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!

How to Apply for a Chinese Student F Visa

Finally, after waiting for more than 2 weeks, my visa has been approved! Although not very many people get rejected in applying for a Chinese student visa, I couldn't say it was very easy to get one.

Different countries may not have the exact same embassy procedures. Let me clarify that the steps I'm gonna be posting are for Filipino Citizens applying for a Chinese student visa for the first time in the Manila Chinese Embassy. If you live in a different country, you can still read on though just so you get an idea.

A short introduction about the Chinese F visa: It is issued for people who are planning to stay in China for 180 days or less. They could be for business trips, seminars, or for students who wish to study in China.

What to check before preparing other documents?

I had to renew my passport 2 months ago because I found out that it was about to expire! So first things first, you have to check your passport. It's not supposed to expire in the next 6 months from your intended travel date. China will not allow you to travel if your passport is close to it's expiry.

Make sure you still have the JW202 form that the school sent you. That document is very very important in applying for your visa. Through that form, the embassy knows you are seriously doing some legitimate business in their country and not just fooling around.

For some reason, people born in the years 1988-1991 are required to have a personal appearance before the embassy. So if you fall between those years (like me), then you should have a scheduled appearance before the Chinese embassy. I had mine around 2 weeks after I submitted my documents.

Do you need an agent?

For people living in provincial areas, where you can't directly go to the embassy without riding a plane, I suggest you get an agent. In my experience, I can't say it will be totally smooth sailing, but it will lessen the hassle on your part since they take the responsibility of mailing the documents and contacting the embassy when problems arise.

But if you live where the embassy is, then you can apply for a visa yourself. Just submit the complete documents, schedule your interview if you need one and don't forget to do constant follow-ups.

What are the requirements?

1. Fill up the Chinese Visa Application form, prepare 1 passport-sized photo with white background. Write your name at the back of the photo just to be sure. This will be glued to the application form.

2. Prepare a photocopy of your roundtrip ticket. A One-way ticket will do though, especially if your going to stay for months in China and don't have a definite date of coming back yet.

3. Obtain an NBI clearance - make sure it is valid for travel abroad.

4. Request for a bank certificate with official receipt from the bank. If you're still unemployed, or in no way able to prove that you can pay your expenses, ask your father/mother to prepare a guarantee letter, to assure the embassy that your parents are going to sponsor your education, food and stay. Submit it together with the bank certificate.

5. Don't forget your JW202 form and original passport. Compile all these papers and submit to your designated agency or to the embassy personally if you can.

After submitting all the requirements, you can schedule your personal appearance a week after with the embassy. Sometimes they only open half day, so the earlier you arrive, the better.

A few simple questions will be asked during the interview. No worries on your part though, they're really easy! So when it's done, the consul will just say "Okay", then you're free to go. If he/she returns the JW202 form, keep it! You're still going to need it in China. If not, it will be sent along with your passport and chinese visa 1 week after your interview.

That's about it.I hope future applicants will not encounter the same problems as I did. I lacked the bank certificate and many other documents because the consul didn't ask it from me when I appeared for the interview. When I followed up the week after, I found out that they did not process my visa because of lacking requirements. Now that you know them, submit them in full! I'm 99% confident you're Chinese student visa will be done in no time.

Best of luck!