seminars – Beijing Kids

Understanding the Dynamics of Bullying: School Bullying Expert Headed Back To Beijing

Nimo_Wanjau

International schools are not exempted from the issues of bullying as this is a universal problem especially in the digital age as bullying in not just physical but psychological as well. Bullying expert Robert Pereira, with nearly 20 years experience, will coming back to Beijing to offer two seminars of on the skill of active listening for parents titled Advanced Empathy. Also, Pereira will be having a seminar on how to best deal with a child who has been or is a victim of school bullying. He previously held parent seminars in DCB and WAB on school bullying and how to best communicate with the child.

Bullying is gender specific as fully highlighted in our June Issue. Some of the reasons why children bully are quite remarkably misconstrued. The Bullying seminar will be three-days with how to handle girl bullying and boy bullying held on different days. The seminar will start from October 16 with a general outline of understanding why children bully each other, and this seminar has to be taken if you are planning on attending the gender specific bullying seminars schedule for the following days. Price for attending one day is RMB 350; two days RMB 660 and RMB 930. This will be from 9am to 4pm.

In association with the Parent Effectiveness Training (P.E.T) expat instructors, the courses being offered are aimed at parent-graduates from P.E.T courses. The Advanced Empathy seminar will be a one-day affair from 9am to 4pm for the price of RMB 400 on October 15. Reservation is required as the group size is between is 15 and 20. Email Robert Pereira robertpereira32@bigpond.com and type in the subject line: Beijing P.E.T 3-day bullying seminar or Advanced Empathy seminar- Beijing. Bring your own lunch and writing materials.

Photo Courtesy of Vicky (Flickr)

College Event Review: New Oriental Vision Overseas College Fair in Beijing

Nimo_Wanjau

Last Friday, New Oriental Vision Overseas (新东方前途出国) held a large college fair (美国本科顶尖名校巡回面试会) at the Zhongguancun Crowne Plaza. This event gave students the opportunity to speak with admissions officers from various universities and colleges from the US, including the University of Chicago, Cornell University, University of California Berkeley, Swarthmore College, William and Mary College, and more. This event proved useful for those looking to apply to these colleges, as they were able to speak to the admissions officers directly in the interview sessions. Here’s my experience.

Twenty-minute interviews were held for four sessions. During each session, four students were able to speak to the admissions officer of the university or college they signed up for. I signed up for interviews with two universities: William and Mary College and the University of Chicago.

At the interview, the four of us sat in a line across from the admissions officer. It was quite strange, as we were not informed of how the interview process would go or if the interview was actually a formal interview. The first session with the admissions officer of William and Mary was more like an information session. When we sat down, the lady spread her hands and said, “So what would you like to know?”

To be honest, this first session was a bit of a letdown. The three other people in my group asked endlessly about acceptable TOEFL score ranges and what sections on the TOEFL are most important. I managed to squeeze in a question about student life and the campus at William and Mary before we ran out of time. Overall, I felt like the first session was rushed and not well planned out.

The second session with the admissions officer from the University of Chicago was much better, though we were very tight on time. The session length had been shortened from 20 minutes to 15, so after a few rounds of asking about our interests and why we wanted to study in the US, the ushers were pressing the admission officer to end the conversation and hurriedly herded all the students towards the conference room. However, this interview session gave us an idea of what kinds of questions would be asked during the actual application process.

After the interview sessions, there was a two-hour seminar where the admissions officers introduced each of their schools and participated in a Q&A session with attendees. The atmosphere was light and the admissions officers cracked jokes during their presentations to make their university more appealing to the audience. The latter soaked it up. It’s amazing how many Chinese students and parents are eager and interested in the “study abroad” business; the appeal of top-notch American universities was not to be underestimated.

Outside of the conference room, college students from universities such as Yale, Duke, UCLA, and Carnegie Mellon were available to answer questions regarding the application process. Students and parents crowded around the students and bombarded them with questions ranging from “how do you apply” to “what did you do to get in” (supposing that the college students themselves would know).

It was very amusing (though not surprising) to see parents immediately drag their teenage kid to one of the college students when it was revealed that the student was accepted to and is attending Yale University. Ah, the power of prestige.

This was a good opportunity to speak to admissions officers and find out more about the universities. If you missed this session, fear not, as there will be another session in Beijing on Sunday, August 4. Universities that will be attending include Emory University, University of Rochester, University of California Santa Barbara, The University of Texas at Austin, Pomona College, Haverford College, Harvey Mudd College, and Smith College.

Reservations for interviews with admissions officers are required, and can be made online here (Chinese-only).

The Details:

Date and time: August 4, 2.30-5pm

Location: 4/F, Crowne Plaza Beijing, 106 Zhichun Lu (200m from Haidian Huangzhuang metro station C exit), Haidian District

海淀区知春路106号北京皇冠假日酒店4层 (地铁海淀黄庄站C口直走200米即到)

Contact: 6260 5599 or 5900 0326

Photos courtesy of New Oriental

Freda Zhao is a beijingkids intern (of the month) currently studying at the Western Academy of Beijing. She is one year from graduating high school. Outside of school work, she enjoys reading, painting, and mimicking cat sounds in her backyard (to draw strays to her house and feed them)

This Week: Foundation Global Education’s Seminars on Universities and Boarding Schools

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If you’re considering sending your children to a boarding school in the US, Foundation Global Education has just the seminars for your family. This Thursday and Friday, the group is hosting interview and admission workshops designed for students who are interested in applying to boarding schools or universities abroad. On Saturday, Foundation Global Education also has a free admission seminar with representatives from top boarding schools and universities in the US.

July 11-12: Interview/Admission Workshop
From 9am to 1pm, there will be two separate sessions focusing respectively on the interview process for boarding schools and the application process for universities. The first session is led by admission officers Kevin Lawrence and Michael Agosto. Students will engage in discussions, role playing, case studies, and hear personal experiences.

The second session is led by Dana Brown and Luis Martinez. Students will receive interview training and learn how to put together a portfolio for university by studying real-life examples. The interview/admission workshops cost RMB 3,880 per person.

July 13: Admission Seminar
From 2pm to 6pm this Saturday, Foundation Global Education will be hosting representatives from top boarding schools and universities in the US for a free admission seminar. Speakers are from The Lawrenceville School, Peddie School, Hotchkiss School, Cornell University, and Bates College. They will present on topics like:

How to distinguish yourself from a competitive student pool
Networking and character building
Research universities
Building a university portfolio
The Hidden Ivies and how they compare to more famous colleges
Application strategy

Registration is required for both events; seats are decided on a first come, first served basis. Both events take place at Chaoyang U-Town Mall. Reserve your spot via email at admissions@foundationge.com or call (852) 8172 1072.

Photo courtesy of Foundation Global Education

BSB Seminars Give Advice on Applying to Elite Universities

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The British School of Beijing (BSB) knows a lot of parents and students in Beijing are looking to apply to elite universities in the US and UK, and the school has arranged two seminars for next Friday, March 8, which will give Beijing families advice on successfully applying for those desirable universities. The first seminar, The British School of Beijing Elite University Seminar, will be held at BSB’s Shunyi campus in the afternoon; the second, The British School of Beijing Elite University Workshop, will be held at BSB’s Sanlitun campus in the evening. Both events are open to all members of the public.

Both the seminar and the workshop will feature two highly-qualified guests: Dr. Simon Dao, a professor at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and a former admissions officer; and Christopher Dobbing, a Cambridge graduate and an executive committee member of the Oxford and Cambridge Club of Beijing. The afternoon seminar in Shunyi will focus on further education in the Ivy League and Oxbridge. Dr. Dao will discuss why many international applicants are not admitted, and what US universities are looking for. Dobbing will cover structuring an application for Oxford and Cambridge Universities, what those universities look for in candidates, and what life at those schools is like.

The evening seminar at the Sanlitun campus will cover the differences between the Ivy League and Oxbridge, as well as extracurricular preparation for those elite universities. The workshop will also have a question and answer session, as well as explain the necessary steps for preparing for a top university.

Photo courtesy of BSB

Happy Anniversary, BJU!

Mon, 12 Nov 2012 02:00:00 +0000

Beijing United Family Hospital and Clinics (BJU) celebrates 10 years in Shunyi with an afternoon of entertainment and sweets, free for the public. Come join BJU on Saturday, November 17 from 11am-2pm in the Pinnacle Plaza courtyard (behind the clinic) for a family-fun day of balloons, magicians, face painting, Beijing treats and more!

Ten years ago the Shunyi clinic started with a handful of staff in a small facility. Now the clinic offers family medicine, psychological services, physical therapy, pediatrics, TCM, dermatology, ophthalmology, gynecology, and radiology, as well as laboratory, pharmacy, immunization and travel medicine services. Phew! Expansion plans are also under way to add more doctors and space in the future. Congratulations!

BJU always has many events going on for the community to attend for free, as well as opportunities to give back.

Coming up on Saturday, November 24 as a part of the WAB Holiday Bazaar and in conjunction with the Tangzhou Blood Center, BJU will host a “Holiday Community Blood Drive at WAB.” From 10:30am-3:30pm at the WAB Tiger Field courtyard, those wishing to donate should bring a copy of a passport or Chinese I.D. Walk-ins are welcome; if you’d like to reserve a time instead just e-mail Jenifer.sullivan@ufh.com.cn.

And several seminars scheduled feature experts discussing important health topics. Coming up:

“A Discussion on Autism” by author and expert Lena McCalla Njee
Wednesday, November 14, 5-6pm, The Yurt, BJU 1,
In cooperation with Eliott’s Corner, come hear an overview of autism, recognize the signs, and find out about the latest research.

”Dealing with Apnea: An Interactive Discussion" by BJU ENT chair Dr. Lin Zhonghui
Wednesday, November 14, 7pm, BJU 5th Floor Auditorium

"Ins and Outs of Immunizations: And Other Recommendations for Healthy Living in China” by Dr. Richard St. Cyr
Tuesday, November 20, 9-10am, Elementary School Lounge at WAB

”Upstairs Brain Parenting: How to Survive and Thrive” by director of BJU Pediatrics Specialty Clinic Dr. Alan Mease
Wednesday, November 21, 7pm, BJU 5th Floor Auditorium