Fulbright China Guide for Lecturers

Pre-Departure Planning

U.S. Passport

Lecturers may consult any of the passport agencies in major American cities, or the local post office or city hall in smaller cities, for application procedures.  This site http://iafdb.travel.state.gov/  will allow you to find the nearest location to apply for a passport. It is provided by the Department of State's Bureau of Consular Affairs, Office of Passport Services/Customer Service, which designates many post offices, clerks of court, public libraries and other state, county, township, and municipal government offices to accept passport applications on its behalf.

Processing a passport application may take up to six weeks. Needed to apply for a passport is a birth certificate or a previously issued passport as proof of citizenship and identification as well as two 2" x 2" signed passport pictures with full face exposure, taken not more than two years ago. There will be a charge.

Chinese Visa

U.S. Fulbright Lecturers should apply for a Chinese visa through the Chinese Embassy in Washington, D.C. The Chinese Ministry of Education will notify the Embassy that a visa should be issued for Fulbright Lecturers and their accompanying families.  Lecturers should keep in mind that the visa will be valid for entry for three months from the processing date.
 
The visa type including length of stay and number of entries will be will be determined by the Chinese Embassy in cooperation with the Ministry of Education and the Embassy of the U.S. in Beijing. Lecturers will receive either a "Z" or work visa, or "F" or visitor's visa.  They should not apply for an "X" student or "L" tourist visa.

Travel to China (Fly America)

All Lecturers should plan to arrive in China according to the instructions of the Educational Exchanges staff, usually just prior to the in-country orientation in Beijing. The Fulbright Programs Branch at the Department of State and CIES will have current information on the dates of the orientation and instructions for preferred arrival procedures and dates in China.
 
Lecturers should follow the Educational Exchanges staff's instructions regarding their arrival in China on a specific day, usually one day prior to the orientation, and during a designated time window. Lecturers should not arrive earlier than that date for a variety of reasons.  Arriving as instructed ensures that Lecturers will not spend any appreciable length of time in China before receiving the Embassy health and security briefings. In addition, the Educational Exchanges staff will be better able to pick up Lecturers and their families at the airport if they arrive on certain indicated days. Also, the Embassy will be open for business on the designated arrival date to assist Lecturers who may encounter problems while traveling (missed flight connections, lost luggage, etc.)  Lecturers should not expect to be able to occupy their university residences (and leave luggage) before the orientation in Beijing because the universities may not be ready to receive and assist them.  

Lecturers should make flight reservations early in order to avoid scheduling problems on the limited number of U.S. airline flights to Beijing. August/September is a heavy travel season. According to U.S. government "Fly America" regulations, Lecturers must fly to China on a U.S. airline.  Making flight arrangements too late is not an excuse to travel on a foreign airline. For further details, contact the East Asian Academic Exchange (Fulbright) Programs Branch or CIES. 
 
Lecturers should inform the U.S. Embassy Educational Exchanges staff, via CIES, no later than two weeks before arrival in Beijing of their flight itinerary, including flight numbers, departure date from the U.S., arrival date, and expected time of arrival in Beijing so that their host universities can be informed. 

Baggage and Shipping Personal Effects

Airlines limit the number, size and weight of luggage, and charge for excess, overweight and oversize baggage. Lecturers should check with their airline for specific information as they make their travel plans. Excess accompanied baggage is typically the best option for personal effects, because it flies with the traveler and customs clearances for accompanied baggage tend to be much simpler than for unaccompanied shipments.  

Teaching Materials

Purchasing and Shipping Books

Fulbright Lecturers assigned to China receive an allowance to purchase textbooks and reference materials needed to teach their courses. For suggestions on the kinds of books to order, consult with Lecturers previously assigned to your host department and the faculty of your host department. In the recent past, Lecturers have commented that they had wished they had prepared a greater variety of books rather than providing multiple copies of one. Keep in mind, however, that in some cases making enough copies for the students is not guaranteed.

Lecturers may want to investigate ordering books through East Asian affiliates of U.S. publishing companies. The experience of one Lecturer this spring was that books ordered from Singapore were cheaper and arrived just as fast as ordering from the U.S. parent publisher and shipping to China via the Department of State. Note: Lecturers should make sure that they understand how books ordered within East Asia will pass through Chinese customs. Another suggestion from a recent Lecturer, was to check for earlier editions, which a U.S. publishing company may otherwise discard.

The Embassy manages a small book translation program which now focuses on the translation into Chinese of American legal texts. A few copies of these books are available for distribution to students or university centers. Check with the Educational Exchanges staff for more details.

Lecturers teaching for only one semester will need to order instructional materials prior to their U.S. departure. Those teaching for the full academic year can reserve part of their book allowances for second semester purchases, after they have assessed the needs of their department in person. 

For shipping procedures, please refer to the Washington orientation materials regarding  mailing services. Books shipped by July for the fall semester and December for the spring semester usually arrive in time for the beginning of classes. If the books are shipped after these times, they may not arrive in time for your first weeks of classes.

Personal Computers

Chinese universities can seldom afford to purchase or maintain computers for the use of their entire faculty, and the equipment they have may be closely guarded or out-of-date. Many Lecturers in recent years have found their personal computers indispensable for class preparation, especially as they have found Power Point presentations to be extremely useful.  Most Lecturers bring portable computers and power surge protectors with them.

Internationally recognized brands of computers and supplies are also widely sold in big cities, however, instruction manuals and programs are often only in Chinese, and reliability, quality and compatibility are potential problems. Print cartridges for most major brands and A4 paper (longer and narrower than U.S. 8.5” x 11” paper) are available, as are diskettes and CD’s, in the large cities. Information about where to buy specific parts or accessories for a U.S. or locally purchased computer is sometimes difficult to find. Lecturers have found their students to be the best source of information.

Lecturers should carry their laptop PC's on board the airplane with them if possible to avoid damage from rough handling.  A former Lecturer recently suffered serious damage to a PC that was dropped, inside a suitcase, from a luggage compartment.   

Video Equipment

DVDs are currently the most commonly used format in China. In most cases, DVDs bought in the U.S. can be played on DVD players and computers in China. While CDs, CD-ROMs and DVDs are widely available throughout China, purchasing illegal copies only contributes to the abuse of intellectual property rights protection. The production and sale of pirated goods is against the law in China.

VHS is now rarely used in China, and multi-system video players or television sets, which have the capability of playing both PAL and NTSC (the system used in the U.S.), have become scarce. The Educational Exchanges Staff, however, still maintains a small collection of PAL - formatted videos – documentaries and feature films – many of which have Chinese subtitles available for Lecturer use.

CHECKLIST:  PRE-DEPARTURE PREPARATIONS

12 Weeks before Departure

•  Make international travel reservations
•  Obtain passports
•  Begin inoculations, esp. Hepatitis B
•  Apply for credit or telephone cards for use in China and/or from the U.S.
•  Set up online banking services
•  Consider supplemental health insurance purchase
•  Contact host university
•  Order texts and reference books

8 Weeks before Departure

•  Continue inoculations
•  Draw up power of attorney with U.S. relative/friend
•  Arrange for shipping of teaching materials
•  Apply for Chinese visa
•  Apply for additional visas needed for enroute stopovers

4 Weeks before Departure

•  Assemble documents (see checklist "What to Bring" below)
•  Photocopy all documents, leave one copy with U.S. relative/friend
•  Provide U.S. relatives/friends with emergency contact information in China
•  Ship unaccompanied air baggage, if any
•  Provide travel itinerary and confirmation of accompanying dependents to CIES
•  Purchase international tickets

2 Weeks before Departure

•  Assemble air tickets, visa, and other documents
•  Do a "practice" pack to see what fits in luggage and absolutely must go with you to China
  

CHECKLIST:  WHAT TO BRING

Documents 

•  Passports with visas
•  Notarized medical examination forms for residence permit
•  Extra passport photos, smaller 1 x 1 photos will be useful in China
•  Travelers’ checks
•  Credit and ATM cards
•  Bank number for wire transfers – routing number, account number and bank address, usually printed on personal checks
•  Spouse resume
•  Children's school records
•  International health certificates or immunization records
•  Family health record kit
•  Health insurance card and claim forms
•  University placement form and correspondences
•  Lecture notes for courses and Guest Lectures
•  CIES grant document
•  Tax return records
•  Business cards (essential in China for first meetings; can be made in China with Chinese name and characters, inexpensively and quickly)
• Address and fax list for U.S. doctors, insurers, credit card companies, bank, relatives, friends
• Photocopies of all documents (keep one set in U.S.)

Health and safety items

•  Prescription medicines with documentation
•  Extra eyeglasses or contacts and copy of prescription
•  Disposable syringes
•  Over-the-counter medicines (especially for children - colds, flu, headache, diarrhea)
•  Bicycle helmet, rear view mirror, headlamp