Orientation

‘Knowing the facts’ is one thing but ‘understanding how to apply them’ is another level of cultural bridging all together. RHT Education offers, through its China Ready program, a range of short courses designed to ensure that you as best prepared for your China experience as possible.

Our instructors include both Chinese and non-Chinese all of who have many years’ experience in preparing new visitors to China on how to avoid the pitfalls of the cultural divide. The China Ready program is delivered in two ways:

Small group sessions – check with us for applicable dates in your area

Online 1-to-1 courses – make an appointment with us that suits your schedule

These courses include a wide variety of essential knowledge, including:

Currency transfers and banking

Visas, residency permits and the law

Fresh food, supermarkets and buying

Insurance, medical and dental services

Emergencies and dispute resolution

Survival vocabulary – click here for Language courses

Do’s and don’ts of Chinese culture

Bringing your family

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Here are a few facts to get you started:

China is believed to have the oldest continuous civilization. China has nearly 5,000 years of verifiable history. Beijing is the capital and is the political focal point of the country. The official language is standard Chinese or Putonghua, which is derived from the Mandarin dialect. Most business people can speak a little English but may not openly demonstrate that they can so as not to ‘lose face’ for poor pronunciation. There are many dialects in China however there is only one written language. Chinese characters have been ‘anglicized’ into Arabic script known as Pinyin.

China is the most densely populated county in the world with approximately 1.5 billion people as of 2016. Over 90% of the population are ethnic or Han Chinese. There have been strict rules regarding childbirth and until recently each couple was limited to only one child. This has been relaxed to two children per couple.

Following are some tips all of which and so many more are covered in the China Ready program:

Appearance

Conservative suits for men with subtle colors are the norm

Ties are optional but generally for formal occasions

Subtle, neutral colors should be worn by both men and women

Casual dress should be conservative as well

Men and women can wear jeans, however, jeans are not acceptable for business meetings

Revealing clothing for women and unbuttoned shirts on men are considered offensive to Chinese

Behavior

Avoid hand movements as the Chinese do not use hand gestures and your movements may be distracting

Avoid pointing when speaking but if you must then do not use your index finger, use an open palm

Personal contact must be avoided at all cost. It is highly inappropriate for a man to touch a woman in public

It is considered improper to put your hand in your mouth and avoid acts that involve the mouth or tongue

Gift giving is a very delicate issue in China

Giving gifts to government officials is illegal, however, gift exchanges are commonplace in business

It is more acceptable to give gifts either in private or to a group as a whole to avoid embarrassment

The most acceptable gift is to host or pay for a banquet

Quality, branded writing pens are considered favored gifts

Please contact our professional staff for further information and details of how to take advantage of our Orientation courses.