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Entry requirements for graduate study in China: what a university must check before admitting you

Sources checked

There is no single national scoreboard for graduate admission in mainland China. The Quality Standards for the Higher Education of International Students in China (Trial) require a university to set its own entry standards covering five things — educational background, academic level, language ability, identity qualification and financial capacity (section 1) — and Order No. 42, Article 12 requires the university to examine an applicant's admission qualifications and financial guarantee proof, examine or assess the applicant, and decide admission itself. These are trial standards addressed to higher education institutions: they say what a university must set, publish or do, not what score or sum an individual applicant must reach. The English on this page is this site's own translation of the Chinese official text.

What a standard must cover Provision What the university must do
Educational background Quality Standards, section 1.1 Set the minimum qualification for entry, including the degree level required for master's and doctoral study
Academic level Quality Standards, section 2.2 Run an entrance examination or assessment, and state the academic level required and how it will be evaluated
Language ability Quality Standards, section 1.2 Set the Chinese level required for Chinese-taught programmes and the foreign-language requirement for foreign-taught programmes
Identity qualification Quality Standards, section 2.5 Define identity qualification, including nationality, in the entry standards and operate a review procedure for it
Financial capacity Quality Standards, section 2.6 Set a financial guarantee standard and require and check proof that meets it

Educational background: the one level the rules themselves fix

Section 1.1 of the Quality Standards sets the minimum education requirement. Master's entry requires a bachelor's degree or an equivalent qualification, understood by reference to successful completion of ISCED 2011 level 6 or level 7 programmes. Doctoral entry requires a master's degree or an equivalent qualification, understood by reference to successful completion of specified ISCED 2011 level 7 programmes. The same section also sets the level for entry to associate and bachelor's study, which is high school graduation or an equivalent qualification.

One further rule sits in that section: where China and another country or region have signed an intergovernmental agreement on the mutual recognition of academic degrees and that agreement sets the entry conditions for the other side's students entering Chinese higher education institutions, the signed agreement applies.

Academic level: the university has to assess you, not just read your file

Section 2.2 requires the university to hold an entrance examination or assessment for international students who apply, so that the students it admits meet the entry standards it has set. The Standards add that universities are encouraged to develop and run such entrance examinations themselves or jointly with other universities.

The same section requires the university, having studied the education systems of its main source countries, to state clearly the academic level it requires for entry and the way it will evaluate it. It must then evaluate an applicant's academic level on the basis of academic grades and academic achievements gained during their education, results in Chinese education examinations, and results in education examinations of foreign countries that carry public credibility. Order No. 42, Article 12 states the same duty from the administration side: the university examines applicants and gives them an examination or an assessment.

Language ability: level 4 of the International Chinese Proficiency Standards, for Chinese-taught programmes

Under section 1.2, where Chinese is the language of instruction, the Chinese ability requirement in the entry standards must reach at least level 4 of the International Chinese Proficiency Standards (国际汉语能力标准). The provisions quoted on this page do not convert this into an HSK level. For programmes taught in a foreign language, the university must state in its entry standards the foreign-language ability required.

If you are choosing between programmes taught in different languages, the language of instruction is a programme decision published by the university; see also /programmes/.

Identity qualification: nationality is part of the check

Section 2.5 requires the university, in accordance with the relevant national regulations, to specify the identity qualification for applying in its entry standards, and to establish an effective review procedure to examine the applicant's nationality and other identity qualification. The additional nationality rule that applies to applicants who formerly held Chinese citizenship is covered on a separate page of this site.

Financial capacity: a standard the university sets, and proof it must check

Section 2.6 requires the university to set a financial guarantee standard for entry, based on its tuition and accommodation fee levels and the general cost of living locally, on the principle that the sum must adequately cover reasonable expenses for study, living and international travel. Where the local government education authority has issued a guiding standard, that guiding standard applies instead. The university must require applicants to provide financial guarantee proof meeting that standard and review it with care and due diligence. Order No. 42, Article 12 makes the same point: the university examines the financial guarantee proof of foreign citizens who apply.

Points on money beyond this rule, including scholarships, are outside the provisions quoted on this page; /funding/ covers funding separately.

Where the actual thresholds are

Order No. 42, Article 12 states that admission of international students is decided by the university, and that a university must not recruit an applicant who does not meet its enrolment conditions. Programme offers, entry dates, fees, the form of language proof accepted and the length of study are all the university's own decisions, published in its admissions brochure, and this page cannot state any of them.

A planning suggestion, not a rule: read the entry section of the brochure against the five headings above and write down what document or test each one asks you for, before you start assembling the application.

Questions people ask

Is there a national minimum degree for a master's or a doctorate in China?

Yes, at the level of qualification rather than grade. Section 1.1 of the Quality Standards sets a bachelor's degree or equivalent for master's entry and a master's degree or equivalent for doctoral entry, and gives priority to any signed intergovernmental mutual recognition agreement that sets entry conditions for the other side's students.

Does the university have to examine or assess me, or can it decide on documents alone?

It has to examine or assess you. Order No. 42, Article 12 and section 2.2 of the Quality Standards both require an examination or assessment, and section 2.2 lists the kinds of academic evidence the university must use. The provisions quoted on this page do not prescribe the format it must take.

What Chinese level does a Chinese-taught graduate programme require?

Section 1.2 sets at least level 4 of the International Chinese Proficiency Standards. The provisions quoted on this page do not state an HSK level, and how you evidence your level is the university's decision in its brochure.

Can a university admit an applicant who does not meet its own entry conditions?

No. Order No. 42, Article 12 says a university must not recruit someone who does not meet the enrolment conditions, even though the decision to admit is the university's own.

Sources

Checked 11 October 2026

This page is an unofficial summary prepared 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 where the official text or the current notice of the university or authority handling your case differs from anything on this page, that official text or notice prevails.

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