Details

• China
• BaWiSo-23
• Undergraduate
• SoSe 2026
• Time spent at the partner university: 4 months
• Contact: Login to see contact information

1. Preparation

Transport to University After arriving at China‘s airport (Shanghai Pudong Airport) you can either take the subway (navigation via Apple Maps or the Chinese Amap) or a taxi (directly at the airport and a little more expensive than a Didi)/Didi (calling via WeChat mini programme). For a more comfortable and quick transfer I would suggest Didi or a taxi, which is also comperatively cheap to other countries). Housing Most of the exchange students I know lived in Fudan‘s dorms (application shortly before semester starts, February for summer semester; even though Fudan communicated it would be hard to obtain a room, many said it was not too difficult). Quite a few also rented a room in a student community near the campus (Unijia 5 or Beikechuang, which provide cooking facility, a nearby gym (subscription needed), a small lounge on ground floor and washing machines in each room). Visa Apply for visa at the Chinese Visa Application Service Center (first online form, at office: pay and bring passport). I applied roughly 2 months before semester start. Apps Recommended apps for China: WeChat (communication with friends, university, etc.; payments, basically everything), Amap (maps), Alipay (payments, transport, bike renting over HelloBike), Trip.com (travelling, hotels, flights & trains in China), predownload VPNs (Zoog, VPNcat, LetsVPN) Course application Apply for courses following the instructions of Fudan (Mail). If interested in a Chinese course: There is Elementary Chinese (English taught courses-Excel), but also intermediate Chinese (Chinese taught courses-Excel). Even though written in the Excel one course did not have a final exam on the date stated but was a project instead (so inform yourself).

2. Accommodation

I recommend Unijia 5 or Beikechuang (same building, two brands). - room with approx. 28m2 - 5 min by bike from university - student community since many of my friends lived there - kitchen and washing machine, shared drying area on top floor - gym in nearby hotel (cheaper subscription for Unijia residents) A few things that could be better: - subway station requires 10min bike ride - not in the city centre (approx. 30 min by car) - a little more expensive (approx. 750€ per month)

3. Academic life at host university

I was at Fudan‘s Handan campus in Shanghai Yangpu district. - many canteens (most recommended: North canteen) - gym facilities, sport fields (football, basketball, ping pong, etc.) - easily reachable by bike, also bike on campus - entry via student card (recommended to have student card in wallet) - smaller classes than at WU, depending on which course - teaching style depending on teacher Courses I took - Auditing (mostly non-exchange-students, small class size with 10 people, proficient english of professor) - Elementary Chinese (very nice teacher, good to learn basics and a few Chinese characters) - Entrepreneurial development (nice professor, very interactive with games and simulations, comfortable environment, final project) - Strategy management (almost only exchange students, teacher-centred teaching, comfortable environment, presentations of two cases) - Game Theory (nice teacher, more complicated, mixture of non- and exchange-students) -

5. Every day life in the host country

Public transport - a lot of biking - subway (line 18 and line 10) - Didi Safety situation - China has CCTV and is really safe - pay attention when riding the bycicle (lots of traffic and delivery men) Social/leisure activities, events, sports options - climbing, gym, pilates - biking to North bund - nearby shopping centre(s): Wujiaochang (Wanda plaza) - bars, night life (LaBamba, BlacBlac, Revo, LaSocial, INS) - Haidilao (hotpot, 24/7 open) - Fake market

6. Testimonial

My exchange at Fudan was a really incredible experience: Next to campus life and sightseeing in Shanghai I spent many weekends travelling to destinations such as Sanya (beach), Zhangjiajie (climbing), Guilin (discovering landscape on scooters), Japan (Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka) and many more (tip: keep Fridays and/or Mondays clear for travel opportunities). I made many friends from all across the world (Europe, Canada, Latin America, Asia) and we made countless memories enjoying night life and sightseeing in Shanghai or going on daytrips e.g. to Suzhou.