The January Term

Grades 8–10 (ages roughly 13–16) is exactly who this is built for. We take 20 students only — 10 girls and 10 boys — so that dormitory allocation, sport groups and class sit-ins all work properly. Places are confirmed in application order; once the 20 are filled we keep a waiting list and will tell you your position.

Four sports are taught as courses: swimming (6 sessions), tennis (4), climbing (2) and equestrian (3) across the three weeks — 15 coached sessions, five afternoons a week, all equipment included. Nobody is put in the deep end or onto a horse unprepared: non-swimmers are taught separately in the shallow lane, and riding starts with grooming and leading on a lunge line before anyone trots. Tell us about injuries or medical restrictions when you apply and we will plan a modified programme.

Each participant is paired one-to-one with a student from Star Trusted School's international division. They attend classes, clubs and excursions together, and many pairs stay in contact afterwards. It is the single part of the programme families tell us they value most — it removes the loneliness that international students often feel in their first months.

Because January is term time in China. Chinese schools break for winter holiday at the end of January, so almost every other "winter camp" runs on an empty campus with hired helpers. Ours runs during the final three weeks of the autumn term: 3,000 students in class, full canteens, real clubs, and your child sitting in a real lesson next to a real classmate.

For the southern hemisphere, no. Australian, New Zealand, Brazilian, Argentine and Chilean schools are on summer holiday until late January — this fits entirely inside the break. Northern-hemisphere families will need to ask their school for two or three weeks of leave; we issue a school letter and full itinerary to support the request, and several families have had it counted as an approved language immersion.

Not at all. Level A starts from zero, and the first week is entirely about getting through daily life. All staff speak English, and every excursion has at least one English-speaking supervisor.

In the boarding house, in the same four-bed rooms the full-time boarders use — air-conditioned, en-suite, five rooms for the ten girls and five for the ten boys. We allocate roommates deliberately: nationalities are mixed on purpose, so the room cannot fall back on a shared first language and English becomes the working language. A resident houseparent sleeps on the same corridor, and every corridor is checked at 21:00 and 21:30.

A resident houseparent lives on the corridor throughout the stay, plus a tour leader and a teaching assistant during the day. We keep one staff member for every eight students. Curfew is 21:30 with room checks. Students are never off campus without staff.

Yes — and we would rather they did. Parents arrange their own hotel and travel, which leaves them free to see Guangzhou, Hong Kong and Macao while their child is in class. We host parents on campus for the Campus Open Day on 14 January and for either graduation (16 or 23 January); both include lunch on campus and one transfer from a city hotel, at no charge. We also send a short list of hotels within 15 minutes of the campus.

If you hold a passport from any of the countries listed above, no — a 2- or 3-week study tour falls inside the 30-day visa-free allowance. We still issue an invitation letter and itinerary to present at the border, together with your return ticket and campus accommodation confirmation.

The January Term takes place at the same school we place full-time boarders in. Students who later enrol skip the trial period, and the registration fee is deducted from the first year's boarding tuition. At the Open Day we issue a provisional offer letter and lock in the tuition rate for three months.

Full refund less ¥300 until 30 November 2026; 70% until 10 December 2026. After 10 December the place is transferable to another student but not refundable. If the programme does not reach the minimum of 8 participants, every payment is refunded in full.

A packing list is sent four weeks before departure. Essentials: warm layers (Guangzhou in January averages 13–19°C, cooler in the evenings), comfortable shoes, a universal power adapter, any regular medication, and a copy of the passport. January is the driest month of the year here.