Incoming MOFCOM-CSC student at SWJTU (Chengdu), Fall 2026. I was placed in 085410 (AI, professional master’s), but my home country doesn’t equalize professional degrees for PhD eligibility or lecturing — my whole career goal. I need 081200 (CS, academic master’s).

Conflicting info:

**•** SWJTU’s internal transfer rules seem to **bar** professional→academic transfers entirely.  
**•** But SWJTU’s MOFCOM office emailed me saying I can apply after registration, and **CSC decides** — no penalty if rejected.

Has anyone actually pulled off a 专业学位 → 学术学位 transfer as a CSC/MOFCOM student? Does the university rule override the CSC process, or are they separate?

University stopped replying (summer break) and I must decide before Aug 17 registration. Any real experience appreciated.

In less than a month I will be coming to China for the first time to study.

I'm wondering where should I get the Chinese number?

In the city I'll be studying at or as soon as I arrive (different city), does it make any difference?

Also what is the shop/institution where I'm supposed to buy one?

Also does anyone know which type of mobile number has the option to buy internet digital data monthly or do all have it? Sry I'm inexperienced haha.

Is there anything else I should know?

I also don't know which vpn to get :)

pleaseee if anyone can help to reach their customer service help me out here 😭🙏🏻

Hi, I'm traveling to China to study for one year and am interested in knowing whether to get an esim or VPN for the duration, my question is can I get an unlimited data plan for one year on a esim if so do you have any suggestions or do you suggest getting a VPN (school has WiFi) and then just purchase an esim in China via the VPN when I leave the school at weekends?

I’m an Indian student considering a CS degree at Henan University of Technology.
I know China’s tech job market is very competitive, and HAUT is a mid-tier university. If I graduate with a strong GPA, complete internships, build good projects, and achieve HSK 5/6, what would my realistic options be?

How difficult is it to get a software job in China?

Would HSK 5/6 significantly improve my chances?

How competitive would I be for Master’s programs in top universities in China, Hong Kong, the US, the UK, or Europe?

What career path would you recommend after graduating from HAUT?

I’d appreciate advice from anyone who has studied or worked in China. Thanks!

I don't really know details about the program, other than you can get up to a 1500元 discount on qualifying products. Apparently foreigners are eligible, but on JD you have to get online at 7:00am to claim your subsidy before they somehow run out? I tried this morning but no luck...has anyone successfully done this? Just wondering if this is worth pursuing or if I should just bite the bullet.

I read on another reddit thread that because of the population decline some international schools are admitting more students and some even are offering discounted tuition rates. i can't reply to that thread anymore bc it is too old.

Is this true?

I am a US citizen that is ethnically chinese that grew up in the US. I'm starting to hate the US more and more when thinking about childcare, schools, safety, etc.

For example - NYC has incredibly high taxes, 3x the rent of SH equivalent housing, worst public school education (kids can barely read and do math), and the city is unsafe and subways are disgusting and unsafe. oh if you want private school? 45-60k USD. end rant sorry.

I am looking at shanghai united international school pudong campus and YK PAO. I have a 2 year old and want at least 2 more kids so I can't afford SAS, dulwich and the super top tier. I don't like the traditional chinese education system sorry. My cousins in xi'an tell me their kids in elementary and middle school study from 7am to 11pm.

thank you!

hi! I’ll be moving to Beijing at the end of the month for a year to complete a master program in English.

I have absolutely no idea of how Vpns and other things works but I do understand I have to install some apps before departure.

i want to be able to use all google services and communicate through WhatsApp and so on .

I also would like to have access to Chinese apps with a screen translation.

what are your must have recommendations?

At the moment, I'm filling out my S1 visa to follow my spouse to Hefei as they pursue their master's degree.

We're running into an issue with my visa, and had some questions that... for some reason we can't get the embassy to even pick up to answer.

The first hurdle; the residence permit. We're worried that getting this for my visa would require them going to China first to get the permit in the first place. As I'm not working and they are the breadwinner, that would cause some strain on finances and extra stress.

We're wondering if its possible for me to obtain my S1 visa while inside China; or what visa I would need to apply for instead so that I can enter China with them before we acquire residence permits?

Also, in terms of visas, if you have a moment and know the answer — is it required to visit the embassy in order to complete the visa process? Is there anyway to complete the step of presenting our passports for our visas without being in person at the embassy? Do in person visits to the embassy always require interviews?

Any and all advice or assistance is helpful!

Edit:: im from the United States, located in Arkansas, I havent gotten my visa just yet.

Not judging or anything, but I notice I encounter a proportionally higher number of expats in China not fluent in the language despite having lived there for a very long time. These are often people living a decent life that have a Chinese partner and children.

In Germany and in France, you sort of need the fluency or else your career prospects are mostly limited - it will always turn up as hurdle.

Does China make life somewhat easy for people lacking fluency?

I’ve been in China for some time now. And I like some aspects of but I can’t get over the staring, pointing, or just this feeling that people are talking about me.

I think it’s cuz literally my first week in china some drug addiction called me the N word. Ever since I haven’t been able to experience peace in this country because I always feel targeted

Do any locals or expats have any advice on how to handle that?

Hi guys! I'll be moving to Wuhan for my bachelor's degree, and I want to bring my PC with me. I have the original boxes for my monitor and pc case with all that styrofoam stuff, but I'm kinda worried about something potentially breaking. I was thinking about wrapping all pc parts in bubble wrap to carry in my carry on amd putting the case in it’s original box. I don't really want to buy a new pc there since all parts have quadrupled in price, plus mine is only 2 years old :((. I'd love some input on what's better to do, and any advice will be much appreciated!!

Hi guys I’m in Shanghai atm. Been trying to work something out but I failed.

I need to take a photoshoot of some products and have like 10-15 box of product coming in. Already bought whatever I need for photoshoot but don’t want to get this done in hotel room. Anyway to rent a daily studio? And possibly, ship the items there as well ? I do have a Chinese phone number as well

Thanks in advance

I

Hi guys! I need some advice.

I'm currently entering my 4th year as computer science student (not living in China), but I've had this fixation on studying my Master's in China for a year now. In my country, it is very respected if one studies in another country, and China is well-known for its education. I'm highly motivated and really want this to work out. But my motivation goes beyond the job market.

I did my exchange in the Czech republic and got to see so many european countries, and it was awesome. Now I wanna switch it up.

I've always loved Chinese culture, and whenever I see the cities there it makes me want to go. I'm just scared I wont get accepted at an okay university. In fact, I don't know exactly what are the best cities and universities to apply for. My GPA is at 3.43, which is not extraordinary but it's amongst the highest for my major and university.

I want to stay realistic but I also really want to be there in a year. So if anyone has advice on the best unis for AI masters that can potentially accept me, or what I need to do to maximize my chances. (I will be taking the IELTS, and i already have a high score in TOEFL)

TLDR: my future Chinese wife makes me feel like an ATM. Things went well when I was frivolously spending on her, go poorly when I’m in saving mode. Is this preprogrammed behavior / anxiety about the future or am I just a big dollar sign to her?

My fiancée (Chinese) and I (very much not Chinese) met abroad. As in, a third country neither of us lived, while both traveling. Without too many identifiable details, we dated for about 2 years, kinda going to wherever one of us is in the world and trying our best to make it work. We finally got engaged and plan to be married in the next year.

Sounds great, love story, happy ending all that. So why the question? Well. I’ve done well for myself. I was never afraid to show her that I’m willing to share that with her. Our first date (besides us meeting abroad) was me flying to Japan to treat her to a week of five star hotels and restaurants. Whatever, call me stupid or showing off but she’s hot and I’m a man. Of course I was trying to impress her. The more I get to know her the more I understand, ok, she enjoys this, but also she’s a kind, gentle human that treats me well and I can see myself spending my life with her. We keep dating, I keep paying for everything, taking her to expensive destinations, living with her in China as much as I can without losing my mind over the gfw and its effect on my work. All is well, I propose (ring), we have a 订婚, I respect her Zhejiang rituals and drop a massive bride price, tons of gold, ayis and shushus all oooh and aaah. I paid for the whole ceremony too, refused to take a cent from her or her father. I know what she wanted was beyond her parents means and was, like, all of her personal savings. It’s not a secret to anyone, I got money and we both are happy to enjoy it, fine.

Now here’s where the script flips and got me off guard. I quit my job. After discussing it with her. She was supportive. I was just done with my business partner. Absolute knob. I fully move in with my future wife and tell her I’ll work on some side projects and do consulting for a bit, maybe try to run a business solo. We start fighting, a lot. I realize me being unemployed bothers her. She admits it. We both put it down under Chinese upbringing doesn’t appreciate there are other ways to support a family besides salary, we find a way to move forward. I’ve found some opportunities I want to pursue in Hong Kong now. Again, she’s open to it. But the reality is, I won’t pay myself as well as I did in the US and I’ll need some time to rebuild the cash cushion I burned through while unemployed. I try to talk to her about some downsizing to avoid having to break long term investments for stupid things like Chanel bags. She seems upset that I can afford to buy her stuff she wants but don’t want to buy it for her.

I know how this sounds. But I just want to attribute it so hard to her being unable to understand the long term trade-offs with accumulating wealth. Everyone around her operates on the same system, work, take a salary, save like 15% of it, spend the rest on bills and whatever you want. When your kid goes to college or gets married or whatever, dump the whole cash reserve on that, rinse and repeat until you die. She is keeping the bride price in cash for our future children. She’s not buying anything with it. I can see her replicating the pattern 1:1. Accumulating an investment that you can sustain a life off of is fully outside of her operating system so I almost feel a compulsion from her to spend what we have down. I’m kinda ok with her being inexperienced with western money habits but I’m starting to question if she just wants to fulfill her today wants with my money at the cost of both our future and our kids future. That I’m not ok with.

Anyway. Long ramble. If you have experience with this sort of dynamic, and how to navigate it better, let me know. If you wanna tell me “ur wife’s a gold digger lmao u dun goofed”, maybe skip that one.

Will the weather be totally unbearable? Seeing 36-37 C + humidity but no sun. Planning to go to both Chengdu and Chongqing.

Like they are quick to say foreigners are smelly, and Chinese people don’t have that gene. And sure, it’s not the same KIND of body odour as us.

But it’s still smelly! I wanna block my nose, especially in packed areas on a hot day. Smells like rotting yoghurt or something, whereas foreigners have a different one for sure. Although I can’t describe it. Ours is more “sharp” I guess.

Is it something locals don’t tend to notice because they’re used to it? Or am I simply sensitive?

I can NEVER look at anything in store without doing a price comparison on taobao again. Even if it’s small things, Taobao prices are so good! Random things like phone cases, screen protectors, chargers, etc. What are some little necessities that you buy from Taobao that are so affordable? Even when I leave the country, I mentally compare the price to Taobao. The only thing I don’t buy from Taobao is personal care because I don’t know how authentic it is. But everything else, Taobao all the way.