Chinese Program at UIC

07/23/2026

Craig Rykowski Receives Fulbright English Teaching Assistant Award to Taiwan

Chinese program minor and peer tutor Craig Rykowski is recipient for this year's Fulbright English Teaching Assistant (ETA) Award.

https://today.uic.edu/latest-uic-fulbright-grantees-prepare-to-embark/

Craig graduated from UIC in May 2026 with a bachelor's degree in political science and minors in Chinese and Public Policy. This fall, he will spend a year teaching English in Taichung, Taiwan, while also learning more about Taiwanese culture and sharing American culture with his students.

Craig began studying Mandarin at UIC with no previous experience, progressed from Mandarin 101 to advanced Chinese courses, completed a minor in Chinese, served as an LCLC Mandarin peer tutor, participated in the University of Illinois Wanxiang Fellows Program, and received a UAAT Huayu (Mandarin) Scholarship to study in Taiwan before his senior year.

Congratulations to Craig on this outstanding achievement! We wish him a wonderful year in Taiwan and look forward to hearing about his experiences.

Interested in a Similar Path?

If you're interested in studying Chinese and applying for opportunities such as the Fulbright, here are a few suggestions:

Study consistently and make the most of your language courses. Build your proficiency and inter-cultural competence by attending program events and study proactively.
Read the application instructions carefully and work with the UIC External Fellowships office advisors who are excellent resources to help navigate the complex, year-long application process for these competitive opportunities.
Subscribe to the UIC Office of External Fellowships newsletter to learn about scholarships and fellowship opportunities as they are announced. https://oef.uic.edu/

Plan ahead—many major fellowships have a preparation timeline of about a year, so start early and talk with your instructors and fellowship advisors.

Introduction The Office of External Fellowships (OEF) provides extensive advisement and assistance to current UIC undergraduate and professional school students, and to recent alumni, in finding and applying for nationally- and internationally-competitive fellowships, scholarships, and grants. From....

07/23/2026

UAAT Mandarin Scholarship Students Begin Intensive Mandarin Program in Taiwan

Students from the University of Illinois System are taking part in a three-month intensive Mandarin language program through the UAAT Mandarin Scholarship at National Tsing Hua University (NTHU) in Taiwan.

The immersive program provides students with an opportunity to strengthen their Mandarin language skills while experiencing Taiwanese culture, society, and innovation firsthand.

04/12/2026

Join us for this semester's last teatime and talk about your summer plans.

03/15/2026

大家好，欢迎同学们来周一的茶话会，了解中国传统建筑。
Hello! Join Lin laoshi at Monday’s teatime to learn some key features of traditional Chinese architecture and explore ways to appreciate them.

02/17/2026

大家欢度春节，写春联，包饺子，用中文说吉利话，很开心，祝大家马年开开心心，马上心想事成！ It was a fun Lunar New Year celebration. It was very special that we celerated the coming of the spring season and the Year of Horse as a community. Students presented their New Year poster design in Chinese full of good luck symoblisms. Special thank you to Meng laoshi who made delicious dumplings, noodles and even two birthday cakes for students for their birthdays today. It felt like a family reunion. A special thank you to our Chinese Minor alumna Iris for drawing the perfect horse for the event's center piece, and thank you to our current peer tutors, Jay, Craig, and Alejandro and students 快点儿 and Axel for helping the event's preparations. We were joined by Irina laoshi (from Study Abroad) and Yi Wen laoshi (from UAAT Scholarship proram). This year, we have 6 students going to Taiwan on the UAAT scholarship. We are so excited that they will be spending the summer at National Tsing Hua University and National Taiwan University. 祝大家马年大吉，万事如意！

02/13/2026

The Year of the Horse is upon us! We are excited to invite you to the Chinese Program’s Lunar New Year celebration.

Join us on Monday from 11:00 AM–2 PM as we celebrate the arrival of the spring season and the Year of the Horse together.
春节是华人最大的节日，大家一起欢庆新年，祝一年好运！

This will be a casual, festive event—please feel free to come and go as your schedule allows. Activities include:
New Year Wish Wall
Learning about Chinese couplets (春联) and creating your own
Traditional window papercutting
Dumpling making
Voting for CHIN200 students’ New Year poster design
Trivia games with prizes

Snacks and light refreshments.

Dress code: A touch of red is always appreciated – most importantly, come comfortable and join us as you are.

We look forward to celebrating with you！

中文系的老师们 🐎

02/07/2026

欢迎大家来星期一的茶话会，这次我们聊一聊汉语方言。 Join Monday’s Teatime to learn about the diverse varieties of Chinese.

02/02/2026

https://jobs.cvshealth.com/us/en/job/R0820143/Medical-Scribe-Bilingual-Cantonese-Required

Oak Street Health reached out to share a medical scriber position open for application at their Chinatown location. Cantonese is required.

Send a message to learn more

01/31/2026

农历新年快到了，欢迎大家来星期一的茶话会，聊一聊12生肖 。The Lunar New Year is around the corner. Join Monday’s Teatime to warm up for the Year of the Horse! We will learn about the 12 zodiac animals and the culture behind them.