The Advance Chinese Proficiency Test

HSK (Advanced)

I. Test Content

HSK (Advanced) comprises the following three independent tests: a 120-minute written test, a writing test and an oral test.

There are 3 sections in the 120-minute written subtest as specified below:

A ten-minute break after the end of the written test will be taken before the writing and oral tests.

The duration of the writing test is 30 minutes, when candidates are to finish a composition of 400 to 600 words.

The oral test will take 20 minute, of which 10 minutes is set for the preparation and the other ten for the interview. In the first 2 minutes of the interview candidates will read aloud a passage and then answer two given questions, each taking about 3 minutes.

II. HSK (Advanced) Scoring System

1. About the scores of HSK (Advanced)

A section score of HSK (Advanced) is a scale score with 50 as the score mean and 15 as the standard deviation. These scores show the relative position of the candidate in a standard sample group. The table below helps to locate the relative position of a candidate in the whole group. The second line Indicates the percentage occupied by those whose scores are lower than the corresponding scores in the standard HSK reference group.

2. HSK (Advanced) Certificate Grades and Score Levels

There is a bottom line established below Level 9 for HSK (Advanced) mainly out of the need to set a criterion for awarding certificates and not to assess the basic, elementary or intermediate proficiency levels. Therefore, scores in this range is of no reference to determining the basic, elementary or intermediate Chinese proficiency levels.

3. Interpretation of the score levels of HSK (Advanced)

There are 11 score levels in HSK, of which Level 3 to 5 signifying the basic, Level 6 to 8 the elementary and intermediate and Level 9 to 11 the advanced.

Level 9 The candidate has the advanced (low) Chinese language competence, which can be acquired after 3000 hours or more of regular modern Chinese language learning (or other Chinese learning experience equivalent to this). And this is the minimal standard to be qualified for the jobs requiring using Chinese for communication and the standard by which the HSK (Advanced) Certificate Grade C is awarded.

Level 10 The candidate has acquired the advanced (middle) Chinese language competence. This is the moderate standard to be qualified for the jobs requiring using Chinese as the communication language and the standard by which the HSK (Advanced) Certificate Grade B is obtained.

Level 11 The candidate has possessed the advanced (high) Chinese language competence. This is the higher standard to be qualified for the jobs requiring using Chinese for communication and to be viewed as being qualified for a translator at the intermediate level. And it is the standard as well by which the HSK (Advanced) Certificate Grade A is conferred.

III. Prerequisites to be awarded the HSK Certificate

1, The total score should be higher than the minimal level in the related grade.

2, Three of the four section scores, namely, listening, reading, writing and the oral test, shall exceed the minimal level in the related grade.

3, Two of the five section scores is allowed to be less than the minimal level in the related grade (only one of the section scores in listening, reading, writing and the oral test is allowed to be lower, however), but shall not be less by more than one level. If so, one can only get a certificate of the lower grade.

4, None of the section scores should be lower than the bottom line level under Grade C.

(source: http://www.hsk.org.cn)