BLCU Dorm 17 International Students House Accommodation and Rates

Ever wondered how you can reserve accommodation for BLCU university's Dorm 17 International Students House and how much it will cost you to live there? Here are some facts I gathered from Dorm 17 to help you answer those questions.

How to Book a Room in Dorm 17

To be frank, Dorm 17 is the most difficult dorm to book. I've heard that agents from different countries book these rooms ahead of time and they book in bulk. They pay for everything and then recruit students who are willing to pay extra to get a sure room. This is by far the most used, and most guaranteed way to get yourself a room in Dorm 17. The price difference is not that big, but it might be around 8-10 RMB/day higher than the Dorm's original rates. Each country has its own agents. In mine, I've heard there's one in Manila but I never really got clarified about who and where it's located. If you know of any, maybe you can share it with us in the comment box below.

Can I book for a room by myself?

If you want to take that risk and try to book for a room yourself, you can, but it does not guarantee you a 100% slot. You can call Dorm 17 at this contact number: 0086-10-8230-3285 and Look for Miss Heng. The office hours are from 8:00 am - 12:00 noon in the morning and 2:00 pm - 5:00pm in the afternoon from Monday to Friday.

What are the requirements?

The requirements will include a photocopy of your Passport, your Student Visa and your Acceptance Letter. They usually ask you for the student acceptance number which starts with a letter S, followed by a random mix of numbers and letters - this is found in your acceptance letter as well. You also need to pay for the reservation fee of 2,250 RMB to be sent via Bank Transfer. The bank details will be sent to you after they have received your requirements and confirmed that you already have a slot.

What are the rates?

The rate or cost of your stay will depend on whether you have an agent or not and your duration of stay. The longer you stay, the cheaper you need to pay for your room. I went to Dorm 17 to inquire about the rates and these were what I got:

For Single Room booking -
1 month - 180 RMB/night
 4-6 weeks - 140 RMB/night
3 months - 130 RMB/night
5 months - 120 RMB/night

For Double Room booking  -
1 month - 95 RMB/night
4-6 weeks - 75 RMB/night
3 months - 70 RMB/night
5 months - 65 RMB/night

If your agent charges more than that, then that should be their fee. But it should be worth it if you really want a sure room in Dorm 17. I hope I helped!

BLCU Dorm 17 International Students House

Planning to study in Beijing and Language University? If yes, then I'm pretty sure you've heard about BLCU University's Dorm 17 International Students House - the most coveted and sought after dormitory located right across the campus. Last year, I myself, made some effort to try to reserve a room in this dorm, but due to the irrevocable circumstances during that time, I was unable to. But, I did experience living in Dorm 17 (when I came home late and didn't want to face the consequences of my dorm's curfew). ha ha. So here are some of the information I gathered on Dorm 17 during my stay:

Exact Location

Dorm 17 is located across the BLCU Campus West Gate or 西门 (Xi men). It's surrounding environment includes the BLCU Community Center, a Bike repair shop, phone card shops and several fruit stands. Right after you exit the West Gate, just turn right and you'll see a black gate with a huge building fronted by hundreds of bike and electric motorcycles. And that's where it is - you're in Dorm 17.


Why is it always packed?

Dorm 17 is the newest dormitory in BLCU - as of the moment. Most students here are either from Indonesia, Thailand, Russia or the Philippines. Since this dorm is not covered by the school's rules and regulations, the students here have no curfew. They can come in and out of it any time of the day. It also has a hotel-like lobby where students can just hang out, talk or meet up whenever they have somewhere to go.

Amenities

Like all the other dorms, Dorm 17 also has their own Laundry machines (though I'm not sure where it's located), CCTV cameras, Lobby Assistance, Daily room cleaning etcetera. Apart from that, this dorm has it's own convenience store where you can shop for your daily and basic grocery needs. There is also a coffee shop if you're a coffee lover or if you just like to hang out and study.

Dorm 17 is closest to everything - the subway, the taxis, the bus station, fruit stands, groceries - and everything else, except your classroom. If you prefer to walk your way through, it will take you around 10 minutes to reach your classroom building. But if you have a bike or an electric motorbike, it's a lot quicker - maybe even less than 5 minutes. So I don't think the distance is that much of a hassle. :)


If you want to know about the details on Dorm 17 Room Reservation, Accommodation and Housing Costs you can visit my article on BLCU Dorm 17 International Student Housing Accommodation and Rates.

BLCU International Students Housing and Dorm Costs

If you're planning to study in Beijing Language and Culture University as an International Language student, you might want to get information about BLCU's International students housing and dormitories (accommodation) and how much it will cost you to live in them. This article is a product of my research, inquiry and my intent to help students all over the world who want to study Chinese in BLCU.

The BLCU University has a total of 6 dormitories for international students, located in different parts within the school, namely Dorm 1, Dorm 4, Dorm 6, Dorm 7, Dorm 8 and Dorm 9. The dormitories are classified into ordinary, middle class and luxury class. The prices or rates can range from 35 RMB - 160 RMB per day. 

Dormitory 1 and Dormitory 9

BLCU Building 1 

Students with a tight budget can consider living in BLCU Dorm 1 and Dorm 9. Both of them only have public toilets (that's why they are cheaper). The public toilets are located within the building, which makes life better for foreign students. Some Chinese students need to go across their buildings just to take a bath in the school's public toilet. The facilities for dorms 1 and 9 include a television, air-conditioner, telephone, wardrobe, desk, chair, bed and bedding. 

BLCU Building 9

Dorm 9 has extra facilities such as a mini-refrigerator and a public kitchen. Most students living in these dorms are Government scholars. 

The standard daily rates for these dorms are as follows:

Dorm 1 - Single Room - 80 RMB/day, Double Room - 40 RMB/day

Dorm 9 - Single Room - 95 RMB/day, Double Room - 65 RMB/day, Luxury Double Room 40 RMB

             

Dormitory 4 and Dormitory 6

BLCU Building 4

Although the school considers these dorms as luxury dorms, I would say they are middle class dorms. These dorms may not be as nice as the famous Dorm 17, but they are livable, more affordable, and location-wise, closer to the student classroom buildings.

BLCU Building 6

The difference between Dorm 4 and 6 is that dorm 4 is located near the South Gate (closer to the Intensive students' classrooms) and Dorm 6 is located near the West Gate (right in front of the basketball courts). Dorm 4 also has an International cafe on the ground floor, named Hope Cafe.

The facilities include: a television, air-conditioner, mini-refrigerator, telephone, wall-closet, desk, chair, bed, bedding, public kitchen and public washing machines. They both have private toilets in the room. 

The standard daily fees for dorm 4 and 6 are:

Dorm 4 - Single Room - 150 RMB/day, Double Room - 80 RMB/day, Luxury Double Room - 80 RMB/day

Dorm 6 - Single Room - 160 RMB/day, Small Single Room - 120 RMB/day, Double Room - 80 RMB/day and Suite - 200 RMB/day

Dormitory 7 and Dormitory 8

BLCU Building 7

These 2 dorms are exclusively for Single room occupants only. Facilities include: television, air-conditioner, mini-refrigerator, telephone, wall-closet, desk, chair, bed, bedding, public kitchen and public washing machines. These dorms are also located near the basketball courts and are closer to the west gate.

BLCU Building 8

The standard daily costs for these rooms are:

Dorm 7 - Single Room - 120 RMB/day

Dorm 8 - Single Room - 120 RMB/day

Safety and Services

All the above mentioned dormitories have a 24-hour receptionist service, which means you can check in anytime on your arrival to Beijing. Their receptionists also have good memory, they usually remember the students who live and don't live in these dorms. They also have CCTV cameras in each floor to ensure student's safety. 

Although these dorms promise the tidying of rooms and cleaning of bathrooms daily, it's better if you don't expect because they seldom do. The bedding on the other hand, is changed every week. 

Curfew

I'm not sure which dorm will have a curfew in the coming terms, but I have experienced this while living in Dorm 4. The curfew is 12 midnight (every night), the doors will be closed after this time. They did try to implement it strictly but due to the way foreign students live, they were barely able to implement this rule. 

Every time we arrived late, we would just ring the bell and they will open the door for us. We did meet one cruel receptionist who was very snob with foreigners. She would scold at us when we were late but I hope she resigns. Soon.;)

Discounts

The standard rates I have mentioned can still be covered by student discounts. The longer you stay in these dorms, the bigger your discount is. 

For example, when I stayed in Dorm 4 for 1 whole semester, I only paid 56 RMB/day instead of the standard 80 RMB/day because of my length of stay. 

If you want to know the specifics, here is list of maximum discounts you can get from each of the international students housing and dorms, click here to download the file: BLCU Housing and Dormitory Brochure. It is in an Adobe PDF file format. I got it from the school itself.

I will post a different article for BLCU Dorm 17 and Conference Center costs.

I hope I helped you with this article. 

So... Do you have anything to say about BLCU's housing and dormitories? 

Things to bring to Beijing

Are you done packing your bags and ready to fly to Beijing? Wait! Before you lock up your luggage and go, there might be a few things you need that you can't or won't easily find in Beijing.

Things to bring to Beijing:

1. Ethyl or Isopropyl Alcohol - If you're conscious about cleanliness and hand sanitation, bring several bottles of Ethyl or Isopropyl Alcohol with you. I've been to several groceries in Beijing, but I didn't find any. Good thing before I left for Beijing, a friend reminded me to bring some with me as I leave. If you're wondering how many bottles of alcohol I brought, I had a large, medium and pocket-sized one so I can use it anywhere I go. A pretty large quantity for 4 months of stay, but it was worth the weight!

2. Deodorant - For women who use deodorant, I heard they only sell deodorants for males. You can't find you're usual Rexona, Dove or Secret deodorants here,. So you better prepare enough for the whole duration of stay.

3. Enough Make up - Maybe you'll say, WHAT?! No need to panic, Beijing sells make up. It's just that most of their products have Chinese brands and you can't really read them so it's better to bring enough make - up of your preferred brand and color. For emergency situations, you can go for the nearest Watsons and grab something that looks familiar.

4. Western medicine - Yes it's hard to find in Beijing. Although they may have western hospitals, the medicine they sell would usually have a Chinese brand, with everything in it written in Chinese! They do have several stores that sell western medicine, but it's terribly difficult to find one. So bring all the medicines that you need, and even bring the ones you might need because you'll never know when illnesses will strike you.

5. Facial Moisturizer - During the winter season, skin dryness is inevitable. You can peel all over your body and you're face will be dryer than it ever was before. Although grocery stores may sell moisturizers, you'll only be confused by the number of products they display. It took me close to an hour just to confirm that the item I was getting was actually a moisturizer and not a facial wash!

So far, those are the things I observed that are hard to find in Beijing. There might be other things I'm missing, so If you know of any others feel free to comment below! 

How long should I study Chinese in BLCU?

Hello Everyone!

I'm finally back home after more than 4 months of study in Beijing Language and Culture University, or shall we say 1 semester. It has been a very rich and cultural experience for me. I did not only get to explore the beauty of Chinese people, the Chinese language and China itself, but I also met loads of amazing people from all over the world who are excellent in so many ways possible.

Basing from my experience, I would want to give you an idea on how long it should take you to study Chinese in BLCU.

Before I went to Beijing, I literally knew almost 0 Chinese. Yes, I grew up in a Chinese Community and learned Mandarin Chinese when I was in elementary, but the words I really knew by heart were less than 20 characters. I arrived in Beijing and felt like I was in another planet... And no I'm not kidding.

It may or may not surprise you, but you cannot use English in Beijing, unless you speak to your classmates or to students taking up English Majors. The teachers, restaurant personnel, drivers, store owners, EVERYONE else you see speaks in Chinese. Although this may sound horrible, but this was the most helpful part for me. The environment itself will push you to learn Chinese. I believe that there's no quicker way to learn than this method.

So, how many days did it take me to finally speak a bit in Chinese? It's actually surprising that after a week in class, and you go to a restaurant, you'd be able to call the waiter, ask for the menu, and then ask for the bill in Chinese. You'll learn to say How much? and Can you make it cheaper? when you go into the clothing market. You'll be able to say Hello to your teacher, say you're present and understand when the teacher says open your book to page so on and so forth. In the first weeks, you'll learn in class how to read the Chinese Pinyin, so you don't confuse the b with the p sound, the g with the k sound etc. It requires daily practice and it may become boring in some days but little do you know that you're actually learning Chinese!

Let me clarify that in the first month you will but learn the very basics of the Chinese language. It can only make you survive. At this point, you'll realize that there's more than 5000 words you need to learn, but you just have to keep motivated. Keep the fire burning. I was taught that if you learn and master even 800 words, you are already considered fluent and able in daily conversations.

After 1 semester of Intensive Chinese study, with several meet ups with my Chinese friend and several exposures to different people I met in Beijing, I can say I am very happy with the results. Although my Chinese is still just slightly above the beginner level, I know I can do what I want, ask for what I want and go where ever I want to now using the words I learnt in BLCU. I flew all by myself from Beijing to Xiamen and it was nice to know I could even understand airport terms.

Maybe you'll think that 1 semester or 4 months of Chinese study is too long, but when you go to Beijing, you'll realize how fast time flies. Beijing is such a fun place! Before you know it, it's time to go back and face your old life.

I honestly think that in order to fully master what you've learned, 1 school year is recommended (around 9 months) of learning. 1 semester though is just enough to get a good foundation of Chinese. If you already have some knowledge in Mandarin Chinese, you can always take the short term courses (3 - 12 weeks) depending on you're preference. Language learning is all about practicing and using what you've learned.

Have you studied Chinese in BLCU before? If not, do you plan to study Chinese? For how long?  :)