Straight answers about the exams that decide admission

Official source
The China Scholastic Competency Assessment — a standardised academic entrance test for international undergraduate applicants, organised by the China Scholarship Council with university subject experts. It assesses academic readiness, not just language. The first sitting was held on 21 December 2025.

Official source
If you are applying for an international undergraduate place from 2026, yes. In BLCU's words: "All international undergraduate applicants are required to take CSCA from 2026. Scores will serve as minimum admission criteria for universities." It does not apply to master's or PhD applicants.

Official source
Humanities programmes: Humanities Chinese and Mathematics. Science programmes: Science Chinese and Mathematics. English-medium programmes: Mathematics only. Physics and Chemistry exist for programmes that ask for them.

Official source
CNY 450 for a single subject, CNY 700 for two or more — so two subjects cost less than twice one. Asia-Pacific sits in December, April and June; Europe, Africa and the Americas in January and March. Confirm your region on csca.cn before booking travel.

Not published yet
No pass mark has been published. Universities set their own minimum criteria, and most have not published those either. Anyone quoting you a specific passing score is guessing.

Not published yet
No official validity period has been published. Do not assume it matches the HSK's two years.

Official source
Only in a narrow case, and this is where most guides are wrong. A valid HSK 4 exempts the Chinese proficiency component only for applicants to specific Chinese-language bachelor's majors — and Mathematics is still required.

Official source
At BLCU: Chinese Language, Translation, Translation and Localization, Applied Chinese, International Chinese Education, and Chinese Language and Culture. If your intended major is not on your university's list, HSK 4 will not exempt you.

Official source
Yes, within the normal two-year validity window from the test date. Nothing you already hold has been cancelled by the HSK 3.0 reform. No official conversion table between old and new levels has been published — treat any mapping chart you see online as someone's interpretation, not policy.

Official source
During the HSK 3.0 trial, speaking-test registration was made mandatory alongside levels 3–6. If you are planning around the old assumption that HSKK is optional, revisit it.

Official source
Two years from the test date. Plan your test date around your application deadline, not the other way round.

Official source
Yes. There is no requirement to pass lower levels first — register directly for the level you can pass. Registering too high wastes a fee and two months; too low wastes an application cycle.

Official source
Tuition, university accommodation or an accommodation subsidy, a monthly living stipend, and comprehensive medical insurance.

Official source
Per the official circular: CNY 2,500 a month for undergraduates, CNY 3,000 for master's students and general scholars, CNY 3,500 for doctoral and senior scholars. Medical insurance is CNY 800 a year for programmes of six months or longer.

Official source
Type A is administered through an outside dispatching authority, usually the Chinese embassy in your country. Type B is administered directly by the university through departmental nomination. The money is the same; the route is different, and you generally cannot pursue Type B while a Type A decision is pending. Choose deliberately rather than hedging.

Official source
Under 25 for a bachelor's degree, under 35 for a master's, under 40 for doctoral, under 45 for general scholars and under 50 for senior scholars.

Official source
Yes. Universities require the certificate regardless of heritage or household language. There is no informal exemption.

Varies — check yours
No. Registration on csca.cn is something you can do yourself, and if someone offers to register you for a fee, understand that you are paying for a free step. What is genuinely hard is knowing which subjects to sit, which level to target and by when — that is what we teach.

No, and we will not pretend otherwise. Universities set their own criteria and most have not published their CSCA minimums. Any organisation promising admission is promising something it does not control.

Honestly, it depends on hours per week more than on months. At five live sessions a week plus review, most beginners reach HSK 4 in roughly a year to eighteen months. The level check gives you a number based on your own pace rather than an advertising claim.