2.6× more programs to choose from
5,476 programs are taught in Chinese against 2,139 in English. Applying only in English means never seeing most of the catalogue — including whole fields like law and fine arts, which barely exist in English here.
Learn Chinese first Hangzhou
One year of Chinese changes what you can apply to.
Most students apply only to English-taught programs, and never see three quarters of what is available. A preparatory language year costs about 10,000 RMB once — and opens 3,337 programs that were closed to them.
2.6×more programs
+106more universities
8,500RMB/yr cheaper
What it opens
The doors a language year unlocks.
Every figure below is counted from the programs listed on Masar right now.
106 more universities open up
273 universities teach in Chinese; only 167 offer anything in English. Several of the strongest institutions in the country teach their best programs in Chinese only.
The degree itself costs less
Median tuition is 21,500 RMB a year for Chinese-taught programs against 30,000 for English-taught. Over a four-year degree that gap is larger than the entire cost of the language year.
You meet the entry requirement
118 programs in the catalogue state an HSK level in their requirements, usually HSK 4 or 5. A preparatory year is the normal way to reach it, and without it those applications are refused before they are read.
The arithmetic
It usually pays for itself.
A language year is an extra year and an extra fee. Set that against the lower tuition of a Chinese-taught degree and the maths generally favours doing it.
What it is worth
Choose the degree you are aiming at
Programs you can apply to in English2,139
Programs you can apply to with Chinese5,476
Extra options a language year opens+3,337 (2.6× the choice)
Median tuition, taught in English30,000 RMB / year
Median tuition, taught in Chinese21,500 RMB / year
Saved across 4 years34,000 RMB
Cost of the language year− 10,000 RMB
Net position after your Bachelor's degree+ 24,000 RMBThe language year pays for itself roughly 3.4 times over — and you still gain the extra 3,337 programs and the language itself.
Browse language programs
Medians from the 7,615 degree programs currently listed. Individual programs vary — check the figure on each page.
The real advantage
The gap shows up after graduation.
Two students finish the same degree at the same university. One spent a year on the language first. Four years later they are not competing for the same jobs.
You are not stuck in the international bubble
Students who arrive without Chinese tend to socialise only with other international students, and leave four years later with the same. The ones who did a language year have Chinese classmates, friends, and a life outside the campus gate.
You are employable in the country you studied in
Almost every graduate job in China assumes working Chinese. A degree taught in English without the language qualifies you for a very small pool of multinational roles; with it, the domestic market opens.
You handle your own life
Housing, banking, hospitals, visa renewals, and part-time work all happen in Chinese. Students who can manage these themselves spend less money on intermediaries and far less time stuck.
You start the degree already adjusted
The hardest year of studying abroad is usually the first. Doing it during a low-stakes language course rather than during a graded degree year is a real advantage over classmates arriving cold.
You can do business, not just be employed
China is Algeria's largest source of imports, and the people arranging that trade negotiate in Chinese. A graduate who can sit in a factory meeting in Guangzhou, read a contract, and hold a supplier to it is doing something almost nobody back home can do — and it does not require anyone to hire you first.
When it is not the right move
- You are certain about an English-taught program at a specific university, and it accepts you now. Adding a year costs you a year.
- Funding is time-limited, or a sponsor will only cover the degree itself. Scholarship coverage for language programs is far weaker than for degrees.
- You will not use Chinese outside class. A language year spent with only international students achieves very little.
- Your field barely exists in Chinese-taught form for international students, so the extra choice would not apply to you.
One thing this does notchange: scholarship availability is the same either way — about three quarters of programs offer something whether they are taught in Chinese or English. Choose the language year for the choice, the cost, and the life; not for better funding odds.
Start with the language.
455 preparatory Chinese programs are listed, from one semester to a full year.