<p>I will be a freshman at the U in Fall of 2011, and I was wondering if I should take Spanish or try Chinese, I am just unsure how hard it will be to learn Chinese. In high school I have taken Spanish up to Spanish 4, but did not take it my senior year. Throughout high school I feel I did good in Spanish, but not exceptional (B+'s & A-'s). I would be a little rusty if I took it again, but i took the placement tests anyways and was placed in Spanish 1003. </p>
<p>Last summer I went on a 3 week school trip to China, not knowing any Chinese at all. Since returning to the U.S. I have since wanted to study Chinese. Prior to this trip I had no exposure to anybody speaking Chinese, so it was a cool experience to hear it in person for the first time. </p>
<p>I will be at the Carlson School of Management at the U and I plan on majoring in Finance and possible minoring in International Business. I know that the Chinese economic market is expanding like crazy, so it would be great to know the language and possibly get a job there after graduating. Even if I do not go to China to find a job, I feel that it would be a great thing to tell future employers in interviews since it would set me apart from the other candidates. </p>
<p>My questions are: How hard is it to learn Chinese (speaking and writing) if you have not grown up around the language? How long would it take to become fluent? Has anybody had experience with the Chinese program at the U (like it, dislike it, etc.)? If I would study abroad in China, how much would that speed up my learning the language?</p>
<p>Thanks to anyone who answers!</p>
<p>I will be part-time PSEO at the U and I was wondering about Chinese as well. I have taken German for three years now but absolutely have no interest continuing it. </p>
<p>Anyone taken chinese courses at U?</p>
<p>just from what i know through friends and people around campus:
1)a lot of spanish profs, quality can range drastically, some easy A some not
2)fewer chinese profs, very high quality teachers, but harsh graders, you have to earn your A</p>
<p>I’ve taken both Chinese and Spanish in high school, and I actually don’t think Chinese is as hard as it’s often said to be.</p>
<p>The hardest part of Chinese is the writing system; memorization is the only way to learn characters, even though it can be very tedious. Chinese grammar, on the other hand, is not very difficult with no verb conjugation and a simple structure. Also, the pronunciation is easier than you may be led to believe. Most people have little trouble with the tones.</p>
<p>Just like Spanish, it can take a long time to attain fluency. The basics of Chinese will be learned within a year’s study.</p>
<p>I took Chinese for 1 year in high school, or equivalent to a semester at university…and we used followed the same exact U of M curriculum</p>
<p>I found it to be moderately challenging. I’d say if it was in a semester it would be stressful learning all the characters :S
it just takes a LOT of effort if you wanna be good at it, and you can never stop studying for it other you forget it very quickly, unlike European languages. time-consuming is the word.</p>
<p>since you’re a Business major, there must be a lot of other classes you need to take, so maybe so much time devoted to Chinese wouldn’t be such a good idea ?
I definitely don’t think the basics can be learned in a year…</p>
<p>I’d say it’d be better to finish up with Spanish first, completing up to the third year of Spanish at university level so you are really good in it in a way that could actually be helpful for you in Business :)</p>
<p>Chinese would take a much longer time to become fluent in if you’re not a native, even with study abroad, if you wanted it to be that much useful or impressive in business situations…</p>