About HSK
The Chinese Proficiency Test, also known as HSK, is the national standardized test designed and developed by the HSK Center of Beijing Language and Culture University to evaluate the Chinese proficiency of non-native Chinese speakers (including foreigners, overseas Chinese and people from Chinese national minorities). HSK is held regularly in China and in other countries each year and HSK certificates are issued to those who meet required scores.
Supervised by the State HSK Commission under the PRC Ministry of Education, HSK is held regularly in China and other countries each year. Certificates are issued to those who have secured the required scores.
Both the HSK and the issuing of HSK Certificates are supervised by the State Commission of the Chinese Proficiency Test under the authority of the Ministry of Education. HSK is jointly administered by the Office of the State Commission of the Chinese Proficiency Test, under the supervision of the State Commission of the Chinese Proficiency Test, and by the HSK Center of Beijing Language and Culture University.
HSK is divided into three categories: beginning level (HSK Basic), elementary to intermediate level (HSK Elementary-Intermediate), and advanced level (HSK Advanced) with eleven score levels:
- HSK Basic (Levels 1, 2, 3)
- HSK Elementary-Intermediate (Ele. Levels 3, 4, 5; Int. Levels 6, 7, 8)
- HSK Advanced (Levels 9, 10, 11)
HSK Certification
- To certify that the holder has obtained the required Chinese proficiency to enter a college or university in China as an undergraduate or graduate student. To apply to an undergraduate program in arts (e.g., Chinese literature, history, philosophy and traditional medicine), an "Intermediate Level C" Certificate (representing Language Level 6) is required. To apply to an undergraduate program in any other major, an "Elementary Level C" Certificate or "Basic Level A" Certificate (representing Language Level 3) is required. The language requirement for entering a graduate program is an "Advanced Level C" Certificate (representing Language Level 9). Without meeting the HSK certificate requirement, an applicant will have to take Chinese language courses at the relevant institution first. He or she may enroll in the academic program only when the required HSK certificate has been granted.
- To certify that the holder can be exempt from taking certain Chinese courses depending on the level of certification. At the University of Michigan, HSK scores can be used to waive foreign language or humanities requirements. A minimum passing score, which is irrelevant to HSK certification, is to be set by the Chinese Language Program to satisfy this specific local demand.
- To serve as a reference for hiring decisions for positions requiring a certain level of Chinese competency.
HSK Test Format
HSK Basic is a 140-item, 135 minute test. HSK Basic is divided into three sections: listening, sentence structure and reading comprehension. All questions are multiple-choice format.
HSK Elementary-Intermediate is a 170-item, 145 minute test divided into four parts: listening, sentence structure, reading comprehension and a cloze(fill in the blanks) section. Questions 1 to 154 are multiple-choice while questions 155 to 170 are cloze format requiring examinees to fill in blank spaces of a text at regular intervals with the appropriate Chinese characters.
The HSK Advanced test is 2 hours 35 minutes in length. HSK Advanced consists of three separately-timed subtests: a 120-item written test (objective), a writing composition section and an oral test. The 120-item written test is further divided into three subsections: listening, reading and cloze. A variety of objective-type questions are used including multiple-choice, matching, fill in the blank and writing Chinese characters. The oral test takes the form of an interview.
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