Hanyu Shuiping Kaoshi (Chinese trad. 漢語 水平 考試, exercise 汉语 水平 考试, pinyin: Hànyǔ Shuǐpíng Kǎoshì) is a standardized Chinese language proficiency exam (Mandarin) for non-native Chinese speakers, namely foreign students, overseas Chinese and representatives of ethnic minorities living in the PRC. The HSK qualification exam is a unified form of attestation for international students. The HSK exam scores are recognized all over the world. Wikipedia
The HSK certificate is valid for 2 years. He is often asked when going to university or when recruiting. I didn’t need anything, but ... I have been living in China for almost 2 years now, I’m learning Chinese practically on my own. I have a friend in Guangzhou with whom we help each other - I speak to her in English, she to me in Chinese. Things got a little more complicated when I moved to Beijing, but we came up with a great way - we made a schedule: on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays we correspond only in English, on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays - only in Chinese. Once a week - we communicate online, first in one, then in another language.
A month later, I already felt the results! I recommend it to everyone - find yourself a penpal in the learning language - and chat! About everything! I began to notice that many hieroglyphs are remembered.
But these results are difficult to feel, difficult to measure... And then a great idea came to mind! Not into my, but into the wise head of a friend - to pass the HSK exam!
Leaving China soon, it’s stupid not to take advantage of this opportunity!
How to register
The site has been translated into English, which means that there shouldn't be any problems with registration. The registration form is pretty simple:
Account registration form
After you register on the site, you can register for the exam itself.
To register for the exam, you need to click "Checkout". So, we have before us all 6 possible levels of the HSK exam. Level 1 is the lowest and Level 6 is correspondingly the highest. To roughly estimate, level 5 is the university graduate level. Everyone is obliged to take it at the end.
Let's take the HSK 4 exam as an example, as it is the most demanded. It is he who is asked to provide for admission to Chinese universities, it is for him, first of all, that applicants are preparing.
After clicking on the "Checkout" button, you will be asked to fill out another registration form. This time for the exam itself.
The first stage is the selection of examination points.
Step 1. Selection of examination points
Please, Please note that when you fill in the first and last name, write in English, not Russian! I did it wrong, as a result, the day before the exam, they called me from the examination center and asked to bring a copy of my passport with me.
By the way, with this call it turned out so inconvenient. So be it, I'll tell you about my embarrassment.
I often get calls and offer to buy something, in general, obsessive advertisers. And they, by the way, are much more intrusive than any Russian. Therefore, when I pick up the phone and hear Chinese speech, even just a greeting - I immediately say that, they say, excuse me, I don't speak Chinese, all the best.
And then they call me from the center!
Well, out of habit I gave out - "I'm sorry, I don't speak Chinese" - and hung up (tomorrow is an exam in Chinese, and I declare to them that I do not speak !!!)). They call again - I will drop it. They call again. I think - this is arrogance, I start to speak in an angry voice ... and a girl interrupts me and, in despair, quickly, so that I do not have time to hang up, she blurted out: "This is the HSK center, this is important for you !!!"
So, before the exam, it is better to listen to everyone first ...
Step 2. Entering personal data
By going to the next page, you will see information on completing registration and further instructions.
That's all. After clicking the pay button, you will be redirected to the payment page. Payment can be made using standard means: Visa, Mastercard, Unionpay, American Express. Unfortunately, there are no Russian payment systems such as Webmoney, Qiwi and Yandex.Money, but if you have a bank card, this will not be a problem.
Exam Fees HSK 1-6
HSK cost depends on the level. The lowest tier is the cheapest. The price level is as follows:
- Level 1 - 100 RMB
- Level 2 - 200 RMB
- Level 3 - 300 RMB
- Level 4 - RMB 400
- Level 5 - RMB 500
- Level 6 - 600 RMB.
If you rent in Russia, then the prices are likely to be slightly higher, ~ 50 yuan.
How to get to the exam?
After payment, you will have access to the Admission Ticket (you will need to print it out and take it with you) and some materials, sample tests that you can download and prepare.
This is what the pass looks like:
How to prepare?
I took the advice of a friend (who took HSK4), bought books with examples for my exam, and did, then disassembled, memorized the hieroglyphs. They meet all the time, so the material is well remembered.
Here's an example of one of them:
And in general, very often in tests it is necessary to prepare well for the structure of the test. There are many cases when a person has a good level of language, but due to insufficient preparation for a specific test, the results are quite low. In addition, when I passed the exam itself, some tasks were very similar to those for which I trained, and the hieroglyphs are generally the same. By the way, for this level it is enough to know 600 hieroglyphs.
So, we type a large number of sample tests - and listen-read-write-parse-check!
What should I bring with me?
2 pencils 2B ( important: check that 2B is written on a pencil, only this one is suitable), elastic band, passport. And of course, a pass!
Something like this looks like an exam answer sheet.
Carefully transfer your answers to this sheet, paint over the square (or rather, the rectangle) with the correct option. Well, in the last written part, you will need to write hieroglyphs.
What is the structure of the test itself?
The first part is listening. It consists of 40 questions. The first 10 are the simplest, you are given pictures, then you listen to short dialogues and compare them with the corresponding picture. The next 10 questions - you need to listen to small dialogues, then some kind of statement is given, you need to determine whether it is true or not. And the last part - you listen and choose the correct answer to the question. The entire listening block is given 35 minutes, then 5 minutes to transfer the answers to the sheet.
The second part is reading.
Again, the first 10 questions are very simple. It is necessary to compare sentences in meaning. There is no pinyin in HSK 3, only hieroglyphs. The next 10 tasks - you need to insert the corresponding hieroglyphs (they are given) into the gaps, the last 10 tasks are a little more difficult, you will have to read more. There you need to choose the correct answer to the question. 30 minutes are allocated for this part, please note that additional time is not given separately to transfer answers to the form, control the time yourself.
The last part is a letter. When I was preparing at home, this part was the most difficult for me. On the test itself, it did not seem so. So, the first part - 5 sentences, you need to put the hieroglyphs in the correct order to get a well-written sentence.
And the last 5 tasks - suggestions are given, you need to write a hieroglyph in the pass (pinyin is given for a hint, hieroglyphs are not given to choose from, you need to remember it yourself). But they are not difficult. For example, I got caught, 听 ， 再 ， 也 ， 中 ， 给。
The written part is given 15 minutes.
For me this is a great experience and a great kick to practice. While preparing for the exam, you learn so many new things, you memorize so many hieroglyphs, you immediately feel progress!
Good luck on your exam! As they say, no fluff, no feather!
P.S. The exam took place in one of the examination centers in China (Beijing). If you have experience of putting it in Russia or in other countries, we will be glad to hear your experience in the comments.
We have several HSK3 tests with answers, you can find them below:
If you find an error, please select a piece of text and press Ctrl + Enter.
HSK Is a test of the level of proficiency in the Chinese language, designed for foreigners for whom the Chinese language is not native.
The certificate is recognized throughout the civilized world and is the only form of attestation for foreign students.
Who needs a Chinese proficiency test?
Basically, they rent it:
- Foreign applicants who are faced with the task of entering a Chinese university (the minimum requirement is to pass the 4th level test).
- People who go to China to work on a contract basis (some companies require a language exam certificate).
- Foreign Chinese (who were born, lived outside the PRC and do not have Chinese communication skills).
- People who are interested in the Celestial Empire, its culture and simply want to replenish their life baggage with another mastered language.
Chinese HSK levels?
The certification consists of 6 levels language proficiency that require certain basic knowledge to successfully pass:
- HSK 1 -
- HSK 2 -
- HSK 3 -
- HSK 4 -
- HSK 5 -
- HSK 6 - 5000 words
In addition to vocabulary, you need to understand grammar, be able to write hieroglyphs and have practice of listening to speech (for successful listening).
What are the parts of the HSK?
- HSK 1-2 consists of two parts: listening and reading.
- HSK 3-6 has three parts: Listening, Reading and Writing.
How long is the Chinese HSK exam?
The time for writing a language test depends on the level of its complexity and ranges from 35 to 135 minutes.
At the same time, having finished one part (for example, reading), you do not have the right to start writing the next part (letter) before the expiration of the time allotted for reading.
These are the rules!
As strange as it may seem, the fact that you cannot use the saved precious time to write the rest of the exam - they will run up to you and snatch the pen from your hands if you try to continue writing openly. If imperceptibly, then of course you can try ...)
How many points do you need to score to successfully pass?
For successful delivery, you need to dial 180 bonuses... A certificate with the results will be sent to you at the address indicated in the registration form for the test.
Official site of certification -
On the site you can pay for hsk exam, track the results, get additional information about the place and time of writing the certification.
Successfully passing the HSK gives you the opportunity to:
- get a scholarship to study at a Chinese university;
- get an advantage when applying for a job;
- replenish the list of their advantages over other specialists.
Remember, in order to pass a language certification, you need to invest a lot of effort and patience, because, like everything in life, this is not given for nothing! Daily work, constant practice is the only way to success!
I would also like to say that the system of this language exam has many subtleties and nuances that you should be familiar with in advance, because some people cannot pass it not because they lack knowledge, but only because they lack skill!
Very often, the assessed are faced with the problem of lack of time, since initially it was incorrectly allocated by them. To solve this problem, it is necessary to solve a dozen trial tests, analyze your weaknesses and strengths, so that you correctly form the tactics, strategy of your exam writing!
For a person, nothing is impossible - you just have to want! And opportunities will appear by themselves, because everything we think about - sooner or later becomes reality!
And remember, the road will be mastered by the walking!
1 HSK level
The HSK exam (level one) tests and evaluates the test taker's level of Chinese language proficiency. It meets the first level of the "International Criteria for the Level of Chinese Language", level A1 of the "Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEF)". Test takers who pass the HSK (Level 1) exam can understand and use the simplest words and phrases in Chinese for basic communication, and can pursue further studies.
The HSK exam (first level) is aimed at test takers who learn Chinese 2-3 hours per week for 1 semester and are proficient in 150 commonly used words and related grammar.
Level 2 HSK
The HSK exam (second level) tests and evaluates the test taker's ability to use the Chinese language. It meets the second level of the "International Criteria for the Level of Chinese Language", level A2 of the "Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEF)". Test takers who pass the HSK (Level 2) test can have simple contact communication in Chinese on the most common topics, and can reach the "A" grade of the entry-level Chinese language.
The HSK exam (second level) is designed for test takers who learn Chinese 2-3 hours per week for 2 semesters (1 academic year) and are fluent in 300 commonly used words and related grammar.
Level 3 HSK
The HSK exam (level three) tests and evaluates the test taker's ability to use the Chinese language. It corresponds to the third level of the "International Criteria for the Level of Chinese Language", level B1 of the "Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEF)". Examiners who passed the test (level 3) can perform basic communication tasks through the Chinese language in everyday life, study and work, can cope with most communication tasks during an excursion in China.
The HSK exam (third level) is aimed at test takers who learn Chinese 2-3 hours per week for 3 semesters (one and a half years) and are fluent in 600 commonly used words and related grammar.
4 level HSK
The HSK exam (level four) tests and evaluates the test taker's ability to use the Chinese language. It corresponds to the fourth level of the "International Criteria for the Level of Chinese Language", level B2 of the "Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEF)". Test takers who pass the HSK (Level 4) exam are able to conduct discussions in Chinese on topics in many areas, and can communicate fluently with native Chinese speakers.
The HSK exam (fourth level) is aimed at test takers who learn Chinese 2-3 hours per week for 4 semesters (2 academic years) and are proficient in 1200 commonly used words and related grammar.
Level 5 HSK
The HSK exam (level five) tests and evaluates the test taker's ability to use the Chinese language. It corresponds to the fifth level of the "International Criteria for the Level of Chinese Language", level C1 of the "Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEF)". Test takers who pass the HSK (Level 5) can read Chinese newspapers and magazines, can understand Chinese language TV programs, and can speak to an audience in Chinese.
The HSK exam (Level 5) is aimed at test takers who have been learning Chinese 2-4 hours per week for over 2 years and are proficient in 2,500 commonly used words.
6 level HSK
The HSK exam (sixth level) tests and evaluates the test taker's ability to use the Chinese language. It corresponds to the fifth level of the "International Criteria for the Level of Chinese Language", level C2 of the "Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEF)". Test takers who have passed the HSK test (level 6) can easily receive oral and written information in Chinese, and can freely express their thoughts in Chinese either orally or in writing.
The HSK (sixth level) exam is aimed at test takers who speak 5,000 or more commonly used words.
Exam duration:
HSK Level 1- 35 minutes
HSK level 2
- 50 minutes
HSK level 3- 85 minutes
HSK level 4- 100 minutes
HSK level 5- 120 minutes
HSK level 6- 135 minutes
Each exam consists of three parts: listening, reading and writing (for levels 1 and 2, listening and reading only).
Minimum points:
HSK 1 and 2 level- 120 points out of 200
HSK 3, 4, 5 and 6 levels- 180 points out of 300
The starting time for exams HSK 1, HSK 3, HSK 5 is 13.30 (collection at 13.00).
The starting time for exams HSK 2. HSK 4, HSK 6 - 09.00 (collection at 08.30).
Chinese education is becoming more and more popular - it is often cheaper to study there than in Western universities, and the state's ambitious plans in the field of higher education ensure the growing quality of university programs. And contrary to stereotypes about the complexity of the Chinese language, it is quite possible to learn it for admission to a university. Theory and Practice has compiled useful information and tips to help you pass the HSK, the Chinese language exam for international students.
What it is
The standardized HSK exam was introduced in 1990 and has since been held several times a year around the world. In 2009, the State Department of the PRC for the Promotion of Chinese Language Abroad partially reformed the exam, developing a new version of it. The new HSK exam has been brought in line with the European norms of language exams, and in its format is close to the Chinese equivalent of TOEFL.
The reformed HSK is divided into six difficulty levels. Levels 1, 2 and 3 validate basic Chinese skills. Level 4 allows you to apply for an internship and study in China under a bachelor's program, and levels 5 and 6 give you the opportunity to enroll in a Chinese master's and postgraduate programs.
The main feature of the HSK exam is that the written and oral parts of the exam are completely independent from each other. Instead of six levels, the oral exam is divided into three (for admission to the university, it is enough to provide a level 2 certificate)
How to take
The most popular is the fourth level of HSK, which allows you to enter the undergraduate program of a Chinese university in language, humanities and natural sciences. To pass the exam, you need to know over 1200 Chinese words and communicate fluently with native speakers on a daily basis. This level assumes that the examinee has spent about 300-500 hours learning Chinese. In order to successfully pass the exam and receive a certificate, it is necessary to correctly solve more than 60% of the tasks, gaining 180 points out of 300 possible. The Level 4 Written Exam consists of three sections (Listening, Reading and Grammar / Writing) and has a total of 100 questions.
The Listening section consists of three sections. In total, it includes 45 questions and takes 30 minutes. The first 10 questions are short situational dialogues or monologues, after which you need to indicate whether the statement given after the listened dialogue is correct. The second and third listening sections (questions 11 - 45) are similar in type of assignment. The examinee is required to listen to the dialogue and choose the most appropriate answer to the question posed to the dialogue from four answer options. Answers require both a literal understanding of the vocabulary voiced, and the ability to isolate the essence from what he heard and paraphrase it.
This is followed by the “Reading” block, which consists of 40 questions. The reading assignments in the HSK Level 4 exam mainly test combined skills: reading + grammar. The first part contains multiple choice and an open-ended question test. In the second part, the ability to consistently and logically build sentences to get a small and coherent piece of text is tested, as well as to understand the essence of what is said and interpret it. Half an hour is given to complete all tasks.
The "Writing" block at the fourth level of the exam only superficially tests the ability to express one's thoughts coherently and independently and put specific words into grammatically correct sentences. The exam does not involve writing an essay. It consists of 15 questions and is divided into two parts. In the first (questions 86 - 95), you need to put the proposed words in the correct order. In the second part (questions 96 - 100), it is required to describe the picture using the word given by the creators of the exam. Everything is given 15 minutes.
The oral part is not included in this exam, but is an independent examination test for which you must register separately and pay for it separately. The most popular level of the oral test is the second. The oral part lasts 21 minutes and involves performing three tasks: retelling the text, describing the picture and answering questions
The entire exam is allocated 100 minutes, plus 5 minutes to complete the registration forms.
How to register
In Moscow, HSK is held once a year and is organized by the Department of Chinese Philology of the Institute of Asian and African Countries at Moscow State University. The written part of the exam costs about 2,000 rubles, the same will have to be paid for the oral part. Registration for the exam opens in advance and ends one month before the exam. It is possible to register online.
The results are announced about a month after the exam. You can find them both online and in the test center. Any level certificate is valid for 2 years.
Julia Kuznetsova, Chinese teacher at ISAA MSU
Train yourself for speed. Exactly train. It is very important from the very beginning of preparation to do tests not in a relaxed state, but for a while and even in a hurry, setting a stopwatch. In language tests of other languages, the problem of time is also acute, but not so much. In the HSK exam, a huge array of tasks is given a minimum time of only 100 minutes.
Pay special attention to the hieroglyphics. Nobody can help you with memorizing hieroglyphs: you need persistent training of memory, hands and associative thinking. Here the rule is: “Sit. Memorize. Learn".
There is a widespread belief that the grammar of the Chinese language is quite simple, since it does not contain categories of gender and number, as well as simplified systems of agreements and temporal relations. But do not delude yourself - there are also difficult aspects: syntax, sentence structure, conjunctions, word placement rules. You need to be very careful with them.
Most Chinese courses are now taught by native speakers. However, my teaching experience shows that at the basic and intermediate level of learning Chinese, the student should have a Russian-speaking teacher, because he can draw analogies between Russian and Chinese. It is very important. When there is no teacher who will say: “do not be alarmed, there is a similar structure in the Russian language, and I will clearly explain everything to you now,” the student may get confused in elementary things. So don't chase after a native speaker in the early stages of learning Chinese.
You need to understand that the Chinese language is binaren, that is, two characters most often mean one word, and the average Chinese word is two syllables. It is because of these sound features of the language that it is quite difficult for students to be given the listening section. While listening to any text or dialogue, short words sound and sound for a minimum amount of time. Such compressed information produces a kind of "tsunami effect".
For the HSK exam, a brochure is officially published with a minimum list of words that you need to know to successfully pass the exam at any of the levels. This is generally the specificity of the Chinese: they like to group, count, systematize. A big mistake of any student is to start cramming words from there, while they should not cram them separately, but be able to see them in context. Therefore, it is worth reading more all kinds of stories, articles, texts. Approach to the exam with the question: "How many words do I need to know to get a certificate?" not viable.
Nikita Poverinov, 3rd year student of ISAA MSU
In my opinion, the HSK test levels can be grouped according to the degree of difficulty: if levels 1-3 are almost equally easy to pass, then at the 4th level the difficulty of the exam increases noticeably and does not change too much up to the 6th level. I think this is due to the fact that most of the basic grammar of the Chinese language students usually master in the first year, so the main difference between the levels is perhaps in the number of characters used; and since in many HSK tasks, understanding the general meaning of a sentence / phrase is the key to solving them, knowledge of individual characters is sometimes not required (I emphasize: it is for passing the HSK, but by no means for learning the language in general!)
One of the keys to successfully passing HSK is the ability to quickly grasp and analyze a significant amount of text. This is especially useful in listening, when, before turning on the audio recording, you need to immediately look and remember all the possible answers, so that you can then listen to the recording, keeping them in your head. By the way, you shouldn't be afraid of not hearing anything: the announcers have a standard Peking pronunciation!
A few words about the tasks of the third part (writing): for the initial levels, they consist in simple reproduction of the hieroglyph according to the given pinyin transcription, for more complex ones - in the description of pictures and writing short texts. In this part, your ability to write correctly in Chinese is mainly tested, so it is not necessary to be smart with the hieroglyphs that you are not sure about! If you want to pass the HSK, and not recklessly flaunt your vocabulary, a short but clear description of the image or a small capacious text that satisfies all the conditions of the assignment is enough.
