Does Article 14 set a Chinese level or a test?

No. Article 14 names no level and no test.

Is medical Chinese part of the course?

Yes. Article 13(1) lists medical Chinese among the first-part courses that shall be passed by examination or assessment.

Do I need to learn Chinese for MBBS in China?

Unofficial · Sources checked 11 October 2026

Yes. Under China's Ministry of Education rules for the English-taught MBBS programme, Chinese is a compulsory course that runs through the whole teaching process, and under the 2018 quality norms for foreign-language-taught programmes (see this site's language and Chinese page) an undergraduate should reach at least Level 4 of the International Chinese Proficiency Standards by graduation.

The 2007 standard on Chinese in the course

The 2007 standard sets where Chinese sits in the English-taught MBBS course. The English wording below is this site's translation of the Chinese text.

Article 14 of the Interim Provisions on Quality Control Standards for Undergraduate Medical Education in English for International Students (Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China, 2007) states that Chinese, as a compulsory course, shall run through the whole teaching process, for the convenience of students' study and life in China and for the later need to have contact with patients. Article 14 names no level and no test.

Article 13(1) of the same standard lists the first part of the curriculum as Chinese culture education courses and natural science courses, including China overview, Chinese, medical Chinese, mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology and physical education, each of which shall be passed by examination or assessment.

Article 8(1) of the same standard states that graduates shall have a grasp of basic Chinese and know about China.

The 2018 quality norms on Chinese level at graduation

The Quality Norms for Higher Education of International Students (Trial) (Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China, annex to 教外〔2018〕50号 of 3 September 2018) is a general norm for all higher education of international students. It sets a Chinese level for foreign-language-taught programmes.

For disciplines and majors with a foreign language as the professional teaching language, international students should be able to use the corresponding foreign language to complete the study and research tasks of the discipline or major, and should have the ability to use that foreign language for work related to the major; at graduation, undergraduates' Chinese ability should reach at least Level 4 of the International Chinese Proficiency Standards (《国际汉语能力标准》). The foreign-language-taught paragraph names no test and no score.

The same norm's Chinese-taught paragraph states a different level: for disciplines and majors with Chinese as the professional teaching language, at graduation the Chinese ability should reach Level 5 of the International Chinese Proficiency Standards.

The same norm's entry-standard paragraph states that, for disciplines and majors with a foreign language as the professional teaching language, universities should clearly define the required foreign language ability in their admission standards for international students.

Sources

Interim Provisions on Quality Control Standards for Undergraduate Medical Education in English for International Students (annex 1 to 教外来〔2007〕39号) — Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China
Quality Norms for Higher Education of International Students (Trial) (annex to 教外〔2018〕50号 of 3 September 2018) — Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China

Checked 11 October 2026.

This page is an unofficial summary, is not legal or professional-licensing advice, is not published by the bodies named, promises no admission, examination or registration outcome, and the official text and the regulator's own instructions prevail if they differ.