Chinese (Mandarin) for Character Background Students

Chinese is spoken by more than 1.5 billion people in the world and is one of the six official languages of the UN. China has a 5000 year history and culture, boasts the fastest-growing economy in the world and is widely regarded as the potentially biggest global market in the twenty-first century.

This major in Chinese (Mandarin) is for students who are already familiar with Chinese characters but who may speak a different dialect. It provides a course of study which allows any student, regardless of their background in the discipline, to specialise in Mandarin so that they are able to:

* comprehend normal spoken and written Mandarin in all situations;

* express themselves clearly and accurately in spoken and written Mandarin in most situations;

* discuss and evaluate different registers and their use in different contexts;

* develop their knowledge of Mandarin to move from dependence on formal instruction to ongoing independent acquisition of linguistic proficiency;

* gather, synthesise and evaluate information on socio-political topics of current interest from Mandarin texts in different media including the internet and the press;

* recognise the differences between Chinese culture and other cultural heritages such as Anglo-Australian by analysing film, poetry and other cultural products, and mediate between these cultures;

* take advantage of the opportunity to include a period of study abroad at an exchange university in China as part of their Wollongong undergraduate degree.

Students without background in characters should enrol in the major Chinese (Mandarin for non-background students) and should consult the Convenor of Chinese if they are uncertain of their status.

Major Study

A major in Chinese (Mandarin) for students with a background in Chinese characters consists of 66 credit points, and must include

• 18 credit points at 100-level (MAND 161, MAND 162 and LANG 110),

• 24 credit points at 200-level (MAND261, MAND262 and LANG210),

• 24 credit points at 300-level (MAND 361, MAND 362 and a further 300 level subject with appropriate content as approved by the Convenor of Chinese.

Students may also include a period of in-country study by enrolling in MAND 253

Minor Study

A minor study in Mandarin consists of four sequential subjects in Mandarin. The minor will consist of 28 or 32 credit points of language study (28 credit points for students beginning at 100-level and 32 credit points for students beginning at upper levels). Students may not cross-count any subjects from the minor in any other minor or major study.

Example: A student beginner could take a minor by studying MAND161, MAND162, MAND261 and MAND262.

An advanced student who has a background in characters and who speaks some Mandarin or another dialect when commencing university Mandarin at second year level could take a Minor by studying MAND261, MAND262, MAND361 and MAND362.

Whilst the minor will not be stipulated on the student's testamur at graduation, it will be recorded on the academic transcript.

Certificate in Languages (Mandarin)

To qualify for the award of the Certificate in Languages (course code 1001) a student must complete a total of at least 24 credit points from subjects listed from the Mandarin study program below.

Students are required to complete 3 or 4 sequential language subjects over a minimum of 3 or 4 semesters depending on level of entry.

Example: A student with background in Chinese characters could take the Certificate by studying MAND161, MAND162, MAND261 and MAND262.

A student who has knowledge of characters and who speaks some Mandarin or another Chinese dialect when commencing university Mandarin at upper level could complete the Certificate of Languages in Mandarin by studying MAND261, MAND262, MAND361 or MAND362.

Other subjects from the Mandarin program may be included with the permission of the Director of the Language Centre.

Subjects counted towards any degree cannot also be counted towards the Certificate and subjects counted towards the Certificate cannot be counted towards another degree.

Click here for more information on the Certificate in Languages

Diploma in Languages (Mandarin)

To qualify for award of the Diploma in Languages (course code 1002) a student must complete a total of at least 48 credit points from subjects listed from the Mandarin study program below.

Students are required to complete 6 or 7 sequential language subjects over a minimum of 6 or 7 semesters depending on level of entry.

Example: A student beginner could take the Diploma by studying MAND161, MAND162, MAND261, MAND262, MAND361, MAND362, LING110 or LING210.

A student who has knowledge of characters and speaks Mandarin or another Chinese dialect when commencing university Mandarin at upper level could complete the Diploma of Languages in Mandarin by studying MAND261, MAND262, LING 110, LING210, MAND361, MAND362 and another 300 level subject with appropriate content as approved by the Convenor of Chinese (Mandarin) Studies.

Students may also include a period of in-country study by enrolling in MAND 253.

Other subjects from the Mandarin program may be included with the permission of the Director of the Language Centre.

Subjects counted towards any degree cannot also be counted towards the Diploma and subjects counted towards the Diploma cannot be counted towards another degree.

Click here for more information on the Diploma in Languages

Honours

See Bachelor of Arts (Honours)

Study Program

Subject Code	Subject Name	Credit Points	Session
MAND161	Chinese (Mandarin) for Character Background Students (CBS) 1A	6	Autumn
MAND162	Chinese (Mandarin) for Character Background Students (CBS) 1B	6	Spring
MAND261	Intermediate Chinese for Character Background Speakers (CBS) 2A	8	Autumn
MAND262	Intermediate Chinese for Character Background Speakers (CBS) 2B	8	Spring
MAND361	Advanced Chinese for Character Background Speakers (CBS) 3A	8	N/O 2010
MAND362	Advanced Chinese for Characters Background Speakers (CBS) 3B	8	N/O 2010
MAND253	In-country session	8	N/O 2010
LING110	Language and Language Learning	6	N/O 2010
LING210	Communicating in a Foreign Language	8	Autumn
One 300 level subject with Chinese content	8