China Bound, Revised

Being prepared in China, says one researcher, can mean "the difference between a headache and a productive day." Acclaimed by readers, this friendly and practical volume--now updated with important new information--offers all the details academic visitors need to make long-term stays in China productive, comfortable, and fun. Academic opportunities have been revived in the years since the Tiananmen Square event, and the book opens with an overview of what we have learned from our academic exchanges with China, the opportunities now available, and resources for more information. To help visitors prepare for daily life, the book covers everything from how to obtain the correct travel documents to what kinds of snack foods are available in China, from securing accommodations to having the proper gift for your Chinese dinner host. Frank discussions on the research and academic environments in China will help students, investigators, and teachers from their initial assignment to a danwei, or work unit, to leaving the country with research materials intact. The book offers practical guidelines on working with Chinese academic institutions and research assistants, arranging work-related travel, managing working relationships, resolving language issues, and--perhaps most important--understanding Chinese attitudes and customs toward study, research, and work life. New material in this edition includes an expanded section on science and social science field work, with a discussion of computers: which ones work best in China, how to arrange to bring your computer in, where to find parts and supplies, how to obtain repairs, and more. Living costs, health issues, and addresses and fax numbers for important services are updated. Guidance is offered on currency, transportation, communications, bringing children into China, and other issues. Based on the first-hand reports of hundreds of academic visitors to China and original research by the authors, this book will be useful to anyone planning to live and work in China: students, researchers, and teachers and their visiting family members, as well as business professionals.

Anne F. Thurston with Karen Turner-Gottschang and Linda A. Reed; Committee on Scholarly Communication with China, American Council of Learned Societies, National Academy of Sciences, Social Science Research Council