Chinese

Placement in a Chinese language class follows the AMES department placement policy. 

To maximize your learning opportunities and enjoy yourself in a learning community that is conducive to everyone in your class, students who are interested in taking a Chinese language course at Duke have to follow the procedures below for placement.

1. Refer to both course descriptions and self-placement guidelines (see the section below) when trying to make a decision on self-placement. 
2. Verify your placement with the instructor who teaches the course into which you self-place by email, or make an appointment before or during the pre-registration period. The final placement decision lies with the instructor.
3. Students may not enroll in a Chinese course below the level determined by the placement assessment as confirmed by a faculty member in the Chinese Program.

If you have further questions regarding the courses at 100-level, please consult with Professor Tianshu He, the Coordinator of First Year Chinese, at htianshu@duke.edu. If you have questions regarding 200-level Chinese courses, please consult with Professor Yan Liu at yl286@duke.edu. If you have questions regarding the overall Chinese language curriculum, Duke Study in China program, or further questions regarding the courses at 300-level and above, please contact the Director of the Chinese Program Professor Carolyn Lee at kslee@duke.edu.

Self-Placement Guidelines

The self-placement guidelines below are divided into two sections: “Placement Guidelines for Regular-Track Curriculum” and “Placement Guidelines for Bilingual-Track Curriculum.” Students who are traditional foreign language learners and receive a score of 5 on the AP Chinese exam will automatically pass CHINESE 203 (Intermediate Chinese) and be eligible to take CHINESE 204 (Intermediate Chinese II) or CHINESE 305D (Pre-Advanced Chinese I) . Students who are heritage learners and receive a score of 5 on the AP Chinese exam will automatically pass CHINESE 131 (First Year Chinese for Bilingual Learners) and be eligible to take CHINESE 232/321/331/332/333. Students need to do a placement interview with a Chinese instructor before enrolling in a specific course. Students who speak a Chinese dialect at home but barely understand Mandarin Chinese, and students who studied Chinese as a foreign language in the K-12 school system but did not have a strong foundation, may take CHINESE 105 (First-Year Chinese in Review) in the regular-track curriculum. Please note that students who lived in a Chinese speaking country such as China, Singapore or Taiwan into their teenage years and received schooling higher than the elementary level in any Chinese speaking country are considered to be native speakers. The student who finished secondary school is only eligible for courses at or above CHINESE 450s (Understanding China and the U.S.: Stereotypes, Conflicts, and Common Challenges) to fulfill language requirements.

Placement Guidelines for Regular-Track Curriculum (For students raised in homes where non-Chinese language was spoken)

Enroll in CHINESE 101 (First-Year Chinese I):

• Students with no or minimal proficiency in Chinese
• Students who have been exposed to Beginning Chinese in a high school program but do not think the program was strong

Enroll in CHINESE 102 (First-Year Chinese II):

• Students who have successfully completed CHINESE 101 (First-Year Chinese I) or its equivalent, or students who studied Chinese for 2-3 years in high school program but do not think the program was strong
• Students may read and write at least 250-300 Chinese characters

Enroll in CHINESE 105 (First-Year Chinese in Review):

• Students who did not grow up in a household speaking Mandarin Chinese but studied over two years of Chinese in middle school and /or high school and didn't think the program was strong.
• Chinese AP score of 2, or SAT-II score in the 240-410 range, or IB Chinese score below 4.
• Students may read and write at least 100 characters.

Enroll in CHINESE 203 (Intermediate Chinese I):

• Students who have successfully completed CHINESE 102 (First-Year Chinese II) or its equivalent, or students who had over 3 years of high school Chinese and did well in the courses
• AP score of 3 or 4, or SAT-II score of 550-600, or IB Language B (HL) score of 4.
• Students may read and write at least 500-600 characters without a dictionary.

Enroll in CHINESE 204 (Intermediate Chinese):

• Students who have successfully completed Chinese 203 (Intermediate Chinese) or its equivalent, or students who have over 3 years of high school Chinese and did well in the courses.
• AP score of 4 or 5, SAT-II score of 600 to 700, or IB Language B (HL) score of 5 or 6.
• Students may read and write at least 700-800 characters without a dictionary.

Enroll in CHINESE 205 (Intermediate-Mid Chinese):

• Students who have successfully completed Chinese 105 (First Year Chinese in Review) or its equivalent, or students who had over 3 years of Chinese in a very strong high school program.
• AP score of 3 or 4, or SAT-II score in the 420-480 range, or IB score of 4.
• Students may read and write at least 800-850 characters.

Enroll in CHINESE 305D (Pre-Advanced Chinese):

• Students who have finished CHINESE 203/204 (Intermediate Chinese) or students who studied Chinese for more than 4 years in a very strong high school program and did very well in the courses
• Students whose family does not speak Chinese at home and who learned Mandarin Chinese for 2-3 years when they attended international school in a Chinese speaking country
• Students may read and write at least 950-1000 characters

Enroll in CHINESE 306 (Advanced Chinese):

• Students who have successfully completed CHINESE 305D (Pre-Advanced Chinese) or students who had over 3-4 years of high school Chinese and studied in an immersion Chinese language program in the U.S., China or Taiwan
• Students may read and write at least 1100-1200 characters

Enroll in CHINESE 321 (Business Chinese and Interculturality in China):

• Students who have successfully completed Chinese 232,306 or 407.
• Students who did not grow up in a household speaking Mandarin Chinese but studied over 3-4 years of Chinese in a very strong high school program and studied in an immersion Chinese language program in China or Taiwan.
• Students may read and write at least 1200-1300 characters.

Enroll in CHINESE 371S (Classical Chinese in the Modern Context I):

• Students who finished CHINESE 407 (Issues in Chinese Language and Society I) or 408 (Issues in Chinese Language and Society II)in regular track curriculum, or their equivalent, are eligible to take this course

Enroll in CHINESE 407S (Issues in Chinese Language and Society I):

• Students who have finished CHINESE 305D/306 (Pre-Advanced Chinese/Advanced Chinese II) or their equivalent
• Students who can read simple passages and produce fairly accurate piece of writing on familiar topics
• Students who learned Mandarin Chinese for 3-4 years when they attended international school in a Chinese speaking country
• Students may read and write at least 1300-1400 characters

Enroll in CHINESE 408S (Issues in Chinese Language and Society II):

• Students who have successfully completed CHINESE 407 (Issues in Chinese Language and Society I) or students who can read long texts and produce fairly accurate piece of writing on some complex topics
• Students who learned Mandarin Chinese more than 5 years when they attended international school in a Chinese speaking country
• Students may read and write at least 1500-1600 characters

Placement Guidelines for Alternative/Bilingual-Track Curriculum (For students raised in homes where Chinese was spoken or students were raised in homes where non-Chinese language was spoken but had formal Chinese language education in a Chinese-speaking region.)

Enroll in CHINESE 131 (First Year Chinese for Bilingual Learners):

• Students who have been exposed to Chinese at home and can communicate very basic things in Chinese, but reading and writing skills in Chinese are very minimal or almost zero
• Students may read and write 100 Chinese characters or less

Enroll in CHINESE 232 (Intermediate Chinese for Bilingual Learners):

• Students who have successfully completed CHINESE 131 or its equivalent, or students studied Mandarin Chinese in a Chinese community school for more than 2 years
• Students may read and write at least 300 characters

Enroll in CHINESE 331D (Modern Chinese Media):

• Students who have finished CHINESE 131/232 or their equivalent.
• Students who can read simple news, blogs or other authentic articles of several paragraphs in length and write simple descriptive or narrative texts.
• Students may read and write at least 800-1000 characters.

Enroll in CHINESE 332 (Chinese Translation and Interpretation):

• Students who have finished CHINESE 232, or CHINESE 333, or CHINESE 407S/408S (Issues in Chinese Language and Society I/II), or CHINESE 371S (Classical Chinese in the Modern Context I), or CHINESE 435S (Chinese in Humanities), or their equivalent.
• Students who can read Chinese texts (2/3 to 1 page in length) on various topics related to Chinese culture or society and can write descriptive, narrative, and argumentative texts (one to one and a half pages) in Chinese with a dictionary.
• Students may read and write at least 900-1000 characters without a dictionary.

Enroll in CHINESE 333 (Advanced Chinese for Bilingual Learners):

• Students who have finished CHINESE 131/232 or equivalent
•  Students who can read somewhat longer prose of several paragraphs in length and write simple descriptive or narrative texts
•  Students may read and write at least 800-1000 characters.

Enroll in CHINESE 371S (Classical Chinese in the Modern Context I):

• Students who finished CHINESE 333 (Advanced Literacy in Chinese) in alternative track curriculum, or their equivalent, are eligible to take this course.
• Students may read and write at least 1300 Chinese characters.
• Students may take this course with another Chinese language course at the same time or out of the sequence.

Enroll in CHINESE 435S (Chinese in the Humanities I):

• Students who have finished CHINESE 333, or CHINESE 371S (Classical Chinese in the Modern Context I), or CHINESE 408S (Issues in Chinese Language and Society II), or their equivalent
• Students who can read long texts and write reflective essays about them
• Students who completed elementary school and attended middle school for less than 2 years in a Chinese speaking country

Enroll in CHINESE 450S (Understanding China and the U.S.: Stereotypes, Conflicts, and Common Challenges):

• Students who completed most of elementary and secondary education in Chinese speaking country
• Students who have finished CHINESE 333, or CHINESE 407S/408S, or CHINESE 371S, or CHINESE 435S, or their equivalent
• Students who can read news articles and can express their opinions about the articles in oral or written discourses

Enroll in CHINESE 455/456 (Modern Chinese Culture: Narratives of Home and Abroad/Aspects of Chinese Culture and Society):

• Students who completed most of elementary and secondary schooling in a Chinese speaking country

Chinese Language Program Director

Carolyn Lee

Chinese Language Program First-year Coordinator

Tianshu He

Chinese Program Faculty

• Tianshu He, Lecturer and Coordinator for First Year Chinese
• Guo-Juin Hong, Andrew W. Mellon Associate Professor of Chinese Literature and Culture
• Chi-Ju Hsieh, Lecturing Fellow
• Kun Shan (Carolyn) Lee, Professor of the Practice & Director of Chinese Language Program,
• Kang Liu, Professor
• Yan Liu, Assistant Professor of the Practice
• Carlos Rojas, Professor of Chinese Cultural Studies
• Ya-Chuan Chou, Instructor
• Shu-Ting Hsu, Instructor
• Jia Yan, Instructor
• Shu Zhang, Instructor