Since the outbreak of COVID-19 in late 2019, most international students are no longer allowed to enter China. Old students and newly admitted freshmen who should have been studying in Chinese universities can only participate in online courses. How to adapt to online courses and improve learning efficiency has become a big problem for us international students. Therefore, in this post, I’ll show you EXACTLY how to take Chinese universities' course online efficiently as international students with my own studying experience. I hope it will be helpful to you:

Tip #1: Overcome Negative Emotions and the Difficulty of Time Difference

Tip #2: Familiarize Yourself with the APP for Online Class in Advance

Tip #3: Study in a Fixed and Undisturbed Place

Tip #4: Have your Electronic Equipment, Good Network, and Necessary Stationery Ready for Class in Advance

Tip #5: Form the Good Habit of Preview Before Class

Tip #6: Actively Interact with Teachers

Tip #7: Concentrate in Class and Stay away from Temptation

Tip #8: Save the Teacher's PPT, Video and Other Teaching Materials Well

Tip #9: Finish Homework on Time and Record Important Deadlines

Tip #10: Strike a Proper Balance Between Study and Rest

Tip 1: Overcome Negative Emotions and the Difficulty of Time Difference

Under the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic, many international students are under enormous pressure. The contradiction between the reality of disaster and learning expectation has also caused many negative emotions in the hearts of international students. At this time, don't be consumed by negative emotions, adjust our mood and adapt to forms of online studying are the right choices for us international students who should study in China. Straightening out our minds will make our online learning efficient, otherwise, the strange knowledge and negative mind will only make our studies worse. That is, the premise of improving online learning efficiency is to have a good attitude, not impetuous, not complaining, then you will have half the success already.

Online Classes from Chinese universities are scheduled according to the Beijing Time but international students are in different countries around the world. Because of the time difference, some students even have to get up in the middle of the night for the online class taught by Chinese teachers, which is really a huge challenge. This requires us to set the alarm clock accurately to ensure that we wake up before class. Over time, we can form our own biological clock. I believe that if we do so, it will not be hard for us to take Chinese universities' courses online.

The impact of the epidemic on international students is enormous. We can not change it but only try to adapt to it. Since we chose to study abroad from the beginning, we should understand that what we step on is not an easy road. I believe that all of us have enough courage and perseverance to overcome these difficulties. As long as we treat the online course and time difference with an ordinary mind, it is no longer impossible to improve the efficiency of online classes from Chinese universities.

Tip 2: Familiarize Yourself with the APP for Online Class in Advance

Chinese teachers usually use the Platforms below for online teaching:

#1. DingTalk: Available in both Chinese and English. You can download it from the APP Store on your mobile phone or download it from their website. Every time when you wanna Log In the Dingtalk on your laptop, you must scan to login by your phone.

#2. Voov Meeting: Also known as Tencent Meeting. It’s available on macOS, Windows, iOS, and Android in both Chinese and English.



#3. Superstar: Its Chinese name is “Xue Xi Tong”, also known as “Chaoxing”. You can choose to download it from APP Store on your mobile phone or just Log In their website on your laptop. Up to now, there is no complete English version of this software.




#4. Rain Classroom: This platform is usually used as a Mini Program on WeChat but you can also Log In their website by scan with WeChat APP or download it on your laptop or mobile phone. Up to now, there is no complete English version of this software.




#5. ClassIn: It’s available on macOS, Windows, iOS, and Android in both Chinese and English.


Good software functions can help us learn more effectively but some software/application is not available in English, which requires us to be familiar with the functions of these Chinese APP for online study in advance and use them skillfully. It doesn't matter if you are not able to use these software because your teacher will teach you how to work on it when necessary.

By the way, since it is very important for us foreign students to understand some common Chinese, I can recommend you a high-quality online Chinese course from a Chinese University which is cheap and popular. Hope we can improve Chinese no matter where we are.

Tip 3: Study in a Fixed and Undisturbed Place

Here comes the tip 3 among 10 tips for international students off China to improve online class efficiency during COVID-19 now. Working and studying in a fixed place can avoid the cost of adapting to the new environment. Find a place where you can put all of your energy into international online learning, try to avoid external interference, and stay away from food, drink, bed, etc. If you will be hungry during the study, have a meal in advance.

In addition to these conditions, the place where we study should also be clean, comfortable, and orderly, so that we can stay there and study calmly. Only when our mind is calm and focused will our memory be improved. Therefore, before online class, be sure to tidy up your room and desk to keep your place clean and refreshing. It will not be difficult any more for us to take Chinese universities' courses online if we do so.

At the same time, inform your family in advance that you will take online classes from your Chinese university to avoid them coming to disturb you.


Students in low-risk areas can also try online classes in study rooms or libraries. But be sure to take precautions against COVID-19.

Tip 4: Have your Electronic Equipment, Good Network, and Necessary Stationery Ready for Class in Advance

Before Chinese university’s online class, prepare the electronic equipment such as headphones, laptop, iPad, and other stationery you need in place. To protect our eyes, we can try to choose some electronic devices with large screens instead of mobile phones. You can turn off other running software to ensure a smooth network for the class and equipment.

 In addition, you also need to prepare your mental outlook. "Home equipment" such as slippers and pajamas can easily lead to inertia. We can try to put on formal clothes and create the necessary sense of ceremony for ourselves to work and study at home as international students. 

Tip 5: Form the Good Habit of Preview Before Class

How to make online learning from Chinese universities more productive during the COVID-19 pandemic as international students? If it is a live class, to keep up with the online Chinese teacher's rhythm, preview is very important. Preview to ensure that you know what you will learn online so that you will not be at a loss in class. 

You can get preview materials for online study by asking the teacher about the next class content directly. Some teachers will upload the PPT of the next course to the website or study APP in advance. In this way, we can download it for the first view.

What’s more, preview is an independent and self-study process, so it can improve our self-study ability too. It will not be difficult any more for us to take Chinese universities' courses online if we do so.

Tip 6: Actively Interact with Teachers on Screen

Active interaction and timely feedback with online Chinese teachers can make teachers feel your attention and your participation. This is not only conducive to concentration but also the teacher's impression of you will be much better. 

If you don't understand something, be sure to consult the teacher on-screen in time and solve your problem as soon as possible. If the questions can not be answered in time, it will be more difficult for you to understand the following online courses launched by a Chinese teacher. If more and more questions are accumulated, it may cause serious consequences on your distance online studying. As an international student who is not in China, do you have enough idea about how to take online courses well now?

Tip 7: Concentrate in Class and Stay away from Temptation

Before the beginning of each distance class, we can temporarily get rid of distractions, adjust our emotions and focus all our energy on the upcoming class from China university. We can't avoid using mobile phones in online classes. Checking information or transferring files will make us pick up our mobile phone, naturally open various software, and then accidentally start playing with our mobile phone instead of focusing on the class on screen.

My experience is that when taking a distance course, put your mobile phone away from our line of sight. If we can't see the frequently lit mobile phone screen and message reminder, we will concentrate more on our online study from a Chinese school. In addition, we can also try some APP with the function of temporarily locking the mobile phone to help us stay away from temptation. I believe that if we do so, it will not be hard for us to take Chinese universities' courses online.

Tip 8: Save the Teacher's PPT, Video, and Other Teaching Materials Well

Orderly storage of learning materials can help us find the information at the first time when we want to review or do our homework. We may inevitably encounter some knowledge that we have not fully understand in class. At this time, if we can save the Chinese teacher's live class video and watch it again and again after class, we may make up for the knowledge we missed. As for the software used to record the screen, students in various countries have different choices. You can search and download it yourself.

But that doesn't mean handwritten notes are not important during video courses. We need to know that handwritten notes can better deepen our memory and understanding of knowledge. Some students record videos or take screenshots of the Chinese teacher's online teaching contents, but never review them after class. Therefore, it is particularly important to write notes in class.

Tip 9: Finish Homework on Time and Record Important Deadlines

Finishing our homework on time is a good study habit. This will not only help us consolidate the knowledge we have learned in time but also help us not to be troubled by unfinished homework and reduce psychological pressure when doing other things. The quality of homework completed in a rush time after delay is often not high, so completing homework on time can also improve the quality of our homework. I think that if we do so, it will not be difficult for us to take Chinese universities' courses online.

Recording the deadline of some assignments can remind us not to miss the time of submitting assignments. If your teachers from China university often send homework notices by email, don't forget to check your email frequently.

Tip 10: Strike a Proper Balance Between Study and Rest

During the pandemic, the life of staying at home is inevitably monotonous, and continuous learning from the screen may also make us tired. Therefore, in addition to learning, work on your personal hobbies and adhere to appropriate exercise, are conducive to resolving boredom and improving online learning efficiency. That is, we must follow the combination of study and rest, and reward ourselves in time after completing the online study goal. As an international student who is not in China, do you have better online study plans now?

The above are all the experiences about distance studying I want to share. Maybe you are already aware of these principles of online education but just can't stick to them. Or maybe you're a freshman about to join the fall online course for the first time who is curious about Chinese university’s online course now. Just if you need a monitor to remind you of such tips, feel free to tell your family or friends.

But remember please, if there are still virus risks over your city, don't take the risk to go to the library.

If you think my sharing has inspired you, please try it from the next class. We can’t control the outbreak, but at least let’s control our own online studying well.