July 28th
My Chinese host family has a daughter, also a rising sophomore, who goes to Peking University (北大). This is a big deal. Only the top 0.91% of students who take the gaokao can attend. Pretty unreal. Yesterday, we went to check it out.
Some major differences:
1. Tuition: About 5000RMB (~$714USD) per year… and we’re reaching $80,000USD per year. However, I thought it was interesting that tuition in China doesn’t cover food. Instead, you fill your ID card with money when necessary and swipe/pay per order.
2. Tourist Accessibility: Yale’s campus is completely open during the day, all year round, to anyone who wants to check out the campus. For Peking University, tourists are not allowed to go on campus during the school year at all. During the summer, you have to make an appointment (usually a week in advance) to schedule your visit, but if you know a student, they can bring you in!
3. Security: 北大 had guards at every single gate. It is literally impossible to get in unless you don’t know someone or have an appointment. But even if you do go in with a student, the amount you can see in limited. 北大 is known for having one of Asia’s largest libraries. From the outside, even though there was construction going on, it looked like it could be a part of the Forbidden city. But the inside is a mystery because only students are allowed to go in, no exceptions. I thought about the libraries at Yale, how tourists often walk by while I’m studying or how you can bring whoever you want into Bass as long as you let the guards know.
4. Campus size: 北大 is huge. We walked around for over an hour and saw only a fraction of it. There was also a huge park with a tower and lake and trees and birds and bridges. I forgot I was on a college campus at one point. Aside from the beautiful scenery, the mix of traditional and modern architecture was quite refreshing. It kind of felt like walking from Sterling into The Center for Teaching and Learning, except outdoors and all over campus.
5. Dorms: I didn’t actually go into any of the dorms, but my host family told me that each room has four students (which is a big improvement from 8/room a few decades ago). The dorms also took up a very small part of campus, which was interesting because I’d say 85% of Yale’s campus is dorming.
6. Majors: Before students take the gaokao, they have to decide if they want to pursue STEM or Humanities. After they get into college, they decide their major before starting school. This wasn’t too surprising for me, but I thought it was interesting that the campus is also divided by department. For example, my host sister is a history major, so she spends most of her time in a specific part of campus and dorms with other history majors (the whole building). Yale does almost the exact opposite with the residential college system, although majors/interests do influence which buildings/areas you spend a lot of time in (Science Hill vs. Whitney).
I could talk about the differences for hours, but at the end of the day, they fall under completely different education systems. Over the course of 8 weeks, I’ve learned so much about education here, and yet sometimes feel like I know nothing at all. But even so, it is a topic I am drawn to over and over and over again. Maybe that's saying something.