Host City and Institution:

Lanzhou is the capital of Gansu province in northwestern China. From Lanzhou one can see Lanshan Mountain Range which rises straight up along the south side of the city. The city is located in a narrow river valley. Lanzhou is the market center for agricultural produce and livestock from a wide area.

Lanzhou University, founded in 1908, provides programs for undergraduate and graduate students on four campuses--three in the city center and one in Yuzhong, 45 minutes away. Total enrollment is approximately 20,000. Undergraduate students study at the Yuzhong campus. Lanzhou University is one of the best universities in Northwestern China. Currently, it offers one of China's top ten Ph.D. programs in physics, chemistry, and geography and highly-ranked programs in biology, botany, ecology and Chinese literature.

Country:

China is one of the world's oldest civilizations, dating back more than six millennia. It has the world's longest continuously used written language system, and has been the source of some of the world's great inventions.  China has one of the fastest growing economies in the world. With a population of about 1.3 billion people American businesses are seeing an opportunity to expand into an un-tapped market place. Many American corporations are setting up headquarters in Shanghai or Beijing to take advantage of these new markets. 

The territory of the PRC contains a large variety of landscapes. In the east, along the shores of the Yellow Sea and the East China Sea, there are extensive and densely populated alluvial plains, while on the edges of the Inner Mongolian plateau in the north, grasslands can be seen. Southern China is dominated by hill country and low mountain ranges. In the central-east are the deltas of China's two major rivers, the Huang He and Yangtze River (Chang Jiang).To the west, major mountain ranges, notably the Himalayas, with China's highest point at the eastern half of Mount Everest, and high plateaus feature among the more arid landscapes such as the Taklamkan and the Gobi Desert.

A major ecological concern is the continued expansion of deserts, particularly the Gobi Desert.  Although barrier tree lines planted since the 1970s have reduced the frequency of sandstorms, prolonged drought and poor agricultural practices result in dust storms plaguing northern China each spring, which then spread to other parts of East Asia, including Korea and Japan. Water, erosion, and pollution control have become important issues in China's relations with other countries.

About the program:

Lanzhou University is an exchange program for agricultural and natural resources students only. Texas Tech students will pay Texas Tech tuition and fees before leaving. Students will be responsible for paying for their housing and meals while in China. Grades earned during this program will be factored into a student's GPA.

Courses and Areas of Study:

This program offers few courses in English. Students who want to participate in this program must have a high level of Chinese.

Housing and Meals:

Students will live in one of the on-campus dorms. 

Financial Aid and Scholarships:

Financial Aid

Financial Aid is available to all TTU students studying in a TTU approved program. Budgets for the approved programs are sent directly to the Study Abroad Financial Aid Advisor. The amount of aid available to each student varies according to the program of study. Students are encouraged to meet with the Study Abroad Financial Aid Advisor in the Office of Financial Aid, West Hall room 301, at least 5 weeks prior to the start of the study abroad program.

Study Abroad Competitive Scholarship (SACS)

This scholarship is funded from monies collected through a four-dollar ?international education fee paid by all regularly enrolled students at Texas Tech University. Students attending TTU the semester before participating in international exchange and study abroad programs through Texas Tech or its affiliates, and International students enrolled in a degree program at TTU are eligible to apply.

There are two award periods: apply during the fall semester for the following spring or apply in the spring semester for summer/fall study. Complete applications will be reviewed by the SACS committee, who determines the recipients and amount of award. For more information, please attend one of the information sessions held several times a week prior to the scholarship deadline.

Orientation:

Students are required to attend a pre-departure orientation before they leave Texas Tech University to participate in their study abroad program.