Program Overview
This program is open to Chinese language enthusiasts from across the world. International students who are passionate about the Chinese language, have needs for learning the Chinese languagesystematically, or are interested in Chinese culture, can find suitable Chinese language coursesat Xiamen University (XMU).
Depending on their Chinese proficiency, students will be grouped into three kinds of small classes at the beginning (no prior knowledge), intermediate and advancedlevels. The program will focus on the development of listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills, with selectivecourses such as HSK Tutorial, Chinese Idioms and Their Stories, Learning Chinese by Watching Chinese Movies, Chinese Kung Fu, and Chinese Painting. The objective is to help learners improve their Chinese language skills for communication purposes and thereby enable them to use the Chinese language in their studies, life and future careers. Certificates of Completion and transcripts will be issued to students upon completion of the study.
Fall semester: September 2025 to January 2026
Spring semester: February to June 2026
Class time: Monday to Friday
Different classes have different timetables, about 18-24 class hours per week scheduled from Monday toFriday.
Course Introduction: Courses may change every semester, and the actual schedule is subject to the official timetable.
Compulsory Courses
IntegratedChinese (elementary, intermediate, and advanced):The course is designed to methodically teach skills and rules of Chinese pronunciation, reading and writing of Chinese characters, Chinese vocabulary and grammar, and the usage of the Chinese language, and develop the ability to write Chinese compositions. It is designed to help students acquire knowledge about the Chinese language comprehensively, thus laying a solid foundation for using what they have learned about Chinese.
Oral Chinese: In a very pleasant and relaxing classroom atmosphere with professional teaching and ample exercises, students gradually improve their Chinese communication ability and learn about Chinese people’s communication skills. With the improvement of their language ability, they can express their personal views on specific topics completely and fluently in standard Chinese. They will also cultivate the habit of thinking in Chinese and the ability to choose proper expressions for different persons they are talking to on different occasions. All in all, they will learn to deal with various communication situations.
Chinese Listening: This course aims at improving students’ listening skillthrough systematic instruction and plenty of exercises. Students can progressively develop their capacity for critical analysis, contextual deduction, summarization, and generalization. During their study, they will be trained to understand speeches delivered at a faster pace, news broadcasts on familiar topics, and popular radio and TV programs. Finally, they can understand Chinese spoken in real situation and at the same time, consciously pick up new words, phrases, and usages. In a word, they can improve their sensibility on the Chinese language. The course has 4 class periods per week and is offered at all three levels: elementary, intermediate, and advanced.
Selective Courses
HSK tutoring (Level 4, Level 5, and Level 6), Chinese Idioms and Their Stories, Chinese Film and Television Culture Appreciation, Chinese Painting, Chinese Calligraphy, Chinese Kung Fu, Reading and Writing of Chinese Characters, Intermediate Chinese Reading, Intermediate Chinese Writing, Advanced Chinese Reading, Advanced Chinese Writing, Introduction to Chinese Culture, Mandarin Phonetics and Reading, Chinese History, Sino-foreign Cultural Exchanges, Chinese Human Geography, Chinese Folk Culture, Chinese Vocabulary and Culture, English-Chinese Translation，Classical Art Appreciation of Guqin (Chinese ancient Zither).
(The availability of some of the above courses is subject to change based on the number of students in each semester.For further details, please visit: http://oec.xmu.edu.cn)
Credit Hours
With the college’s guidance