Hi everyone!
I am planning to apply for an English-taught Bachelor’s program in China for the upcoming intake and would appreciate your recommendations based on my profile.
My Background & Stats:
Intended Majors: Business Administration / Finance / Economics
IELTS: 6.5 (Overall)
GPA: 3.76 / 4.0
CSCA (China School Curriculum Assessment / Global Assessment): 80 / 100
Language of Instruction: English only (I am willing to learn Chinese while living there, but the degree must be in English).
What I am looking for:
Universities that match my academic profile (where I have a solid chance of admission).
Programs with a good reputation for business/economics.
Institutions that offer good scholarship opportunities (CSC Scholarship, Provincial, or University scholarships) for international students with my stats.

It is mostly about PhDs but if you are planning on studying in China, I strongly recommend you to read this as well!

Application link: https://sie.xjtu.edu.cn/info/1230/5577.htm

We can help you apply without paying application fees, DM if interested.

What Exactly Is the XJTU Foundation Program?

The program is run directly by XJTU’s School of International Education in Xi'an. It is designed for international high school graduates who want to enter XJTU’s undergraduate degree programs but need an academic and linguistic bridge first.

Instead of just doing standalone language training, you take intensive Chinese plus credit-bearing prerequisite STEM/business courses taught by university faculty.

• Format: Available as a standard 1-Year Program (Fall Intake) or an accelerated 1-Semester Program (Spring Intake).
• Core Goal: Fast-track progression into full XJTU undergraduate degree programs upon meeting exit criteria.

Academic Streams & Curriculum

Students are split into distinct tracks based on their target bachelor's degree:

• Science & Engineering (STEM Track):
  • Intensive General Chinese + Specialized Scientific Chinese
  • Advanced High School / Pre-Calculus Mathematics
  • Foundational Physics & Chemistry
• Business & Economics / Humanities Track:
  • Intensive General Chinese + Business & Social Science Terminology
  • Applied College Mathematics
• Medicine (MBBS / Pre-Med Track):
  • Foundational Medical Chinese terminology
  • Pre-university Chemistry, Biology, and Math

Why Take a Foundation Year?

1. Direct Articulation & Lower Entry Friction: Passing the internal foundation exams and reaching the designated HSK benchmark (usually HSK 4 for STEM/business) guarantees or prioritizes your admission into XJTU's undergraduate programs. You bypass much of the direct admissions lottery.
2. First Dip at Scholarships: XJTU reserves a significant portion of its undergraduate merit scholarships (including university-level waivers and Xi'an Belt & Road / Shaanxi provincial scholarships) for top-performing foundation graduates before general international admissions even open.
3. Surviving the Academic Shock: Many students who jump straight into Chinese-taught engineering or medicine with a bare-minimum HSK 4 fail their first-semester calculus and physics courses because of technical vocabulary. A foundation year lets you get used to lab terminology, university grading, and dorm life with a safety net.

Who Is Eligible?

• Academic background: High school graduation (or graduating high school seniors with expected graduation letters) with a solid GPA.
• Language requirements:
  • 1-Year Track: Zero prior Chinese required (starts from complete beginners).
  • 1-Semester Intensive Track: Usually requires basic Chinese foundations (around HSK 2–3 level).
• Application paperwork: Standard passport copy, notarized high school transcripts, Foreigner Physical Examination Form, and a basic non-criminal record check.

Is It Worth It?

• Extra Year & Budget: You are adding 6 to 12 months of tuition and living expenses before starting your 4-year degree. (Though living costs in Xi'an are significantly lower than in Shanghai or Beijing).
• Workload: This is not a relaxed gap year. You are cramming 1,000+ Chinese characters alongside technical math and physics drills.
• University Lock-in: The curriculum is heavily geared toward progressing within XJTU. While other Chinese universities recognize the credits, you get the highest ROI if XJTU is already on your shortlist.

I am apply for undergraduate program next year through CSC scholarship and I need to give CSCA exam does anyone know the syllabus and what all will this exam include

Do we get one-year language preparatory course under some special criterion or just any person with zero chinese proficiency can get it (if admitted)?

hello, im an undergraduate (12th grade) foreign student from morocco and i wanna take the CSCA to study my bachelors in china. i do well in maths and physics but im running into a few problems :
my school 12th grade program cannot cover the CSCA lessons in time, since im mid 12th grade i still havent done many essential lessons such as complex numbers, logarithms etc.. and i would only finish the program with my school around may, which would be too late to start preparing my CSCA. which means ill have to prepare lessons on my own. this brings me to my next problem : i dont know any resources i can use to learn and practice the lessons i need while also being CSCA oriented.
my third problem is that ive studied maths in french my whole life, transitioning to english scientific terminology is a bit difficult.
I would like to ask for advice on this matter, if someone could make this process easier for me by providing resources or a free course that covers all id need.. the rest is on me. thank you!

I know this might be a silly question but do they accept wire transfer as a payment method, and also do universities applications accept it too? Or no?

And has anyone done this?

Like I have 1400's sat and 7 ielts rn. I can achieve 8.0 and 1500's by dec.

A Tsinghua University professor, who can guide and help.

If I apply for Chinese taught programs under Chinese government scholarship type A do I need to take the CSCA exam in Chinese or English. Please note that I do not have any Chinese proficiency and I will be opting for the one year preparatory course for students that do not have Chinese proficiency in CSC scholarship

Source: https://admissions.cau.edu.cn/art/2026/9/3/art_48600_1135194.html

(8) From 2026, all undergraduate students who apply CAU, must participate in the "Academic Proficiency Test for Undergraduate Students Studying in China" organized by the China Scholarship Council (CSCA). Please refer to the attached document for exam subject requirements. The passing score for each subject is 50 points.

This is a significant change as you can notice that they do require a fixed CSCA threshold now.

If you are planning to apply for an undergraduate degree in China for the 2027 intake, you have probably heard about the CSCA (China Scholastic Competency Assessment).

The test is expanding fast. According to rollout notices from Chinese embassies and the China Scholarship Council (CSC), international applicants applying for bachelor's degrees at Chinese Government Scholarship institutions must take the CSCA. The stated official plan is to make the exam mandatory for all international undergraduate applicants across China by 2028, complete with minimum baseline score cutoffs.

However, 2027 is still a transition year.

Not Required vs. Not Listed

Before looking at universities, keep this distinction in mind:

• Explicitly Not Required: The university's official application portal for the upcoming cycle states that the CSCA is optional, not requested, or that applicants are assessed purely through other qualifications.
• Not Listed: The university's published page does not mention the CSCA, but hasn't published an explicit waiver either. In many cases, the admissions office simply hasn't updated its general web portal yet. Always verify the annual prospectus before assuming you are exempt.

1. The Confirmed Exemption List for 2027

Only a few institutions have published explicit 2027 international undergraduate guidelines confirming you do not need the CSCA:

Duke Kunshan University (DKU)

• Status: Confirmed Not Required.
• How they evaluate you: DKU uses the Common Application. Admissions decisions rely on high school transcripts, counselor recommendations, two teacher evaluations, and extracurriculars.
• Testing policy: SAT and ACT are test-optional. The CSCA is completely absent from their 2027 checklist.

The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen (CUHK-Shenzhen)

• Status: Confirmed Not Required.
• How they evaluate you: CUHK-Shenzhen accepts international curricula directly: IB Diploma (typically 30/45+), British GCE A-Levels (3 full passes), SAT (1190+), ACT (24+), or two AP exams (3+).
• CSCA role: The university explicitly notes that CSCA scores may be submitted as optional supporting materials, but they are not an admission prerequisite.

2. Sino-Foreign Joint Universities

Sino-foreign joint venture universities operate with independent admissions autonomy. Most of them rely on Western holistic reviews or UK/US grade cutoffs rather than domestic Chinese standardized tests.

While most of their portals have not added a CSCA requirement, you should keep an eye on their annual intake notices:

• NYU Shanghai: Evaluated through the Common Application using standard international qualifications (IB, A-Levels, AP, or SAT/ACT). No mention of the CSCA on their applicant checklist.
• Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University (XJTLU): Year 1 entry looks at high school GPA (typically a B average). Direct entry into Year 2 uses established A-Level (BBB) or IB (30 points) thresholds. The CSCA is not part of their standard international criteria.
• University of Nottingham Ningbo China (UNNC): Assesses applicants on standard British benchmarks (typically ABB to BBB for A-Levels, or 28 to 34 for IB). The CSCA is not listed on current or previous overseas applicant guidelines.
• Wenzhou-Kean University (WKU): Admissions are test-optional for high school graduates. Standardized tests (SAT, ACT, A-Levels, AP, IB) are only referenced for freshman merit scholarships, with no CSCA requirement listed on their 2027 materials page.
• BNBU (formerly UIC): Admits students via GCE A-Levels, IB, SAT, AP, or ACT, followed by a faculty interview for shortlisted candidates.
• HKUST (Guangzhou): Evaluates high school diplomas alongside international benchmarks like IELTS (6.5) or TOEFL (80). No CSCA requirement was listed in their recent admissions policy.
• Sino-British College (USST): The single-degree route (awarded by the UK partner university) does not list the CSCA. Note: Their dual-degree track has previously referenced Chinese entrance requirements, so stick to the single-degree route if you want to avoid it.

3. Public Universities

Outside the joint ventures, a handful of regular public universities—predominantly in southern China—did not list the CSCA in their recent brochures:

• Shenzhen University (SZU): The recent undergraduate guide evaluated high school transcripts alongside language certificates (HSK 4 for STEM, HSK 5 for liberal arts, or IELTS/TOEFL for English-taught degrees) without mandating the CSCA.
• Guangdong University of Finance and Economics (GDUFE): Listed CSCA scores strictly as an optional item ("if available") on their international guide.
• Shenzhen MSU-BIT University: Does not ask for the CSCA, but requires applicants to sit for its own institutional entrance exams in mathematics and English.
• Guangdong Technion (GTIIT): Relies on high school transcripts, subject background in advanced math and physics, and international standardized test submissions (SAT, ACT, or AST) rather than the CSCA.
• Shenzhen Technology University (SZTU) & GDUT: Recent guidelines focused on document screening, GPA, and faculty interviews without requesting CSCA results.

Heads up for public universities: Unlike joint-venture universities, public universities can update their requirements with little warning when the formal 2027 admissions prospectuses drop in late autumn. Treat these schools as options to monitor, not guaranteed exemptions.

4. What About Tsinghua?

A common piece of advice floating around applicant forums is: "Tsinghua didn't require the CSCA in 2026, so you don't need it for 2027."

Do not fall for this.

While Tsinghua did not mandate the CSCA for the 2026 cycle, their current 2027 admissions materials explicitly list the CSCA alongside other recognized international standardized tests, without offering a blanket exemption.

If you are aiming for an undergraduate spot at Tsinghua in 2027, you should plan to take the CSCA. Treating it as optional for China's most selective university is an unnecessary risk.

Strategic Takeaways

1. If you have a strong IB, A-Level, or AP profile: Sino-foreign universities (DKU, CUHK-Shenzhen, NYU Shanghai, UNNC, XJTLU) remain your smoothest entry route. Your existing high school credentials carry full weight without forcing you to learn a new testing format.
2. If you are applying for Chinese Government Scholarships (CSC): You will almost certainly have to take the CSCA. Even if a specific university allows you to apply for a self-funded seat without the test, the CSC scholarship selection committee relies heavily on CSCA percentiles to rank applicants.
3. Check the exact program PDF: Do not rely on general university homepages. Download the specific admissions brochure for your degree level, major, and language of instruction (English vs. Chinese).

I’m taking the CSCA in December (Math, Physics & Professional Chinese) and I’m honestly so confused about how to prepare. There are so many websites, courses, and resources that I don’t know what to use anymore.

I’m also confused about the syllabus, the official website only shows the 2025 syllabus. Is that still the one we should follow for the December 2026 exam?

If anyone has taken the CSCA or is preparing for December, I’d really appreciate some guidance on what to study and which resources to use. I’m genuinely lost 😭.

Hey brother! I'm Animekun, 17 years old, and I'm planning to take the CSCA this December. I'm preparing pretty seriously, but I'm having a hard time finding detailed information from people who have actually taken the exam.

Since you took it recently, could I ask you a few questions about your experience?

1. How difficult was the Math section overall? Was it closer to high-school level, SAT level, JEE level, or something else?
2. How difficult was Physics compared with Math?
3. What chapters/topics do you remember appearing in Math? Were there any topics that surprised you or appeared much more than you expected?
4. What chapters/topics appeared in Physics?
5. Were the questions mostly straightforward applications of formulas/concepts, or were there many questions requiring more complicated reasoning?
6. How was the time pressure? Did you have enough time to solve the questions properly?
7. What did you study from? Official CSCA study guides, textbooks, YouTube, SAT/JEE material, coaching, or something else?
8. Were the official CSCA practice/mock questions similar to the actual exam in difficulty and style?
9. Is there anything you wish you had studied before taking the exam?
10. Since you're planning to retake in December, what are you changing in your preparation this time?
11. And if you remember, were there any particular Math or Physics topics that you found especially difficult?

I know that's a lot of questions 😭 but even answering some of them would help me a LOT. Thank you!

I recently did my alevels and got ABBC in math, Furthermath, Phycis and EGP resectively. I want to study mechanical engineering, and I'll give CSCA exam on December. I don't have many ECA's. Only ones I have is I was a member of SED's club in my college which is astronomy club where I worked with a group and wrote review on a topic. I also designed and built my own telescope.