Study
Courses
It is possible to enrol in a Tibetan-language course at Lhasa’s Tibet University. Tuition costs US$1000 per semester; semesters run from March to July and September to January. There are two hours of classes a day and around 70 foreign students currently attend (including some undercover missionaries). For an application form contact the Foreign Affairs Office (0891-634 3254; fsd@utibet.edu.cn; Tibet University, Lhasa 850000, Tibetan Autonomous Region). Once you are accepted the university will help arrange a student (‘X’) visa and, after three months, residency status in Lhasa. Students have to stay in campus accommodation. It should also be possible to hire a private tutor from the university for around Y20 per hour.
Many travellers find it more convenient to study at Dharamsala or Kathmandu, although students say that the mix of dialects and high levels of English make them less effective places to study. Courses offered there include Tibetan Buddhist philosophy, Tibetan language and Tibetan performing arts.
Kopan Monastery (www.kopan-monastery.com) outside Kathmandu, in Nepal, is a particularly popular place to study aspects of Tibetan Buddhism.
The various Tibetan organisations across the world offer courses and meditation retreats. The Tibet Foundation (020-7930 6001; www.tibet-foundation.org) in London, for example, offers a 10-week Tibetan-language course for around UK₤130.
