Research on the Academic Chinese Needs of International Graduate Students Studying in China

Abstract

Research on the needs of international graduate students studying in China for learning and improving academic Chinese is the starting point and foundation of constructing a teaching and research system on this discipline. This paper adopts an in-depth interview methodology to gain in-depth insight into the needs of 20 international graduate students studying in China for learning and improving academic Chinese. The interviewees included eleven post-graduate students and nine doctoral students, majoring in a variety of disciplines including economics, law, education, literature and management. The results of the interviews show that international graduate students studying in China generally possess limited academic Chinese language skills that prevent competency in Chinese academic research. Hence, they are in great need of improving their academic Chinese skills and attending relevant academic Chinese courses, especially in academic Chinese writing. In view of the needs of and barriers for international students, this paper suggests improvement to the existing Chinese Proficiency Test (HSK) system by setting up an academic Chinese Proficiency Test and encouraging colleges and universities to conduct diagnostic assessments on academic Chinese based on majors, as well as offering courses related to academic Chinese.