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A master's degree in China for international students: what the national rules define

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Under the national rules, a master's degree is one of four degree-education categories in which a Chinese higher education institution may enrol international students — the others being junior college, bachelor's and doctoral study (Order No. 42, Article 9). Entry at master's level requires a bachelor's degree or an equivalent qualification (Quality Standards, section 1.1), and the degree itself is awarded under Article 20 of the Degree Law when the course, training and defence requirements set out there are met. Everything a planning student needs next — which majors are open, how many places exist, what the entrance assessment is, what proof of funds is asked for — is not fixed nationally: each university determines it and publishes it in its own admissions brochure (Order No. 42, Articles 10 to 12).

The official texts quoted here are in Chinese; the English wording on this page is this site's own translation.

Where a master's degree sits among the enrolment categories

Order No. 42 divides international students into degree-education and non-degree-education categories (Article 9):

Type Categories
Degree education (学历教育) junior college students (专科生), bachelor's students (本科生), master's students (硕士研究生), doctoral students (博士研究生)
Non-degree education (非学历教育) preparatory students (预科生), continuing-education students (进修生), research scholars (研究学者)

So "master's student" is a status defined by the enrolment category, not by a department, a funding source or a language of instruction. Order No. 42 was signed on 20 March 2017 and took effect on 1 July 2017 (Article 48); its Chapters 2 to 5 apply to higher education institutions (Article 2).

What qualifies you to be considered

The Quality Standards set the minimum education requirement for entry. For master's programmes it is a bachelor's degree or an equivalent qualification, referenced to successful completion of ISCED 2011 level 6 or level 7 programmes (section 1.1). The same section adds that where China has signed a government-to-government agreement on the mutual recognition of qualifications with another country or region, and that agreement sets the entry conditions for the other side's students, the signed agreement applies.

The Standards are trial standards, issued as the attachment to Ministry of Education notice 教外〔2018〕50号, and they are addressed to institutions: they state what a university must set, publish or do.

What the university decides, and where to read it

Three articles of Order No. 42 carry the whole of this part:

  • Article 10 — a higher education institution determines its own international student enrolment plan and majors, based on its own conditions and training capacity, except where the state provides otherwise.
  • Article 11 — the institution formulates and publishes its own international student admissions brochure in accordance with the national admission regulations, and recruits students according to the conditions and procedures stated in that brochure.
  • Article 12 — the institution examines the entrance qualifications and the proof of financial guarantee of applicants, and gives them an examination or an assessment. Admission is decided by the institution, and an applicant who does not meet the admission conditions may not be recruited.

Read together, they put the brochure at the centre of planning: it is the document in which the institution's own decisions become conditions and procedures. No national text supplied here sets a fee, a deadline, a language score or a length of study for you; those belong to the brochure of the institution you are reading.

What the master's degree itself requires

The Degree Law states what has to happen before a master's degree is awarded (Article 20). The applicant must:

  1. receive master's-level education, pass the prescribed course assessments or earn the required credits;
  2. complete academic research training or professional practice training;
  3. pass the degree thesis defence, or the defence of the prescribed practical results;

and must show that they have reached this level: (a) a solid grasp of foundational theory and systematic specialised knowledge in the discipline or professional field; and (b) for an academic degree, the ability to carry out academic research work, or for a professional degree, the ability to undertake professional practice work. The distinction between the academic and professional degree tracks is a separate question in itself (see academic versus professional degrees in China).

The Law sets this frame; each degree-awarding institution publishes its own detailed standards (Degree Law, Article 22). The Law was adopted on 26 April 2024 by the Standing Committee of the 14th National People's Congress and took effect on 1 January 2025, when the Regulations on Academic Degrees were repealed (Degree Law, Article 45).

During the programme

Two documents shape what study actually looks like. Order No. 42, Article 16 requires international students to take part in course study according to the institution's course arrangements and teaching plan, and to sit the corresponding graduation examination or assessment; the institution must record their academic results and daily performance truthfully. The same article makes Chinese language and an introduction to China (中国概况) compulsory courses in degree education, and makes political theory a compulsory course for international students who study philosophy or political science.

The Quality Standards, Part One, add the academic benchmark: in the discipline or major, the training goals and graduation requirements for international students are the same as those for Chinese students in the same institution and programme, and meet the education and teaching standards or related norms for that level and major. The Standards also describe expected familiarity with China's history, geography, society, economy and basic cultural knowledge.

Questions people ask

Does the bachelor's degree have to be from a Chinese university?

No. The requirement in section 1.1 of the Quality Standards is a bachelor's degree or an equivalent qualification, referenced to ISCED 2011 level 6 or level 7. Where an intergovernmental mutual recognition agreement sets the entry conditions for students from the other side, that agreement applies.

Who decides whether I am admitted?

The institution. Order No. 42, Article 12 states that admission of international students is decided by the school, following an examination or assessment and a review of entrance qualifications and financial guarantee documents, and that a student who does not meet the admission conditions may not be recruited.

Is my degree different from the one Chinese students receive?

The level the Degree Law defines is the same for everyone: Article 20 sets out what a master's degree certifies. The Quality Standards, Part One, state that the training goals and graduation requirements in the discipline are the same as for Chinese students on the same programme.

Are Chinese language classes compulsory?

Yes, for degree education. Order No. 42, Article 16 makes Chinese language and an introduction to China compulsory courses, and adds political theory as a compulsory course for international students studying philosophy or political science.

What to look for in a brochure

Since the brochure is where national rules become concrete conditions and procedures (Order No. 42, Article 11), the useful checks are:

  • which majors are open to international students and how many places each has (Article 10);
  • the entrance qualification criteria, and what examination or assessment is used (Article 12);
  • what the brochure accepts as proof of financial guarantee (Article 12);
  • the application steps and their timing as the brochure states them (Article 11);
  • the language of instruction and any language requirement the brochure sets;
  • the stated length of study and the course or teaching plan, including how the compulsory Chinese language and introduction-to-China courses are arranged (Article 16).

One planning suggestion, not a rule: read the brochure published for the intake year you intend to join, and keep the version you relied on. The provisions quoted on this page do not require this.

Sources

Checked 11 October 2026

This page is an unofficial summary written by StudyChina Graduate: it is not published by or affiliated with the Ministry of Education, the China Scholarship Council, CHSI or any university, it is not legal advice, and if it differs from the official Chinese text or from the current notice of the university or authority handling your case, the official text and that notice prevail.

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