable skills considerably enriched by their humanities education.